CLARION, Pa. – Tania Holmes went on a winner in the final game of her Clarion career, scoring a team-high 20 points in leading the Clarion women's basketball team to a 63-51 victory over Pitt-Johnstown at Tippin Gymnasium on Saturday.  The Golden Eagles conclude the 2015-16 season having posted a seven-win improvement over the previous year, finishing with a 9-19 overall record and a 9-13 record in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) play.
 
Holmes, who became just the third player to record 100 or more career starts in the Blue and Gold and ranks ninth in program history in scoring, wrapped up her stellar career with a near-double-double of 20 points, nine rebounds, three steals and two blocks.  She went 7-of-17 from the field and nearly all 40 minutes of action, coming out of the game with less than a minute to play to an ovation from the home crowd. 
 
Joining Holmes in double-figures in scoring were Delrika Jones-Carey, who added a double-double of 11 points and 13 rebounds, and Jordan Bekelja, who overcame a slow start to finish with 10 points and five rebounds.
 
The Golden Eagles stifled the Lady Cat offense, holding UPJ to just a 28.0 field goal percentage and a 3-of-22 mark from three-point range.  Clarion trailed by as many as 10 points in the second quarter but roared back to produce what was at one point a 13-point advantage in the fourth period. 
 
Clarion took the lead for good early on in the third quarter after Tyra Polite hit a midrange jumper to make it 32-31.  Holmes increased the lead to five points after stripping Laurel O'Barto and scoring on the fast break, making it 38-33 with 4:51 left in the period, and Polite knocked down a jumper off a feed from Holmes with 1:38 left to make it a three-possession game.
 
The Lady Cats never really threatened the rest of the way, with the Golden Eagles taking a 53-43 lead with 5:46 remaining in regulation.  Amesha Harden-Pulliam scored on the next possession to increase the lead to 13 points, taking a pass from Holmes and burying a three-pointer with 4:52 left.  It remained a three-possession game the rest of the way as Clarion kept UPJ at arm's length, with Holmes tacking on the last two points of her career with a make at the 0:29 mark. 
 
UPJ led 11-5 after an and-one make from O'Barto at the 4:59 mark of the first quarter, but the Golden Eagles rallied back to take the advantage late in the period.  Harden-Pulliam scored in transition with 1:39 left to tie the score at 13 and Bekelja put Clarion ahead 17-15 with two free throws at the 0:24 mark of the quarter.  Olivia Rizza scored with 0:12 remaining in the first quarter to tie it at the break. 
 
The Lady Cats opened the second quarter with a 10-0 run, holding Clarion scoreless until the 5:02 mark, but the Golden Eagles responded with a 13-2 run of their own to end the half.  Holmes cut the lead to three points with a layup at the 1:47 mark and Taylor Moltz tied the score with a three-pointer on the next possession.  Nicole Maxson drained a trey from the right corner to give the Golden Eagles a 30-27 lead, and Clarion led by one point at the halftime break.