Box Score SLIPPERY ROCK, Pa. – Just call them the running Eagles.
 
With five players scoring in double digits led by 19 from Kelly Johnson (Pittsburgh, Pa./Mt. Lebanon) and 18 from Emma Fickel (Carlisle, Pa./Cumberland Valley), the Clarion University women's basketball team topped 90 points for the second straight game getting a PSAC West-opening 95-80 win at Slippery Rock Wednesday night.
 
It's the first time Clarion, which put 104 up on West Liberty Saturday, has scored 90-plus points in two straight games since Nov. 2004.
 
"I wasn't real happy with how we played in the first half," Parson, whose team led 38-30 at the break, said. "But after the break, I thought we played well."
 
Clarion (2-1, 1-0 PSAC West) actually led by 19, 33-14, with under five minutes to play in the first half thanks to an 18-0 run before Slippery Rock got within the eight at halftime, 38-30.
 
The Rock (0-4, 0-1) then continued the rally at the start of the second half taking a 58-56 lead on a Jazmyne Frost basket with 11:15 left.
 
Slippery Rock still led by one, 60-59, after another Frost, who had a game-high 21 points and 12 rebounds, layup before a 13-4 run by Clarion turned the game back in favor of the Golden Eagles.
 
Jen Straw (North Huntingdon, Pa./Norwin) had four points during the run, and five different Clarion players scored during it giving the Golden Eagles a 72-64 lead with 7:24 left.
 
The Rock battled back and got within two, 75-73, on two Frost free throws with 4:56 to go, but Clarion had the answer again in the form of a 12-3 spurt that was fueled by six points from Tania Holmes, who was 4-for-4 from the free-throw line during the run. Clarion made 6 of 6 free throws during the spurt that put the game away.
 
"We are still trying to find a five that clicks together," Parsons said. "Right now, the players know if they are playing well they are going to get a good chance to play."
 
In addition to Johnson and Fickel, Holmes (14 points), Jasmine Boyd (13 points, 8 rebounds) and Raven Jones (10 points, 8 assists, 6 rebounds) also reached double figures for Clarion, who is 2-1 despite not playing with first-team All-PSAC West and second-team Daktronics All-Region player Hannah Heeter, who is still playing volleyball.
 
"We are not using Hannah's absence as an excuse," Parsons said. "It's just like when a player goes down with an injury. Other players are stepping up. I am proud of our team for that."
 
Early on it looked like Clarion was going to have an easy time of things with Slippery Rock, which hasn't beaten the Golden Eagle since Feb. 2011, taking the 19-point lead thanks to a quick 18-0 run that lasted just over five minutes.
 
Four 3-pointers by Clarion fueled the run with Johnson hitting two of them and scoring seven points while dishing out an assist during the run.
 
"She makes everyone better," Parsons said of her red-shirt freshman point guard whose minutes are still being limited because of an off-season injury – she played 24 Wednesday.
 
Jones and Fickel each had threes during the run as well, and Clarion led 33-14 at the end of it.
 
But Slippery Rock was able to regain its balance some in the final four-plus minutes of the half using four 3-pointers of its own to get within the eight by the break.
 
Clarion had the lead back to nine, 49-40, four minutes into the second half before an 18-7 run put The Rock ahead for the first time since early in the first half.
 
Aidan Geise added 18 points thanks to five 3-pointers for Slippery Rock, while Erica Aiello had 13 points and five assists but also turned the ball over 10 times helping lead to 22 Slippery Rock turnovers.
 
Clarion opens PSAC West home play Saturday when it hosts IUP at 5:30 p.m.
 
NOTES – Clarion won a PSAC opener for the first time since beating Slippery Rock in the 2011 opener … This was the earliest (game wise) Clarion has opened a PSAC season in school history …. Johnson was the PSAC West Freshman of the Week after her season-opening performance last week.