INDIANA, Pa. – The IUP women's basketball program dropped its first contest of the 2022-23 season with a 79-71 loss to Mercyhurst on Saturday afternoon in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) West action.
 
IUP (11-1, 6-1) held the lead for under two minutes in the game in the opening quarter, trying to narrow the gap the rest of the way. Maria Cerro tied a game-high 19 points for the Hawks, while Kiera Baughman finished with 17 of her own.
 
Mercyhurst (8-5, 4-3) bounced back with a strong shooting performance against the Hawks, going 53.7% from the floor and 47.6% from beyond the arc. Jayde Boyd dropped in 19 points with five rebounds, while Danielle Grimm and Julia Bachman poured in 15 points apiece.
 
The Hawks struggled from deep, making just three field goals from beyond the arc while going 38.6% from the floor. Mercyhurst led by nine following the first quarter, pushing the advantage to double figures in the second half. IUP whittled its deficit to three with a stickback from Cerro at 5:24 in the third before the Lakers used a 10-5 run to rebuild their advantage.
 
Battling some foul trouble to the starting lineup, IUP shot just 37.5% from the floor in the opening 20 minutes. Meanwhile, Mercyhurst rode a strong first quarter to a 50% shooting clip in the first. Cardona and Cerro each notched a game-high 11 points for the Hawks in the first half, struggling with nine turnovers as a team during that span.
 
IUP was able to chip away slightly heading into the intermission, forcing five Mercyhurst turnovers over the final 5:37 combined with some cold shooting from the floor for the Lakers. Mercyhurst opened the contest with a 6-2 advantage before the Hawks countered for their first lead off a Preston layin at 6:22.
 
A quick 7-0 surge for the Lakers, which included a transition three from Jayde Boyd, made it an 18-13 game in the first. Mercyhurst finished out the first with seven of the last nine points, leading 27-18 and putting IUP in some unfamiliar territory down by nine.
 
A three from Centrulla stretched the Mercyhurst advantage to 12 at 35-23, the largest of the half for the visitors. The Hawks slowly chipped away over the final five minutes of the second, ending the frame with nine of the last 11 points. Off a steal from Adams, Baughman concluded the scoring in the first half with a layup with five ticks left.
 
The Hawks battled back in the third before the Lakers used a timely run to seal the victory. Mercyhurst drilled a three from Julia Buchman at 8:01 in the third for a 62-52 advantage, able to stay in front for the duration.
 
The loss snapped a 14-game regular season winning streak dating back to last season. IUP still placed five scorers in double figures in the loss, including Teirra Preston (14), Gina Adams (11) and Alana Cardona (10). 
 
Up Next
IUP is on the road for a pair of PSAC West matchups, starting with a midweek challenge at Gannon on Wednesday, January 11 at 5:30 p.m.
 
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For up-to-date information, visit IUPAthletics.com and follow IUP women's basketball on Twitter @IUPCrimsonHawk and @IUP_WBB.