CLARION, Pa. – The Clarion women's basketball team lit it up from the field in general and from three-point range in particular, defeating Mansfield 80-58 to claim their first conference win of the season.  The Golden Eagles (6-3, 1-2 PSAC West) next play a week from today when they go on the road to face Felician.
 
Clarion's offense found its groove early and held onto it throughout the contest, shooting 29-of-58 (.500) from the field and 8-of-15 (.533) from beyond the three-point arc to put the Mounties away.  The Golden Eagles outscored Mansfield in each of the first three quarters to build a 22-point advantage heading into the fourth, never allowing the outcome to be in question.
 
Jordan Bekelja scored a game-high 21 points as she continued her push towards 1,000 career points.  She now has 932 career points and has scored double-digit point totals in each of the last six games.  Taylor Moltz was feeling it from beyond the arc, scoring 17 points on 6-of-9 shooting and 5-of-7 from three-point range.  Kadijah Dickson recorded her third double-double of the season with 14 points and 11 rebounds, while Yasmin Lewis chipped in 13 points and nine boards and Yndiah Bobo recorded five points and seven assists.
 
Moltz broke a scoreless tie in the first quarter with the opening bucket, but eventually the Mounties built their only lead of the afternoon.  Mansfield took a 12-8 lead with 3:40 remaining in the first quarter but the Golden Eagles were off to the races from there, starting with a steal and transition bucket from Bobo to cut it to two points.  Lewis tied the score at 2:48 and Moltz put Clarion up 15-12 on the next trip down the floor, and the Golden Eagles never relinquished the lead from there.  Moltz added a trey with 11 seconds remaining in the quarter as Clarion closed the period on a 14-2 run.
 
Ellie Thompson pulled Mansfield to within four points early in the second quarter, but Bekelja made it a three-possession game with a three from the corner that made it 27-19.  Moltz added a three-pointer to push the lead to 30-19, Dickson put Clarion ahead 45-30 at the halftime break with a free throw.
 
Things started to get out of hand in the third quarter as the deficit ballooned to more than 20 points.  Lewis scored an old-fashioned three-point play at the 2:09 mark to give the Golden Eagles a 22-point edge, making it 62-40, and Haille Hart kept the deficit there with a make in the final seconds of the third.  Bekelja gave Clarion their largest lead of the night with a layup at the 5:48 mark of the fourth that made it 73-50, and the Golden Eagles cruised to the final score.