CALIFORNIA (Nov. 16) – Senior transfer Monica Burns (New Stanton, Pa./Hempfield) and junior Bianca Jasper (Middletown, Pa./Middletown) combined for nearly 50 points on Saturday evening, as the California University of Pennsylvania women's basketball team earned a 91-77 victory over Fairmont State at the Convocation Center in non-conference action.

With the win, the Vulcans improve to 4-0 overall while averaging 83.0 points per game. Meanwhile, the Falcons drop 1-3 this season under first-year head coach Stephanie (Michael) Anderson, who previously played at Cal U from 2010-13.

Burns scored a season-high 28 points on 9-of-17 from the field behind four three-pointers and six-of-seven from the free-throw line. She also tallied seven rebounds and two assists while playing all 40 minutes on Saturday. Burns leads the team in scoring at 22.3 points per game this season and is one of six players in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) averaging at least 20 points per game.

Jasper recorded her first career double-double with 21 points and 11 assists in the victory. She collected the most assists in a game since Abbey Sporio finished with 11 assists in the opening round of the 2017 NCAA Tournament. Jasper posted eight of her 11 assists in the second half when the Vulcans shot nearly 60 percent from the floor.

Sophomore Brionna Allen (Pittsburgh, Pa./Bishop Canevin) finished with 16 points (12 first half), eight rebounds (four offensive) and two steals. Freshman Olivia Hudson (Altoona, Pa./Altoona) scored 11 points behind three-of-three from beyond the arc and added seven rebounds and three blocks in 20 minutes off the bench.

The Vulcans opened the game on a 9-2 run before the Falcons scored eight-straight points to take a 10-9 lead with 2:47 left in the first quarter. Cal U answered with a 7-3 run to take a 16-13 lead on a jumper by Jasper with 57 seconds left in the quarter. The Falcons then countered with a 12-2 rally to build a 25-18 lead with 7:23 remaining before halftime. Cal U later mounted a 9-2 run to reclaim the lead at 36-35 with 58 seconds left before Fairmont State made a three-pointer in the closing seconds to take a 38-36 lead at the break.

Cal U posted a 9-2 rally to take a 52-47 lead with 5:14 left in the third quarter before Fairmont State countered with an 8-2 run to take a 55-54 lead at the 2:18-mark. The teams later traded three-pointers before being tied at 62-62 at the end of the quarter. Midway through the fourth quarter, the Vulcans scored eight-straight points to take a 75-66 lead on a layup by Burns with 5:11 left to play. Cal U later rallied off seven-straight points, including five by Hudson, to stretch the lead to 84-71 at the 2:43-mark. Following a three-pointer by the Falcons, the Vulcans scored seven-unanswered points to take their largest lead of the game at 91-74 with 20 seconds left to play.

The Vulcans finished the game shooting 45.7 percent (32-of-70) from the floor and converted 85.7 percent (18-of-21) from the free-throw line. Meanwhile, the Falcons shot at a .443 clip (31-of-70) behind 12-of-30 (40.0 percent) from long range. Cal U out-rebounded Fairmont State by a 46-29 margin behind 15 offensive rebounds and scored 32 points inside the paint.

Junior Sierra Kotchman led the Falcons with 22 points on 8-of-19 shooting, including 6-of-11 from beyond the arc. Classmate Kamrin Weimer scored 15 points in the loss and senior Rachel Laskody finished with 11 points, three rebounds and two steals.

Cal U returns to action on Tuesday, Nov. 19, when it travels to face Central State in Wilberforce, Ohio at 5:30 p.m.