CLARION, Pa. --- The Golden Eagle women's basketball team played their final home game of the 2023-24 season on Wednesday evening, falling by a score of 83-63 to Mercyhurst at Tippin Gym. Clarion played a competitive first half with the Lakers but could not sustain that momentum through the final 20 minutes.
 
The teams traded baskets for the first five minutes of action, with neither side stringing together two makes without an opponent bucket until late in the quarter, when Mercyhurst went on a 6-0 run to take a 13-9 lead. Sadre'a Rougeau cut into that lead with a driving bucket at the 3:11 mark, taking a defensive rebound on one end and going coast-to-coast for the score.
 
The Lakers rebounded with five straight points to take an 18-11 lead, until Malayziah Etheredge halted that mini-drought by scoring a bucket with under a minute to go in the first. Allyson Ross drained a three-pointer from the right corner just before the buzzer to give the Lakers a 21-13 lead, but Clarion responded with a quick flurry at the start of the second quarter to get the deficit down to one possession. DayLynn Thornton to cut it to 21-15, and Rougeau converted an and-one with a midrange jumper through contact from Danielle Grim, making it 21-18.
 
Siara Conley drained a three-pointer at the 7:40 mark of the second to pull the team within 24-21,  and Etheredge made it a three-point game with a trey at the 5:28 mark. The Lakers kept the Golden Eagles at arm's length for the remainder of the half, though, and carried a 38-30 lead into the locker room at the break.
 
Abby Gatesman knocked down a three-point attempt just 29 seconds into the third quarter to cut the lead to 38-33, and the deficit was still just a three-possession gap after Rougeau made a pair of free throws to make it 53-45. Mercyhurst started to stretch the lead into double-digits before the end of the period, though, and held onto that advantage for the duration.
 
Rougeau posted a team-high 17 points to go with four rebounds and four steals, while Taylor added 11 points and four assists.
 
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