CALIFORNIA (Jan. 11) – Despite 27 points by senior
Monica Burns (New Stanton, Pa./Hempfield) and the team recording one of its best shooting performances of the season, the No. 15 Vulcans dropped a 73-72 contest against Edinboro on Saturday afternoon at the Convocation Center in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) West play.
With the loss, the California University of Pennsylvania women's basketball team falls to 12-3 this season behind a 6-3 mark in league action. The Vulcans have now lost five-straight meetings against the Fighting Scots, including back-to-back games by one point. Meanwhile, Edinboro improves to 7-6 overall and 5-4 in conference play.
Burns scored 27 points (18 first half) on 11-of-15 shooting, including five-of-six from beyond the arc – tying her season high for three-pointers in a game. She also collected five rebounds and a season-high four steals while playing all 40 minutes on Saturday. Burns has now posted six 20-point games this year while averaging a team-leading 16.1 points per game.
Junior
Bianca Jasper (Middletown, Pa./Middletown) finished with 17 points on 8-of-17 from the floor and added four rebounds and four assists. Sophomore
Shauna Harrison (Sheffield, England/Myerscough) posted 10 points and four assists, while senior
DJ Hahn (Warren, Pa./Warren) tallied five rebounds, two assists and two steals off the bench.
Trailing 57-49 at the end of the third quarter, the Fighting Scots mounted a 12-2 run to take a 61-59 lead with 5:54 left in the game. Cal U then scored six of the next nine points to reclaim the lead at 65-64 on a jumper by Jasper at the 4:37-mark. Edinboro responded with a 9-2 run to seize a 73-67 lead with 1:58 remaining before Harrison made a three-pointer on the ensuing possession to cut the deficit to 73-70 with 1:32 left to play. Jasper later made a jumper with 55 seconds remaining to trim the deficit to 73-71 before the Fighting Scots missed a three-pointer on the next possession. Burns collected the rebound and Cal U called a timeout with 21 seconds left. The Vulcans then missed the potential go-ahead jumper in the waning second and were also unable to attempt a put-back underneath the basket before time expired.
Cal U scored 13-straight points, including a combined nine by Burns and Harrison, midway through the first quarter on Saturday to take an 18-6 lead at the 3:52-mark. The Vulcans later mounted a 7-2 run to stretch the lead to 13 points, 25-12, before taking a 25-16 lead at the end of the quarter. Midway through the second quarter, Edinboro mounted a 9-2 run over nearly three minutes to trim the deficit to 35-31 with 3:44 left before halftime. Burns countered with five-straight points to stretch the lead to 40-31 before the Vulcans took a 40-35 advantage at the break.
The teams traded runs of six-straight points midway through the third quarter before the Vulcans countered with a 9-2 run to stretch the lead to 55-47 with 32 seconds left. Jasper made a layup at the quarter buzzer to give Cal U a 57-49 lead.
The Vulcans finished the game shooting 44.8 percent (30-of-67) from the floor, their third-best mark of the season, and a 47.1 clip (8-of-17) from beyond the arc. Meanwhile, the Fighting Scots posted a .482 field-goal percentage (27-of-57) and a .842 free-throw percentage (16-of-19) in the win. Edinboro held a dominating 44-25 rebound advantage, while Cal U committed just seven turnovers on Saturday.
Senior Michaela Barns scored 35 points (20 second half), which are the most by a Cal U opponent since November 2015, while shooting 14-of-19 from the field and six-of-seven from the free-throw line. She also added eight rebounds while playing all 40 minutes. Redshirt senior Cheniya Sharpe recorded a double-double with 10 points and 13 rebounds (eight offensive), while classmate Bridgette Shaffer finished with 15 points and eight rebounds.
Cal U returns to action on Wednesday, Jan. 15, when it begins a three-game road trip against Seton Hill in Greensburg, Pennsylvania, at 5:30 p.m.
