RICHMOND, Va. (March 9) – The sixth-seeded Vulcans were eliminated in the first round of the NCAA Tournament with a 90-65 loss to third-seeded IUP on Friday afternoon at Barco-Stevens Hall on the campus of Virginia Union.
With the loss, the California University of Pennsylvania women's basketball team finishes the season with 24-7 overall record. The Vulcans were making their 15th appearance in the NCAA Tournament in the last 17 years. Meanwhile, the No. 12 Crimson Hawks improve to 27-3 this season and advance to second round and will face the winner of Glenville State-West Chester tomorrow, Saturday, March 10.
Senior
Shatara Parsons (Harrisburg, Pa./Central Dauphin) finished with a game-high 29 points, including 21 points in the second half after sitting virtually the entire second quarter due to foul trouble. She also collected four rebounds, three blocks and three steals in the losing effort. Parsons moved into ninth place on the all-time scoring list in school history with 1,501 points, surpassing both Lisa Scott (1979-83) and Megan Storck (2003-06).
Sophomore
DJ Hahn (Warren, Pa./Warren) scored 13 points on 6-of-12 shooting and added two rebounds and two steals on Friday. Junior
Abbey Sporio (Elizabeth, Pa./Elizabeth Forward) tallied eight points, five rebounds and three steals in the loss.
IUP mounted a 14-2 run to start the game, including 11-unanswered points over a four-minute span, as Cal U converted just one-of-nine from the floor to open play. Hahn snapped the scoreless drought with a three-pointer at the 4:32-mark, which sparked a 13-5 run by the Vulcans that cut the deficit to 19-15 at the end of the first quarter. Hahn scored the initial basket of the second quarter, as Cal U trimmed the deficit to 19-17 with 8:18 left before halftime. The Vulcans later trailed 25-22 at the 6:19-mark before the Crimson Hawks closed the second quarter on a 13-2 run to take a 38-24 lead into the break.
The Crimson Hawks shot at a blistering 11-of-16 from the floor in the third quarter and out-scored the Vulcans by a 27-14 margin during that span. IUP started the quarter on a 17-4 run after going seven-of-nine from the field to stretch the lead to 55-28 at the 5:30-mark. The Crimson Hawks eventually took a 65-38 lead at the end of the quarter. Midway through the fourth quarter, Cal U mounted a 13-4 run over two-plus minutes to work the deficit to 82-57 with 3:16 left to play.
Cal U finished the game shooting 37.7 percent (26-of-69) from the floor and converted just 2-of-20 (10.0 percent) from beyond the arc. Meanwhile, IUP shot at an impressive .623 clip (33-of-53) from the field, including 7-of-13 (53.8 percent) from three-point territory. The Crimson Hawks recorded a sizeable 35-19 rebounding advantage and the two teams combined for 76 points in the paint.
Senior Megan Smith led IUP with 25 points on 10-of-19 shooting, including four-of-nine from long range. Junior Carolyn Appleby finished with 16 points, eight rebounds and four assists, while senior Audrey Stapleton added 12 points in the victory. Redshirt junior Lauren Wolosik recorded seven points, 11 assists and six steals on Friday.
The Vulcans were eliminated in the first round of the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2007.
