WEST CHESTER, Pa. (Dec. 2) – The No. 20 Vulcans extended their winning streak to seven games on Sunday afternoon with a 67-52 victory at West Chester in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Crossover play.
With the win, the California University of Pennsylvania women's basketball team improves to 7-0 overall with a 2-0 mark in league action. The Vulcans have now started the season with at least seven-consecutive victories for the fifth time since the 2001-02 campaign. Meanwhile, the Golden Rams fall to 4-5 this season with a 0-2 record in conference play.
Redshirt senior
Seairra Barrett (Center Twp., Pa./Central Valley) registered her third-consecutive double-double on Sunday. She led all players with 28 points after shooting 11-of-22 from the field and six-of-eight from the free-throw line. She also collected 10 rebounds, tallied a season-high six steals and added two assists while playing 37 minutes at West Chester. Barrett has now scored at least 28 points in five of seven games this season.
Senior
Abbey Sporio (Elizabeth, Pa./Elizabeth Forward) posted nine points, four rebounds and six steals in just 16 minutes at West Chester. Sophomore
Bianca Jasper (Middletown, Pa./Middletown) set a career high with eight assists and junior
Gina Vallecorsa (Pittsburgh, Pa./Bishop Canevin) tallied five rebounds and two assists in the victory.
Cal U scored the opening basket of the game before West Chester made four-consecutive shots during an 8-2 run to take an 8-4 lead with 5:31 left in the first quarter. After nearly two scoreless minutes, the Vulcans closed the quarter on an 8-4 run behind six points from Barrett to tie the score at 12-12. West Chester made a layup at the beginning of the second quarter before Cal U rallied off nine-unanswered points to take a 21-14 lead capped by a three-point play from Sporio at the 6:17-mark of the second quarter. Following a layup by the Golden Rams, the Vulcans made five-of-six shots from the floor during an 11-3 run to stretch the lead to 32-19 with 2:22 left before halftime. Cal U later closed the second quarter on an 8-3 run to take a 40-25 lead at the break.
Both teams struggled from the floor in the opening portion of the third quarter, combining for only two field goals until Barrett made a layup at the 5:02-mark. The basket sparked a 13-3 run by Cal U that stretched the lead to 56-31 with 1:05 left in the quarter. The Golden Rams made a pair of free-throws in the final minute to trim the deficit to 56-33 at the end of the third quarter. West Chester mounted an 8-2 run midway through the fourth quarter to work the deficit to 62-44 with 4:41 left to play. After a basket by Barrett at the 2:50-mark, the Golden Rams ended the game with six-straight points to close the 67-52 contest.
Cal U made 41.3 percent (26-of-63) from the floor and went 11-of-16 (68.8 percent) from the free-throw line. West Chester shot at a 34.0 clip (18-of-53) from the field after going just 3-of-14 (21.4 percent) from long range. The Golden Rams posted a 42-37 rebounding advantage, while the Vulcans scored 42 points in the paint and tallied 23 fastbreak points.
West Chester freshman Sarah Holweg scored a team-high 11 points after going three-of-seven from beyond the arc. Junior Gabrielle Troisi recorded nine points, eight rebounds, four assists and two steals in the losing effort.
The Vulcans return to non-conference play on Saturday, Dec. 8, when they host Cheyney at the Convocation Center with tipoff at 1 p.m.
