California drops PSAC title game against Indiana
California junior forward Shatara Parsons drives to the basket Sunday afternoon against Indiana in the finals of the PSAC women’s basketball tournament.
California sophomore guard Abbey Sporio drives to the basket Sunday afternoon during the PSAC women’s basketball tournament finals against Indiana.
Courtesy of Laura Rayle/California University
California junior forward Seairra Barrett shoots against Indiana in the finals of the PSAC women’s basketball tournament.
Sophomore Carolyn Appleby sank six consecutive free throws in the final 24 seconds to help Indiana University defeat California, 84-79, in the championship game of the PSAC Women’s Basketball Tournament Sunday afternoon at Heiges Field House in Shippensburg
Indiana, the No. 2 seed in the West Division, improved to 23-6 on the season while Cal, the top seed in the West fell to 28-3. IUP earns the league’s automatic qualifier to the NCAA Division II Tournament.
Cal is ranked No. 3 in the country and entered the week as No. 1 in the Atlantic Region. IUP sat fourth, Mercyhurst fifth, Shippensburg sixth and Edinboro ninth. The top eight teams from the region will advance to the tournament.
California will host Glenville State in the first round of the NCAA Division II tournament.
Appleby, who was selected tournament MVP, scored 30 points and went 10 of 10 from the free throw line.
Cal trailed by 12 in the fourth quarter, but rallied to tie the game, 73-73, with 1:17 to play. Appleby assisted on a three-point field goal by Megan Smith then sank six free throws to ice the game.
The Crimson Hawks won their fifth PSAC championship and first since 2009. IUP moves to 4-1 all-time in PSAC title games against Cal.
Brittany Robinson and Megan Smith chipped in with 17 points each while Halle Denmen handed out seven assists to lead Indiana’s offense.
Cal junior Seairra Barrett led all scorers with 31 points. Cal was without starting point guard Miki Glenn again as the 5-7 senior from Bridgeport, W.Va., missed her second game after suffering a knee injury against Edinboro five days ago. Cal also was without red-shirt senior Lana Doran, who has missed the past three games, and had sophomore guard Morgan Jennings go out of Sunday’s game with an unspecified injury.
IUP shot 56.6 percent from the field while Cal was good at 49.1 percent. The difference came from behind the arc, where IUP went 9-for-14 and Cal was 2-for-10.
Shippensburg wins men’s title: The Shippensburg Raiders won the PSAC Men’s Basketball Championship against the Kutztown Golden Bears, 73-63, Sunday afternoon at the Kovalchick Convention and Athletic Complex in Indiana.
Shippensburg improved to 26-3 on the year while KU fell to 26-3.
The Golden Bears entered the week at No. 5 in the nation while the Raiders sat at No. 13.
Ship senior Abe Massaley was named the tournament MVP after scoring a game-high 21 points.
The Raiders won their second title in school history and first since 1991. It marked the first appearance in the title game for Shippensburg since 2010.