Box Score
INDIANA, PA – Lindsay Stamp (Erie, Pa. /Mercyhurst Prep) scored a game-high 16 points to pace six in double-figures as the IUP women's basketball team rebounded with an 83-63 win over Mercyhurst on Wednesday night at the Kovalchick Complex.

With the victory, the Crimson Hawks clinched a berth in the 2014 Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Championships, which begin the first week of March.

IUP improves to 16-8 overall and 7-7 in the PSAC West. Mercyhurst, still alive for a playoff spot, drop to 6-18 and 4-10.

Stamp scored those 16 points in just 20 minutes off the bench as she continues to work her way back from injury. She finished 5-of-9 from the field, including 3-of-6 from three-point range.

Amy Fairman (Creekside, Pa. /Marion Center) and Leslie Stapleton (Indiana, Pa. /Indiana) each posted 14-point nights while Ashley Stoner (Pittsburgh, Pa. /Thomas Jefferson) and Zhane Brooks (Erie, Pa. /Villa Maria) dropped 11 each and Marita Mathe (Indiana, Pa. /Indiana) added 10.

The Crimson Hawks had a big first half, highlighted by a 12-0 start. Stapleton had the game's first two buckets with back-to-back three-pointers while Fairman scored four points and Brooks added the other two.

IUP held onto a double-figure lead for all but 3:31 after that point, never letting the Lakers get closer than six points at 26-20. The Crimson Hawks responded to that with an 11-0 run, with the scoring split between four different players. The run also featured back-to-back three-point plays by Fairman and Stamp as IUP capitalized from Mercyhurst fouls.

After leading by as many as 23 points, the Crimson Hawks went into the break with a 46-24 lead. IUP shot a blistering 57.7 percent in the half, going 15-of-26 from the field, including 5-of-10 from three-point range.

A 7-0 run on buckets by Fairman, Stapleton and Talen Watson (Odenton, MD/Arundel) gave IUP its largest lead of the game at 57-28 less than five minutes into the second half. The Crimson Hawks would take another 29-point lead after Stamp scored six straight points a few minutes later and didn't let Mercyhurst get any closer than 18 points down the stretch for the big win.

Mathe led the way on the boards with nine rebounds for the Crimson Hawks while Brooks added seven. Mathe also had a game-high six assists with two blocks and a steal. She went 2-of-3 from three-point range.

Fairman added five rebounds, four assists and tied her career-high with six steals in 29 minutes. She also went 6-of-6 from the foul line. Stapleton went 3-of-7 from three-point range, as IUP finished 9-of-21 from beyond the arc for the game. The Crimson Hawks also connected on 20-of-26 free throws and outrebounded Mercyhurst 39-to-35. IUP forced the Lakers into 19 turnovers while committing just 11.

The Crimson Hawks are back on the court on Saturday when they welcome PSAC West-leading Edinboro (19-5, 13-1) into the KCAC. The Fighting Scots got the better of IUP in the first matchup, winning 66-59 in Edinboro.

It will also be Senior Night as the Crimson Hawks honor Melanie Todd (Springfield, VA/West Springfield), Jessica Wallace (Vanderhoof, BC/Nechako Valley Secondary) and Talen Watson (Odenton, MD/Arundel) prior to tipoff. Game time on Saturday is set for 5:30 p.m.