INDIANA, Pa. (March 12) – Led by five players scoring in double-digits, the third-seeded Vulcans captured a 95-74 victory over sixth-seeded Fairmont State in the first round of the NCAA Tournament at the Kovalchick Convention & Athletic Complex on Saturday afternoon.

With the win, the California University of Pennsylvania men's basketball team improves to 22-9 overall and advances to face seventh-seeded West Virginia State tomorrow, Sunday, March 13 at 5 p.m. Meanwhile, the Fighting Falcons, which entered play No. 24 in the country, finish with a 23-8 record this season while making their eighth appearance in the NCAA Tournament over the last 10 years.

Sophomore Philip Alston (Columbus, Ohio/Westerville North) scored a game-high 29 points on 10-of-20 from the floor and 9-of-12 from the free-throw line. He also registered 15 rebounds (six offensive) for his 19th double-double of the season. Alston added three assists, one block and one steal while playing 38 minutes. The Ohio native climbed to fifth place on the school's single-season scoring list with 670 points and moved to fourth in single-season school history with 337 rebounds.

Junior Zyan Collins (South Riding, Va./Freedom) posted 20 points on 9-of-15 shooting and collected six rebounds and three assists in the victory. Senior Preston Boswell (New Martinsville, W.Va./Magnolia) tallied 15 points on six-of-eight from the field, seven rebounds and four assists before fouling out.

Freshmen Keith Palek III (Woodbine, N.J./St. Augustine Prep) and Bryson Lucas (Clarksburg, W.Va./Robert C. Byrd) both scored 10 points on Saturday. Palek also collected nine rebounds and Lucas totaled three assists. Senior Brent Pegram (Upper Marlboro, Md./Dr. Henry A. Wise Jr.) finished with eight points, six rebounds, four assists and two steals.

Cal U made four of its initial six shots in the contest and built a 15-6 lead just after the first media timeout.  The Fighting Falcons converted a three-point play at the 12:59-mark before the Vulcans responded with eight-straight points to take a 26-11 lead on a three-pointer by Boswell with 10:37 left before the break. Fairmont State made a pair of layups in less than 30 seconds before Cal U scored eight-unanswered points as part of a 14-2 run to build a 40-17 lead on a pair of free-throws by Alston at the 7:03-mark. The Vulcans extended the lead to 48-21 on a jumper by Collins before the Fighting Falcons responded with an 11-3 run to cut the deficit to 51-32 with 1:13 remaining in the first half. Fairmont State made a three-pointer just moments before the buzzer to cut the deficit to 52-35 at the break.

The teams traded baskets in the opening three minutes of the second half before the Fighting Falcons scored seven of nine points to trim the deficit to 59-47 with 15:16 remaining. Cal U countered with eight-straight points to take a 67-47 lead on a layup by Collins at the 12:29-mark. Midway through the half, the Fighting Falcons scored four-straight points before the Vulcans scored nine of 10 points on back-to-back layups by Alston to take an 86-59 lead with 6:35 left to play. Fairmont State responded with a 13-2 run over nearly four minutes to work the deficit to 88-72 at the 2:34-mark. The Vulcans countered by scoring seven of the last nine points in the contest to earn a 95-72 victory.

Cal U record its third-best field-goal percentage of the season at .563 (36-of-64) after shooting over 50 percent in both halves. The Vulcans also shot at a 42.9 clip (9-of-21) from long range in the victory. Meanwhile, the Fighting Falcons posted a .424 field-goal percentage (28-of-66) despite going just 5-of-23 (21.7 percent) from beyond the arc. Cal U held a dominating 48-24 rebounding advantage behind 14 offensive rebounds that led to 19 second-chance points. The Vulcans also collected 18 assists and scored 42 points in the paint.

Freshman George Mangas led Fairmont State with 18 points on 8-of-15 shooting and added seven rebounds. Junior Zyon Dobbs posted 17 points, seven rebounds and six assists, while two-time All-MEC selection Isaiah Sanders also scored 17 points behind four-of-nine from long range.

The Vulcans will face West Virginia State in the second round of the NCAA Tournament tomorrow at the Kovalchick Complex at 5 p.m. The Yellow Jackets upset second-seeded and Mountain East Conference (MEC) Champion West Liberty, who was No. 2 in the country, with a 103-94 overtime victory in the opening round.

Notes: Cal U was making its first appearance in the NCAA Tournament since advancing to the Elite Eight in 2008 … The Vulcans tied the school record for most points in a NCAA Tournament game, as Cal U also scored 95 points in a win over Alabama A&M at the 1996 Elite Eight … Cal U improves to 8-6 in opening-round games in the NCAA Tournament … Boswell and Pegram previously played in the NCAA Tournament for head coach Danny Sancomb while at Wheeling … Sancomb holds a 3-3 record over four appearances at the NCAA Tournament as a head coach … Cal U stands at 4-4 this season against nationally-ranked opponents this year