EDINBORO, Pa. (Feb. 28) – The California University of Pennsylvania women's basketball team was eliminated from the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Tournament with an 89-45 loss at Edinboro in the quarterfinals on Wednesday night.
With the loss, the Vulcans fall to 24-6 overall with all six losses coming on the road. Cal U, which remained sixth in the latest NCAA regional rankings on Wednesday, must now wait to see if it receives an at-large berth to the NCAA Tournament with the selections announced on Sunday, March 4. Meanwhile, the Fighting Scots improve to 24-3 this season and advance to face West Chester in the semifinals of the PSAC Tournament on Saturday, March 3.
Junior
Emily Suckling (Cheltenham, Australia/Mentone Girls' Secondary College) led the team with a season-high 10 points off the bench after she totaled just 22 points all season. She shot three-of-nine from the floor with a pair of three-pointers while playing a season-high 28 minutes on Wednesday.
Sophomore
Gina Vallecorsa (Pittsburgh, Pa./Bishop Canevin) tallied nine points and five rebounds in 23 minutes off the bench. Senior
Shatara Parsons (Harrisburg, Pa./Central Dauphin) was held to a season-low eight points and also added five rebounds and four blocks in the loss. She managed to move into fourth place in single-season school history with 634 points on Wednesday.
Edinboro raced out to a 15-0 lead in the first quarter, as Cal U missed its initial eight shots of the game. The Vulcans eventually recorded their opening points of the contest at the 2:54-mark and trailed 18-4 at the end of first quarter. The Fighting Scots continued to add to their lead throughout the second quarter, as they mounted a 17-2 run to take a 35-6 lead with 2:14 left before halftime. Cal U snapped a six-plus minute scoreless drought at the 1:37-mark and eventually trailed 40-10 at the break.
The teams traded rallies early in the third quarter before the Fighting Scots mounted an 11-4 run to take a 57-21 lead at the 2:31-mark. Edinboro later scored 10-unanswered points to take a 44-point lead, 71-27, with 7:58 left in the fourth quarter. The Vulcans went nearly six minutes without a field goal before Suckling made a three-pointer at the 5:01-mark. The teams then traded points over the remainder of the game with Edinboro securing the victory to advance in the PSAC Tournament.
Cal U was limited to a season-low .258 field-goal percentage (17-of-66) after making just four shots in the first half. Meanwhile, Edinboro converted 50.8 percent (31-of-61) from the floor and shot 87.5 percent (21-of-24) from the free-throw line. The Fighting Scots held a sizeable 52-31 rebounding advantage and scored 46 points in the paint. The Vulcans were held to just 11 points off turnovers in the loss.
Junior Michelle Jahn scored a game-high 21 points after shooting 7-of-14 from the floor, including four-of-eight from beyond the arc. Senior Ciara Rosten recorded a double-double with 12 points and 14 rebounds (five offensive), plus three assists and seven blocks, while sophomore Michaela Barnes posted 14 points, four rebounds and three assists.
The selection show for the NCAA Tournament will be streamed live on Sunday at approximately 10 p.m.
