INDIANA, Pa. (Jan. 18) – In a rematch of last year's NCAA regional championship, the No. 20 Vulcans suffered a 76-61 loss at No. 8 IUP at the Kovalchick Convention and Athletic Complex on Saturday evening in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) West play.

With the loss, the California University of Pennsylvania women's basketball team falls to 13-4 this season behind a 7-4 record in league action. The Vulcans entered play having won eight of the last 10 regular-season meetings against the Crimson Hawks. Meanwhile, IUP extends its winning streak to 14 games – the longest active in the Atlantic Region – and improves to 16-1 overall with an 11-0 mark in conference play.

Sophomore Ahmya Woodyard (Harrisburg, Pa./Harrisburg) led the team with 18 points while playing only her second game of the season. She shot 6-of-15 from the floor and five-of-five from the free-throw line in 19 minutes off the bench. Woodyard added two rebounds and two steals on Saturday.

Junior Bianca Jasper (Middletown, Pa./Middletown) paced the team with eight rebounds (three offensive), five assists and three steals, plus scored seven points. Sophomore Lauren Bennett (Buckhannon, W.Va./Buckhannon-Upshur) added seven points, five rebounds and two steals against the Crimson Hawks.

The Vulcans opened the game on a 9-0 run with baskets by four different players before the Crimson Hawks called a timeout with 7:09 left in the first quarter. IUP eventually scored its initial points of the game at the 5:02-mark to spark a 6-2 run that trimmed the deficit to 11-6 with 3:12 remaining. The Crimson Hawks made five of their last 10 shots in the first quarter to cut the deficit to 14-11. IUP then scored the initial eight points of the second quarter to seize a 19-14 lead before Woodyard converted a pair of free-throws with 7:02 left before halftime. Woodyard then recorded a three-pointer and layup to give Cal U a 21-19 lead at the 5:23-mark. Following a three-pointer by Bennett, the Crimson Hawks rallied off six-unanswered points to take a 27-24 lead with 1:20 remaining in the quarter. Woodyard snapped a three-plus minute scoreless drought with a jumper just before the halftime buzzer to cut the deficit to 27-26.

Cal U mounted a 7-2 run in the opening minutes of the third quarter to take a 33-32 lead on a layup by sophomore Shauna Harrison (Sheffield, England/Myerscough) at the 6:45-mark. The Crimson Hawks later countered with four-straight points to reclaim the lead at 41-37 and eventually stretched the lead to six points, 46-40, with 1:08 left in the quarter. Senior Monica Burns (New Stanton, Pa./Hempfield), who was limited to 1-of-10 from the field in the game, then made four free-throws in the final minute to cut the deficit to 48-44. The Vulcans scored a pair of baskets in the opening minute of the fourth quarter to tie the score at 48-48 and force a timeout by the Crimson Hawks. IUP answered with a pair of three-pointers which started a 16-2 run to give the Crimson Hawks a 64-50 lead with 4:05 left to play. Woodyard snapped a nearly five-minute scoring drought with five-consecutive points to trim the deficit to 64-55 with 2:47 remaining. IUP then stretched the lead to 13 points, 72-59, at the 1:10-mark before maintaining a double-digit lead for the remainder of the game.

The Vulcans finished the game shooting 33.8 percent (22-of-65) from the floor while going just 3-of-15 (20.0 percent) from long range. In comparison, the Crimson Hawks posted a .596 field-goal percentage (28-of-47) and made 5-of-11 from beyond the arc (45.5 percent). IUP, which tallied seven blocks, also posted a 38-29 rebounding advantage despite 15 offensive rebounds by Cal U. The Vulcans forced 19 turnovers in the losing effort.

Senior Lexi Griggs scored a game-high 22 points on 10-of-14 shooting and added seven rebounds and two blocks. Classmate Natalie Myers recorded a double-double with 18 points and 12 rebounds, while redshirt junior Courtney Alexander finished with 10 points, six rebounds, two blocks and two steals off the bench.

The Vulcans continue their road trip on Wednesday, Jan. 22, when they travel to face Gannon in Erie, Pennsylvania, at 5:30 p.m.