Box Score CALIFORNIA, Pa. – Despite Hannah Heeter's fifth double-double of the season and the 34^th of her career, the Clarion University women's basketball team fell 77-66 to California (Pa.) in PSAC West action Wednesday night at Cal.
 
Heeter had a season-high 24 points on 9 of 12 shooting and 6 of 8 from the free-throw line and added 11 rebounds, the sixth time in 10 games this season she has reached double digits in boards.
 
But Cal (9-6 overall, 3-3 PSAC West) built a 25-point, 52-27, lead early in the second half and then withstood a Golden Eagle comeback that saw Clarion (7-8, 1-4) get as close as nine, 75-66, with just over two minutes to play.
 
Clarion's comeback attempt was fueled by a hot-shooting second half that saw the Golden Eagles covert 59.1 percent (13 of 22) of its shots while hitting all 11 of its free throws in the half. Heeter, who had 14 points in the second half, and Kelly Johnson, who had all 12 of her points in the half, were big reasons for the game becoming close.
 
Johnson added four assists, four rebounds and three steals for Clarion, which also got 10 points, three assists, three rebounds, a block and a steal from Tania Holmes.
 
Ashley Hines had 14 points, five rebounds and three steals off the bench for Cal, which led 49-27 at halftime thanks to a 55.9 percent shooting first half (19 of 34). Kaitlynn Fratz added 14 points, while Elena Antonenko chipped in 10 points and Emma Mahady and Miki Glenn nine each for the Vulcans, who have won 20 straight games at home over Clarion. Glenn also had six rebounds and six assists.
 
Cal led 28-21 with 7:41 left in the first half before ending the half with a 21-6 run to take the 22-point lead. A 3-pointer by Chelsea McKnight eight seconds into the second half moved that lead to 25, the largest it got.
 
Clarion slowly started to get back into the game climbing within 13, 63-50, on a Raven Jones layup with 10:16 to play before Cal got the lead back to 17 with four quick points.
 
But the Golden Eagles answered again closing within 11, 68-57, following an old-school 3-pointer by Johnson with 7:16 to play.
 
Then a 9-3 Clarion run that saw Johnson score five points got Clarion within nine, 75-66, on a Heeter jumper with 2:33 to play. But that was the last basket the Golden Eagles made.
 
Clarion returns to action at 5:30 p.m. Saturday when it hosts Seton Hill in a PSAC West game at Tippin Gym.
 
NOTES – Heeter now has 40 career games of 10 or more rebounds … Emma Fickel scored six points for the Golden Eagles and is 24 points shy of 1,000 in her career … Johnson was named the PSAC West Freshman of the Week Monday. It was the third time this season she has been named Freshman of the Week.