LOCK HAVEN, Pa. (Dec. 3) – After being limited to just 23 points in the first half, the No. 15 Vulcans dropped a 70-62 contest at Lock Haven in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Crossover play on Saturday evening.
With the loss, the California (PA) women's basketball team falls to 4-3 overall with a 0-2 record in league action. The Vulcans have lost back-to-back games for the first time since January 2020 and suffered their first loss in the series since the 1999-00 campaign (31 games). Meanwhile, the Bald Eagles improve to 4-2 this season and 2-0 in conference play, winning both games against teams that appeared in the 2022 PSAC Tournament.
Junior
Halle Herrington (Philipsburg, Pa./Philipsburg-Osceola) led the team with 18 points on 6-of-11 shooting, including three-of-six from beyond the arc. She also added two rebounds and four steals on Saturday. Herrington is averaging a career-high 12.5 points while playing 37.3 minutes per game this season.
Classmate
Jordan Smith (Manassas, Va./Colgan) posted nine points and three rebounds, while senior
Rajah Fink (Dover, Pa./Dover) tallied nine points and seven rebounds (three offensive) in the loss. Senior
Ciaira Loyd (Scranton, Pa./Scranton) finished with 12 points and eight assists on Saturday.
Lock Haven scored the opening six points of the game before Cal countered with six of the next eight points to cut the deficit to 8-6 with 6:26 left in the first quarter. The Bald Eagles then mounted a 15-2 run to take their largest lead of the game at 15 points, 23-8, with 52 seconds remaining in the quarter. Herrington scored the final basket of the quarter to start a 9-2 rally to cut the deficit to 25-17 with 8:21 left before halftime. Cal later went five minutes without a field goal, as Lock Haven stretched the lead to 35-21 in the final minute of the second quarter. The Vulcans scored the final points of the quarter to trail 35-23 at the break.
Cal started the third quarter on a 12-4 run behind a combined 11 points by Loyd and Smith to trim the deficit to 39-35 at the 4:46-mark. The Bald Eagles eventually scored six of the last seven points of the quarter to take a 46-38 lead. Midway in the fourth quarter, the Vulcans posted a 9-3 run over three-plus minutes to work the deficit to 58-54 with 3:35 remaining. Cal later scored six-straight points in the closing minutes to make it a 62-60 contest on a layup by Smith at the 1:17-mark. The Bald Eagles sealed the victory by converting six-of-seven from the free-throw line, 68-60.
The Vulcans shot over 50 percent in the second half before finishing the game with a .417 field-goal percentage (25-of-60). Meanwhile the Bald Eagles made 46.2 percent (24-of-52) from the floor and converted 76.0 percent (19-of-25) from the free-throw line. Lock Haven held a 38-28 rebounding advantage and registered 29 bench points, while Cal forced 24 turnovers in the contest.
Lock Haven sophomore Brooke Lawyer scored a game-high 23 points on 7-of-13 from the floor, including three-of-six from long range, and added eight rebounds off the bench. Senior Taylor Leidy finished with 13 points behind 9-of-12 from the charity stripe, while freshman Alana Robinson added 10 points and seven rebounds.
The Vulcans are idle for over a week before playing their final non-conference game of the season on Dec. 12 when they travel to face Fairmont State at 2 p.m.
