INDIANA, Pa. – Senior guard Natalie Myers hit the game-tying 3-pointer near the end of regulation and added another in overtime to help top-seeded IUP women's basketball to a thrilling 68-65 win over rival Cal U in the quarterfinals of the 2020 Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Championships Wednesday night at the Kovalchick Complex.
 
Myers also knocked down two free throws with 1.0 second to go in overtime to clinch the victory and push the Crimson Hawks into the semifinals for the sixth consecutive year.
 
As the top seed in the PSAC Western Division, the Crimson Hawks will host conference championship weekend at the Kovalchick Complex March 7-8. IUP will play East No. 2 seed East Stroudsburg in the semifinals Saturday afternoon.
 
The Crimson Hawks (27-2) trailed Cal U 32-29 at halftime after a late first half run by the Vulcans gave them some momentum heading into halftime.
 
IUP came out strong in the second half, with Courtney Alexander drilling a 3-pointer to ignite a 10-2 over the first 3:27. Justina Mascaro followed with back-to-back buckets, including an and-one, and Maura D'Anna added a layup to give IUP a 39-34 lead.
 
Myers later hit the first of her three 3-pointers on the night and IUP ended the third quarter with five straight points to outscore Cal U 23-11 and take a 52-43 lead to the fourth.
 
The Vulcans (21-9) stole back the momentum in the fourth, forcing IUP into four turnovers and 3-of-11 shooting as they took a 59-58 lead with 56 seconds to play. IUP turned the ball over on its next possession and Olivia Hudson knocked down a pair of free throws to give Cal U a 61-58 lead with 18.7 seconds to go.  
 
After a timeout, Myers drained a 3-pointer from the right wing to send the crowd into a frenzy, and a Cal U trey on the other end rimmed out to send the game to OT.
 
IUP struck first with a Rajah Fink layup and with 2:58 to play Myers drained another 3-pointer to give IUP a 66-63 lead. The Vulcans made it a 1-point game with a pair of free throws, but three straight turnovers and a couple of missed shots by both teams kept the game at 66-65 when Cal U called a timeout with 9.8 seconds left.
 
Out of the break, Hudson's driving layup bounced out and Myers ripped away the rebound with three seconds to go.
 
After the Vulcans shot 42.3 percent in the first half, IUP limited Cal U to 36.4 percent in the second half and just 1-of-6 from the field in the overtime period. The Crimson Hawks shot 41.3 percent and outrebounded Cal U 45-38, overcoming 16 turnovers.
 
Who stood out
Myers finished with her eighth double-double of the year, scoring 13 points to go along with 12 rebounds. She also had two steals in 41 minutes.
 
A total of four Hawks scored in double-figures, with Alexander leading the way with 17 points. She made 5-of-10 3-pointers and had three assists in 43 minutes. Lexi Griggs finished with 15 points on 7-of-8 shooting to go along with seven rebounds and Mascaro added 14 points and seven rebounds before fouling out.
 
Notes
The Crimson Hawks entered the game ranked No. 7 in the WBCA Top 25 and No. 8 in the D2SIDA Media Top 25 polls … IUP is also No. 1 in the NCAA Atlantic Region rankings, which determine seeding for the Division II tournament … IUP is now 2-0 in overtime games this year, defeating Edinboro 80-72 in double OT two weeks ago … IUP is making its 15th straight PSAC tournament appearance … The Crimson Hawks are hosting PSAC championship weekend for the second straight eligible time (2018) … IUP is going for its seventh all-time PSAC tournament title, including 2017 and 2019 under head coach Tom McConnell.
 
Up next
The Crimson Hawks will square off with East Stroudsburg (20-9) in the semifinals Saturday at 3:30 p.m. IUP won the regular season matchup 65-50 at the Kovalchick Complex on November 24. The winner will play the winner of Gannon and Shippensburg for the championship Sunday at 3 p.m.
 
Follow
For up-to-date information, visit IUPAthletics.com and follow IUP women's basketball on Twitter @IUPCrimsonHawk and @IUP_WBB.