SLIPPERY ROCK, Pa. --- The Golden Eagle women's basketball team dominated the opening period and held off a furious Slippery Rock rally in the fourth, with Clarion coming out on top over The Rock by a 75-71 score on Wednesday.
 
The first quarter saw the Golden Eagles stymie The Rock defensively, holding them to just a 3-of-15 (.200) performance from the field while building up their own advantage. The tables turned in the fourth quarter as Slippery Rock pushed their way back into the contest, nearly erasing what had been an 21-point fourth quarter deficit to pull within one point with under a minute remaining. Jada Smith and Sierra Bermudez sank their free throws down the stretch to make it a four-point game, and the Golden Eagles got a stop with 13 seconds remaining to clinch the win.
 
Bermudez scored 21 points on 6-of-13 shooting and also dished out a team-high six assists, and also went 5-of-6 at the free throw line in the last 1:18 to secure the win. Smith, meanwhile, posted 17 points and notched eight rebounds, going 5-of-7 from the field. Charjae Brock added eight points and nine boards.
 
Allyson Kirby and Bermudez drained early three-pointers in the first quarter to open up a 6-0 lead, and the latter drained another trey at the 4:25 mark to increase Clarion's lead to 13-4. Olivia Boocks continued the long range assault with 1:16 left to go in the first period, taking a kickout from Ava Haddad and sinking a three-pointer to make it 18-6. The lead eventually reached 16 points before the end of the quarter, and Haddad pushed it to 32-13 with a bucket early in the second quarter.
 
The Golden Eagles kept that pressure on throughout the remainder of the first half, though a bucket by Jordan Kauffman pulled The Rock to within 11 points before the teams headed to the locker rooms. Clarion regained their footing, with Brock making it 50-33 with a layup at the 5:48 mark of the third quarter. Abby Gatesman made a pair of free throws to up the lead to 61-43, but from there Slippery Rock had the better of the offense. Deleah Gibson made a three-pointer with 4:10 left – part of her 31-point effort – to cut the lead to 68-61, and she added another trey with 45 seconds remaining to pull her team within 71-70. The Rock got no closer as Smith and Bermudez locked things down at the free throw line.
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