INDIANA, Pa. – In a battle of two of the top teams in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) West standings, IUP rose to the challenge in a wire-to-wire 61-51 victory against California (Pa.) on Monday night at the KCAC.
 
IUP (14-4, 10-3) never looked back from a strong start, using another lockdown defensive effort. The Hawks led for nearly 38 minutes of the game, including a 15-6 edge after the first quarter and a double-digit advantage for much of the way.
 
In attack mode early, IUP scored nine of the game's first 11 points and mounted a large enough cushion to withstand a final flurry from Cal U (14-5, 9-4) in the final 10 minutes. Rahmena Henderson poured in a game-high 18 points (7-13 FG) with four steals in 40 minutes of action for the hosts.
 
Kiera Baughman added 13 points (3-4 3FG) and five steals, while Grace Centrulla netted six points, 12 rebounds, two assists, two steals and four blocks. Maria Cerro and Teirra Preston added seven points apiece, while Cerro handed out seven assists.
 
Dejah Terrell settled in for 12 points and 11 rebounds in a double-double effort, while Allycia Harris added 10 points and 10 boards of her own.

IUP held the advantage throughout the opening half, leading by as many as 16 points before the Vulcans slowly battled back. Taking a 32-21 edge into the intermission, the Hawks shot 56.5% for the half and limited a potent Cal U offense to 22.9% from the floor for the half.
 
Baughman dropped in eight first half points for IUP and Henderson added seven more. The Hawks shared the ball well, assisting on eight of 13 made baskets in the opening half. The Hawks charged out of the gate a 9-2 advantage over the initial six minutes of the contest.
 
The Hawks used a 9-2 surge at the onset of the second quarter, stretching the lead to 24-8. Baughman kickstarted the run with a triple from Cerro before strong defense led to offense later in the blitz. The Vulcans trimmed the deficit to eight (26-18) with a triple from Shaw.
 
IUP kept pace in the third and a triple from Henderson pushed the hosts ahead 44-27. A 7-0 scoring surge in the fourth helped IUP open up its largest lead of the night at 59-41 midway through the fourth. The Hawks went scoreless over the final 2:59 as the Vulcans tried closing the gap.
 
Up Next
IUP visits Clarion on Wednesday, January 31 for a 5:30 p.m. tipoff.
 
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