Box Score

Clarion, Pa. – Mercyhurst women's basketball placed three players in double-figures, and were led by Amy Achesinski's 29 points and 15 rebounds, but the Lakers were unable to overcome Clarion's balanced scoring attack and outside shooting, falling 75-69 Wednesday at Tippin Gymnasium. 

After trailing 30-27 at halftime, the Lakers gave up the first basket of the second half and found themselves down by five points at 32-27 with 19:25 remaining. Mercyhurst then went on a 6-0 run over the next two minutes to take a 33-32 lead on a Stephanie Prischak layup. After Clarion made a basket, Amy Achesinski sank two free throws to give the Lakers a 35-34 lead with 15:25 left in the game. Clarion built a small three-point lead at 43-40 with 10:43 remaining before the Lakers went on a 6-0 run, receiving a layup from Janeale Ronai and two baskets from Nikki Frederickson to give Mercyhurst the lead at 46-43 with 9:32 left. 

Clarion took over the ballgame for the next five minutes, using an 18-3 run to claim a 61-49 lead with 4:26 remaining. Achesinski scored the next six Mercyhurst points during a brief 6-2 run, and the Lakers trailed 63-55 with 3:27 left in regulation. Following a Clarion three-pointer which grew the Golden Eagle lead to 11 at 66-55, Frederickson converted a three-point play with 2:32 to go to cut the Clarion lead to eight. Clarion made one free throw on the next possession, and then Megan Hoffman drained a three-pointer to make the score 67-61. Despite late three-pointers from Mercyhurst's Achesinski and Kelsey Gordon, Clarion made six out of eight free throws the rest of the way, and added a layup at the buzzer to win the game, 75-69. 

For the game, Clarion shot 42.1 percent from the field and made eight three pointers on 19 attempts. They also went 13-for-18 from the foul line. The Lakers shot 41.3 percent from field-goal range, but made just three triples and shot 14-of-19 on free throws. The Lakers outrebounded the Golden Eagles 43-36, including 19-14 in offensive rebounds. Mercyhurst scored 44 points in the paint to Clarion's 26. 

The Lakers dropped their sixth game in a row, and their record stands at 9-15, 3-8 in PSAC West play. The Golden Eagles improve to 10-14, 4-7 in the PSAC West. 

The first half was back-and-forth, with each team taking the lead on several occasions and the largest lead belonging to Clarion at 18-14 with 7:20 left in the half. The Golden Eagles took a 30-27 halftime lead. 

Achesinski led the way for the Lakers with 29 points, tied for a season high, including 20 in the second half, and a season-high 15 rebounds, including nine offensive boards. She shot 8-of-11 from the field, including 1-for-1 from three-point range, and went 12-of-16 from the free throw line. She tied a career high for made free throws, and also tied her career high with four assists. The double-double was her fifth on the season and 12th for her career. 

Prischak added 12 points on 6-of-14 shooting and led the team with two steals. Frederickson, named PSAC West Freshman of the Week Monday, scored 10 points for the second straight game, making four out of six field goal attempts and going 2-for-3 from the foul line in 25 minutes. 

Hoffman added five points and four rebounds. Lindsay Whipkey scored four points and grabbed eight rebounds for the second consecutive game, and also blocked one shot. Gordon made one triple for three points. Ronai, Samantha Loadman and Jackie Artise each scored two points. 

Clarion was led by Sara Pratt, who scored 19 points and grabbed 15 rebounds while blocking two shots. Five Golden Eagles scored in double figures. 

The Lakers play host to Lock Haven (3-21, 0-11 PSAC West) in their final home contest of the season Saturday at 1 p.m. at the Mercyhurst Athletic Center. The Lakers beat Lock Haven in their first meeting this season, 74-61 on Jan. 24, a game that saw Prischak score her 1,000th career point.