CLARION, Pa. – The Clarion women’s basketball team weathered an early drought to storm back for a blowout win, defeating Lock Haven 75-55 for their third straight win.
(Photo courtesy of Clarion University Athletics)
Clarion has now won three straight games against PSAC opponents, their longest such streak since winning five straight against conference foes in the 2007-08 season. The Golden Eagles (5-4, 3-1 PSAC) will host Malone in a non-conference matchup on Wednesday.
The Golden Eagles shot just 7-of-23 (.307) in the first half but was able to mitigate their cold shooting with the ability to draw contact. Clarion went 21-of-24 (.875) from the free-throw line in the first half, going from an 18-17 deficit after the first quarter to a 37-32 advantage at halftime. Things evened out in the second half as the Golden Eagles shot 43.8 percent from the field and the Bald Eagles cooled considerably.
Quorea Pearyer finished with 13 points and nine rebounds, with 11 of those points coming in the second half as Clarion pulled away. Jordan Bekelja chipped in 12 points, including a perfect 10-of-10 mark at the free-throw line, as well as three rebounds and three assists. Tyra Polite finished with a game-high 14 points and four assists.
Lock Haven led by as many as six points in the first quarter, taking a 15-9 lead, but the Golden Eagles chipped away thanks to multiple trips to the free throw line. Bekelja cut the lead to just one point at the end of the quarter, making it 18-17 with a pair with three seconds left to go in the period. The Golden Eagles took the lead for good early in the second quarter on a pair of free throws by Amesha Harden-Pullium, and Tracy Wiehe upped the lead to 25-22 with a jumper from mid-range. Wiehe later made it a six-point advantage, and Harden-Pullium made it 37-32 with a layup just before the halftime break.
Things quickly got out of hand in the third quarter, with Delrika Jones-Carey scoring in the paint with 7:24 left in the third quarter to make it 42-32, and Pearyer capping the 8-0 run with a three-pointer a few minutes later. The lead hovered in the low double-digits for the rest of the quarter, and Taylor Moltz made it 54-41 with 9:32 left in the fourth quarter. Bekelja drained a pair of free throws to expand the lead to 58-42, and it finally reached 20 points on a make by Pearyer with 1:16 left. Polite drained a pair of free throws down the stretch to set the final deficit.
