CLARION (Feb. 18) –  The No. 3 California University of Pennsylvania women's basketball team clinched at least a share of the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) West title and an opening-round bye in the league tournament with a 79-54 victory at Clarion on Saturday evening in divisional action.

With the win, the Vulcans improves to 25-1 overall behind a 19-1 mark in league play. Cal U holds a two-game lead in the PSAC West standings with two games left in the regular season next week, both against regionally-ranked opponents. Meanwhile, Clarion falls to 14-12 this season with a 11-9 record in conference action.

Junior Shatara Parsons (Harrisburg, Pa./Central Dauphin) set a season-high 24 points on 12-of-16 shooting from the floor while playing just 23 minutes. She also recorded seven rebounds (five offensive) and two steals in the victory. Parsons has now scored at least 20 points in three games this year despite missing four games.

Senior guard Miki Glenn (Bridgeport, W.Va./Bridgeport) finished with her third double-double of the season, tallying 17 points and 10 rebounds. She also added five assists and five steals against the Golden Eagles. Junior Seairra Barrett (Center Twp., Pa./Central Valley) posted 14 points behind a perfect six-of-six from the free-throw line, while senior Lana Doran (Northamptonshire, England/Barking Abbey) tallied 13 points with a pair of three-pointers. Sophomore Abbey Sporio (Elizabeth, Pa./Elizabeth Forward) collected five rebounds and steals while coming off the bench on Saturday.

Doran started the scoring with a three-pointer, as the Vulcans built a 19-2 lead at the 5:39-mark in the first quarter. Cal U shot seven-of-eight to open the contest and forced six Clarion turnovers. The Golden Eagles later scored six-straight points to cut the deficit to 23-10 before the Vulcans closed the first quarter with seven-consecutive points to take a 30-10 lead on a lay-up from Parsons with 10 seconds left. The Vulcans started the second quarter with back-to-back lay-ups before the teams traded points for the next three minutes with Cal U holding a 39-15 lead with 6:16 left in the first half. Clarion took advantage of a five-minute scoreless drought by Cal U to cut the deficit to 39-23 at the 1:39-mark. Parsons made a jumper with 1:02 left in the half before the Vulcans took a 43-25 lead at the break. The Vulcans forcing 17 turnovers by the Golden Eagles in the first half despite shooting just 4-of-16 in the second quarter.

Clarion started the second half on a 7-2 run that spanned over three minutes to trim the deficit to 45-32 with 6:26 left in the third quarter. The Vulcans later scored 12-unanswered points to close out the third quarter to take a 63-39 lead on a fastbreak layup from Glenn with 32 seconds left in the quarter. A tip-in from Glenn opened a 7-2 run by Cal U to start the fourth quarter that extended its lead to 67-39 with 9:19 remaining in the game. The Vulcans never let Golden Eagles cut the deficit below 23 points in the final quarter and eventually closed the game with a 79-54 win.
 
The Vulcans finished the game shooting 41.4 percent (29-of-70) from the floor and 85.7 percent (19-of-26) from the free-throw line. Meanwhile, Clarion made 39.3 percent (22-of-56) from the field despite going just 22.2 percent (4-of-18) from beyond the arc. Clarion held a slight 40-39 rebounding advantage, while Cal U held a 24-4 edge in fastbreak points. The Vulcans also forced 26 turnovers that led to 34 points.

Senior Delrika Jones-Carey led the Golden Eagles with 15 points on 7-of-10 shooting and added seven rebounds and three blocks. Classmate Tyra Polite nearly tallied a double-double with 10 points and nine rebounds in the loss.

Cal U returns to action on Wednesday, Feb. 22, when it travels to face Mercyhurst in Erie, Pennsylvania, with tip at 5:30 p.m.