CLARION, Pa. – The Clarion women’s basketball team improved to 4-0 on the season with a comeback effort, rallying from a halftime deficit to beat Wilmington 72-65 at the Student Recreation Center.
(Photo courtesy of Clarion University Athletics)
The Golden Eagles continue their four-game homestand on Tuesday, November 20 when they host Lake Erie at 2 p.m.
The win gives the Golden Eagles their best record to start the season since 2004-05, which was the last time Clarion won four straight to start the year. That team won four straight and eight of their first nine en route to a 23-7 overall record and an NCAA Tournament berth.
Kadijah Dickson had her second double-double of the season, finishing with game-highs of 23 points and 14 rebounds to lead the way. Jordan Bekelja came off the bench for a dose of instant offense, scoring 18 points in just 21 minutes. Haille Hart added 11 points of her own.
The Wildcats started the game with a 24-18 advantage after the first quarter, and at one point led by nine points before the Golden Eagles chipped away. Wilmington led 32-25 late in the second quarter but Bekelja drilled a three-pointer to make it a two-possession game, and Bekelja and Yndiah Bobo made free throws down the stretch to cut it to two points at halftime.
The Golden Eagles tied the score on the first possession of the third quarter as the Wildcat drought approached four minutes, but Wilmington extended the advantage to six points midway through the quarter. It was not until Neely Whitehead made a three-pointer at the 3:27 mark that Clarion took their first lead of the game, and Bekelja re-took it at the end of the period with two free throws.
Clarion never allowed Wilmington to jump back in front, though the Wildcats tied the score at 57 at the midway point of the fourth quarter. Hart finished off an and-one and then made a layup on the next trip down the floor to push the lead to 62-57. Yasmin Lewis gave the Golden Eagles a seven-point lead at 1:46 and Bekelja increased it to 71-62 as time wound down to give Clarion the win.
WRESTLING TEAM 1-2 IN ILLINOIS
DEKALB, Ill. – The Clarion wrestling team returned to dual match action on Saturday at the Huskie Duals hosted by Northern Illinois. The Golden Eagles went 1-2 on the day, falling 25-12 to Utah Valley and 27-18 to the hosting Huskies before defeating Harper College 44-3. Clarion is now 2-2 in dual matches this season.
Below is a recap for each of the three duals.
Utah Valley 25, Clarion 12
125 – Tyshawn White (CLAR) def. Josh Jensen (UVU) WBF
133 – Mitch Brown (UVU) def. Seth Koleno (CLAR) WBF
141 – Matt Finley (UVU) def. Taylor Ortz (CLAR) Dec. 10-5
149 – Brock Zacherl (CLAR) def. Matthew Ontiveros (UVU) MD 10-2
157 – Michael Bartolo (CLAR) def. Grant LaMont (UVU) Dec. 9-3
165 – Demetrius Romero (UVU) def. Evan Delong (CLAR) Dec. 10-4
174 – Kimball Bastian (UVU) def. Taylor Cahill (CLAR) Dec. 7-1
184 – Will Summer (UVU) def. Ty Bagoly (CLAR) Dec. 6-4
197 – Tanner Orndorff (UVU) def. Greg Bulsak (CLAR) Dec. 7-5
285 – Tate Orndorff (UVU) def. Edgar Ruano (CLAR) MD 16-8
Tyshawn White started things off strong for the Golden Eagles, winning by fall for the first time this year to give Clarion a 6-0 advantage. Clarion took a 10-9 lead after Brock Zacherl won the 149-pound match by major decision, beating Matthew Ontiveros 10-2, and Michael Bartolo made it a 13-9 lead with a win over Grant LaMont. Utah Valley ran the table the rest of the way, though, winning five straight matches to close the bout and take the team match by a 25-12 score.
Northern Illinois 27, Clarion 18
125 – Bryce West (NIU) def. Tyshawn White (CLAR) Dec. 4-1
133 – Alijah Jeffery (NIU) def. Seth Koleno (CLAR) Dec. 7-2
141 – Taylor Ortz (CLAR) def. Anthony Cheloni (NIU) Dec. 6-4
149 – Brock Zacherl (CLAR) def. McCoy Kent (NIU) Dec. 5-1
157 – Mason Kauffman (NIU) def. Michael Bartolo (CLAR) Dec. 4-2
165 – Kenny Moore (NIU) def. Evan Delong (CLAR) Fall 2:42
174 – Brit Wilson (NIU) def. Taylor Cahill (CLAR) Fall 4:55
184 –Ty Bagoly (CLAR) def. Michael Aldrich (NIU) Fall 1:42
197 – Greg Bulsak (CLAR) def. Ross Sealby (NIU) Fall 0:47
285 – Caleb Gossett (NIU) def. Toby Cahill (CLAR) Fall 6:17
The Huskies pulled off two wins by decision to open the team match, but Taylor Ortz and Zacherl added wins of their own to even the score at 6-6. It looked like Northern Illinois would take the match running away once they took a 21-6 advantage at the end of the 174-pound match, but back-to-back pins by Ty Bagoly (his fourth of the year) and Greg Bulsak (his third) put the Golden Eagles right back in the match, cutting the lead to 21-18. NIU finished things off with one more pin, with Caleb Gossett getting the win by fall in the heavyweight bout to win.
Clarion 44, Harper 3
125 – Tyshawn White (CLAR) def. Mitchell Bastea (HARP) Fall 2:08
133 – Seth Koleno (CLAR) def. Riley Stonitsch (HARP) Fall 2:21
141 – Austin Jamison (CLAR) def. Noah Garcia (HARP) Fall 1:33
149 – Brock Zacherl (CLAR) def. Darian Padgett (HARP) MD 18-4
157 – Avery Shay (CLAR) def. Brandan Velazquez (HARP) Dec. 11-9
165 – Mason Skloot (HARP) def. Evan Delong (CLAR) Dec. 10-7
174 – Taylor Cahill (CLAR) def. Spencer Matheu (HARP) MD 10-2
184 – Shae Bloom (CLAR) def. Maxx Demann (HARP) Fall 2:33
197 – Greg Bulsak (CLAR) win by forfeit
285 – Edgar Ruano (CLAR) def. Jacob Weingardt (HARP) Dec. 8-3
Clarion was in control of this match from the word jump, with White, Seth Koleno and Austin Jamison pulling off successive wins by fall to put the Golden Eagles ahead by an 18-0 score. Zacherl added a major decision to make it 22-0, and Avery Shay’s decision over Brandon Velazquez all but put the match out of reach. Taylor Cahillactually did put it out of reach after the 174-pound bout, notching a major decision over Spencer Matheu to make it 29-3. Shae Bloom recorded his fifth win by fall of the season, taking down Maxx Demann in the first period, and Edgar Ruano closed the bout out with a win at heavyweight.
CROSS COUNTRY 11TH AT REGIONALS
PITTSBURGH, Pa. – The Clarion cross country team put a close to their 2018 season on Saturday morning, taking 11th place at the NCAA Atlantic Regional hosted by Slippery Rock. The event was held at the Bob O’Connor Golf Course at Schenley Park.
The Golden Eagles’ 11th place finish at the regional race was their best in nearly a decade. It was the best finish for Clarion since Ciara Shorts led the team to a ninth-place finish as a freshman at the 2009 regionals race.
Clarion’s success came in part because of the tight pack of runners at the front of the field, led by freshman Anna Foster’s 33rd place finish in a time of 26:10. Senior Kayce Bobnar was just 20 seconds behind her, taking 41st with a time of 26:30, and Allison Gates was just nine seconds behind Bobnar. That 39-second, 13-place spread put the Golden Eagles in position to post a strong finish.
Haley Schaller was fourth to cross the line with a time of 27:40, while Danielle Stoner was the fifth-place finisher in her final race as a Golden Eagle. Joelle Klein and Beka McClymonds closed out the pack for the Golden Eagles.
