SHIPPENSBURG, Pa. (March 4) – Junior Shatara Parsons (Harrisburg, Pa./Central Dauphin) scored the game-winning basket with 3.4 seconds left in regulation on Saturday afternoon, as the No. 5 California University of Pennsylvania women's basketball team claimed a 71-69 win over East Stroudsburg in the semifinals of the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Tournament.

With the victory, the Vulcans improve to 28-2 overall and will now play in the PSAC Championship for the third-straight year. Cal U, which is the top seed in the tournament from the PSAC West, advances to face the IUP for the league title tomorrow, Sunday, March 5, in Shippensburg, Pennsylvania. Meanwhile, the Warriors finish the season with a 19-9 overall record after winning 10 of their previous 11 games

Junior Seairra Barrett (Center Twp., Pa./Central Valley) led all players with 23 points on 10-of-13 shooting despite playing just 11 minutes in the second half due to foul trouble. She also tallied five rebounds, three assists and three steals against the Warriors. Barrett has now scored at least 20 points in nine games this year while averaging a career-high 17.7 points per game.

Parsons finished with 18 points after going 8-of-12 from the floor while playing a season-high 35 minutes. She also registered eight rebounds and two assists on Saturday. Sophomore guard Abbey Sporio (Elizabeth, Pa./Elizabeth Forward) set career highs and led the team with 11 rebounds and seven assists, while also posting eight points and two steals. Senior Precious Marin (Harrisburg, Pa./Central Dauphin) scored eight points and added four rebounds in the victory.

The Vulcans were without a pair of starters in the contest, as seniors Miki Glenn (Bridgeport, W.Va./Bridgeport) and Lana Doran (Northamptonshire, England/Barking Abbey) didn't dress due to injury. Glenn, who repeated as the PSAC West Athlete of the Year on Thursday, missed the first game of her college career after playing all 123 games (120 starts) since the 2013-14 season.

Neither team was able to take more than a two-possession lead in the first quarter. East Stroudsburg mounted a 7-2 run in just over a minute to take a 12-7 lead with 4:08 left in the quarter. The Vulcans then countered seven-straight points to take a 14-12 lead after Barrett made a layup with 19 seconds left in the quarter. Cal U scored the opening seven points of the second quarter to stretch its lead to 21-12 with 8:01 left before halftime after Parsons converted a three-point play. The Warriors later scored 12-unanswered points over almost three minutes to take the lead at 30-27 with 2:49 remaining in the second quarter. Both teams were scoreless for over two minutes before Barrett made a layup with 35 seconds left to cut the deficit to 30-29 at the break.

The two teams combined for 14 ties and nine lead changes in the second half. Neither team held more than a single-possession lead in the third quarter despite Barrett being whistled for her fourth foul at the 3:55-mark. The Warriors were then only able to take a 50-47 lead at the end of the third quarter. Cal U took a 51-50 lead in the opening 90 seconds of the fourth quarter on a layup by Parsons before ESU countered with a three-point play on the ensuing possession. Barrett returned to the game with the scored tied at 59-59 and 4:39 left in regulation. The teams traded points until the Warriors took a 63-62 lead – their last of the game – on a layup with 3:09 left to play. Cal U answered with three-straight points to take a 65-63 lead before ESU tied the score on another layup at the 1:58-mark. The Vulcans made a pair of free-throws over the next four seconds before the Warriors converted both attempts at the charity strip with 59 seconds left to play. Barrett gave Cal U a 69-67 lead with 44.1 seconds remaining before ESU responded with a jumper in the lane and 31.5 seconds left in regulation. Following a timeout by the Vulcans, Parsons worked deep inside the paint for the eventual game-winning basket. ESU was unable to get a shot attempt off in the final seconds, as Sporio collected a steal at the buzzer.
 
The Vulcans shot over 60 percent in the second half to finish the game shooting at a .500 clip (28-of-56). In comparison, the Warriors made 40 percent (28-of-70) from the field after going just 4-of-18 (22.2 percent) from beyond the arc. Cal U finished with a 37-35 rebounding advantage and scored 42 points from inside the paint. The Vulcans overcame 20 turnovers in the victory, which marked their second-highest total of the year.

ESU junior Imani Brown registered a double-double with team highs of 22 points and 10 rebounds. Senior Allison Howard, the team's leading scorer and rebounder, finished with 10 points and six rebounds, while classmate Madison Tamburini posted 11 points, four rebounds and two steals in the loss.

Cal U faces IUP in the PSAC Championship tomorrow for the second-straight year and the fifth time since 2007. The Vulcans swept the series with the Crimson Hawks during the regular season. IUP advanced to the title game on Saturday with a 67-58 overtime victory against the host Raiders.