ROCHESTER, N.Y. – The Clarion women's basketball team opened its 2020-21 season on the road on Friday, with the Golden Eagles falling to Roberts Wesleyan 70-52 at the Voller Athletic Center. Clarion (0-1) will return home for a weekend set against D'Youville next Saturday and Sunday, with both games set to tip off at 1 p.m. in Tippin Gym.
 
Every single player on the Golden Eagles' roster saw nine or more minutes of action as head coach Jana Ashley distributed minutes fairly evenly over the course of four quarters. Three Clarion players reached double figures in scoring, led by newcomer Devon Adams' 13 points and nine rebounds. Ke'Airah Massiah and freshman Abby Gatesman each contributed 10 points and seven rebounds of their own, while freshman Allyson Kirby chipped in eight points off the bench.
 
Clarion led 18-11 at the end of the first quarter but was unable to maintain their hot shooting start, going 7-of-16 (.438) in the opening 10 minutes but well below that the rest of the way. Conversely, the Redhawks shot just 31.3 percent from the floor in the first period before a 10-of-16 outpouring in the second, giving them a 35-28 lead at the halftime break.
 
The Golden Eagles opened up on a 7-2 run, with Olivia Boocks rilling a three-pointer just seconds after coming in off the bench to put Roberts Wesleyan on their heels. The Redhawks scored nine of the next 11 points to briefly take the lead, but Kirby countered with a trey to make it 12-11 at the 2:13 mark. Massiah took a feed from Neely Whitehead and converted it into a three-pointer to make it 15-11, and Gatesman closed the opening period with a triple off a pass from Emily Brown to make it 18-11.
 
Roberts Wesleyan would not erase the lead until three minutes passed in the second quarter, eventually taking a 21-18 lead on a three-pointer by Madison McCormick. Boocks gave Clarion their final lead of the half on a transition three-pointer that made it 24-21, but the Redhawks followed with a 14-4 run to make it 35-28 at the halftime break. The lead increased to double-digits before briefly dropping to nine points on a tough make by Gatesman at the end of the third quarter. Roberts Wesleyan controlled action the rest of the way.