CALIFORNIA, Pa. --- The Golden Eagles rebounded from a lopsided first quarter, but it was not enough to make up a double-digit deficit as Clarion fell 85-74 to California (PA) on Wednesday night.
 
After a first quarter where the Golden Eagle struggled to score as well as slow down the Vulcans, Clarion locked their opponent down in the second quarter, holding the Vulcans to just a 5-of-18 (27.8) shooting performance in the 10 minutes before halftime. Things continued to coalesce for the Golden Eagles into the fourth quarter, when Clarion outscored Cal 29-9, but by then the Vulcans' lead was insurmountable.
 
Autumn Taylor scored a team-high 22 points on 6-of-13 shooting, making the Golden Eagles' only two three-point shots and going 8-of-8 from the free throw line. DayLynn Thornton came off the bench for her best scoring performance in more than a month, putting up 12 points on 4-of-5 shooting, while Zoe Guice logged 10 points, five steals and a blocked shot.
 
The Vulcans dominated the opening 10 minutes, outscoring Clarion 35-10 in the first quarter for a sizable advantage. Cal scored six of the first seven points in the second quarter to take a 30-point lead, but the Golden Eagles responded with a 9-0 run to push back. Taylor accounted for seven of those points, including a pull-up three-pointer on the fast break and a second chance bucket just 30 seconds later. Siara Conley contributed four free throws down the stretch in the second quarter, pulling the deficit to 48-25 at the break.
 
California expanded their lead in the third quarter, but the Golden Eagles got the better of them in the fourth, outscoring them by 20 points and pulling to within 11 before the end of regulation. Much of that run came in the final 3:39, when Clarion went on a 17-4 run to finish off the game. During that stretch they held the Vulcans without a point for the final 2:40. Taylor made a three-pointer with 1:48 to go to make it 85-63, and Alyssa Terza added a bucket to make it to a 20-point game. Terza scored off her own miss with 47 seconds remaining to cut it to 15 points, and Guice scored with 10 seconds to play to set the final deficit.
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