SHIPPENSBURG, Pa. (Nov. 23) – Facing the preseason favorite in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Eastern Division, the Vulcans claimed a 70-67 win at Shippensburg on Tuesday night in non-conference play.

With the victory, the California University of Pennsylvania men's basketball team improves to 4-1 this season to mark its best start in a decade. Meanwhile, the Raiders fall to 2-2 overall after advancing to the finals of the 2020 PSAC Tournament and qualifying for their third NCAA Tournament in four years. Shippensburg has been without 2020 PSAC East Athlete of the Year Jake Biss this season due to injury.

Sophomore Philip Alston (Columbus, Ohio/Westerville North) recorded a third-straight double with 23 points and 10 rebounds (three offensive) on Tuesday. He made 9-of-16 from the floor, including three-of-eight from beyond the arc, and set a career high with four blocks while playing 33 minutes. Alston is averaging 24.6 points and 9.6 rebounds per game while shooting 58.4 percent (52-of-89) from the field this season.

Senior Brent Pegram (Upper Marlboro, Md./Dr. Henry A. Wise Jr.) posted 15 points, seven rebounds and seven assists in the victory. Classmate Preston Boswell (New Martinsville, W.Va./Magnolia) tallied 10 points, five rebounds and three assists, while freshman Bryson Lucas (Clarksburg, W.Va./Robert C. Byrd) added five points, seven rebounds and three steals off the bench.

Shippensburg scored the opening basket of the game before the teams traded runs of five-unanswered points with the Raiders holding a 7-5 lead at the 17:28-mark. The Vulcans later mounted a 10-2 run behind a trio of three-pointers by Alston to claim a 22-15 lead with 9:51 left before halftime. Shippensburg then scored six of the next eight points to the score at 24-24 before Cal U responded with an 10-2 rally to take a 34-26 lead on a jumper by junior Zyan Collins (South Riding, Va./Freedom), who missed the previous two games, at the 2:34-mark. The Vulcans took a 35-28 lead at the break after preventing the Raiders from converting a field goal for the final 3:44 of the first half.

In the opening minutes of the second half, Cal U mounted an 8-2 run to take 46-35 lead on a three-pointer by Pegram with 15:06 remaining. The Raiders later countered with six-straight points by junior Carlos Carter to trim the deficit to 48-42 before the Vulcans responded with six-unanswered points to hold a 54-42 lead at the 10:54-mark. Shippensburg later cut the deficit to 60-55 behind six-consecutive points with 5:37 left to play before the teams traded five-straight baskets. The Raiders then mounted an 8-1 run to trim the deficit to 68-67 with eight seconds remaining before Boswell converted a pair of free-throws in the closing seconds to seal the victory.

The Vulcans finished the game shooting 45.5 percent (25-of-55) from the floor and converted a season-best 45.5 percent (10-of-22) from beyond the arc. Meanwhile, the Raiders were held under a .300 field-goal percentage in the first half before closing the game at a 35.2 clip (25-of-71). Shippensburg also made just 3-of-17 (17.6 percent) from long range. The Raiders held a 46-36 rebounding advantage behind 19 offensive rebounds and scored 19 points off turnovers.

Carter led the Raiders with 21 points on 8-of-14 shooting and added nine rebounds. Junior Rashon Johnson recorded a double-double with 18 points and 12 rebounds, while classmate Luke Nedrow also collected a double-double in the loss with 12 points and 14 rebounds (seven offensive).

Cal U is idle for over a week before beginning PSAC Crossover play on Dec. 3 at Bloomsburg with tip set for 3 p.m.