ERIE, Pa. - Coming off a two-game sweep of the College of Saint Rose last week the Mercyhurst women's basketball team will look to continue to prove to the Atlantic Region that they belong in this year's NCAA Division II Tournament as they play a two-game set with Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference foe Clarion University on Tuesday and Friday.

Game Information
Opponent - Clarion University Golden Eagles
Date - Tuesday, February 23rd and Friday, February 26th    
Time - 5:30pm and 3pm
Location - Clarion, Pa. (Tippin Gymnasium) / Erie, Pa. (Mercyhurst Athletic Center)
Series History - Lakers lead, 27-22 / Lakers Last Win: 72-65, (2/8/2020 at home) / Golden Eagles Last Win: 73-65, (2/16/2019 on road) 
Fan Statement - Fans will not be allowed inside either venue.
Lakers Notes (Tuesday)
Live Stats and Watch (Tuesday) 
Watch (Friday)
Live Stats (Friday)

Last Time Out - LAKERS 70, St. Rose 54 (2/16/2021) / LAKERS 75, St. Rose 52 (2/17/2021)
Tuesday, Mercyhurst got behind early 11-5, but used a 7-0 run to take a 12-11 edge and never looked back using second-half runs of 10-0 and 10-5 to hold off the Golden Knights 70-54.  On the afternoon Julia Buchman and Brittini Martin recorded career-highs by netting 14 and 12 respectively.  A day later the Lakers took a 7-0 edge in the first and pushed it out to 25-8 five-minutes into the second, before completing the wire-to-wire victory over St. Rose.  Four players hit double-figures led by 18 each from Jayde Boyd and Grace Centrulla, while Nicolette Arnold (12) and Meghan Komendarek (10) finished off the quartet. 

Scouting the Lakers (9-4)
Trying to Make a Case
With their two wins last week the Lakers improved to 9-4 which eclipsed their win total from last season in head coach Brooklyn Kohlheim's first season at the helm of the Hurst ship. The Lakers will continue to try and make a case that they belong in this year's NCAA Tournament as they have four-games left including two against nationally-ranked Gannon University next week.   

Balanced Scoring
Mercyhurst has two players pacing the team in scoring with Boyd and Komendarek both averaging double-figures at 12.0 and 11.4.  Buchman is just off the mark at 9.3, while Centrulla and Arnold combine for 15.9 points per game.  The duo of Emily Shopene and Paige Woodford both chip in over five per contest.  

Hitting the Glass
The Lakers held the edge on the glass over the Knights between the two games 76-62 and now hold a +2.3 rebounding margin.  Komendarek leads the squad bringing in 8.1.  Boyd and Centrulla both are responsible for over six a game, while Arnold along with Shopene haul in 4.8 per contest.  As a team they average 41.8 and give up just 39.5 to the opposition.  Their 32.3 defensive boards per game is good for third in the nation.       

Protect the Ball
The Lakers have done a better job protecting the ball recently as they had recorded 15 or less miscues in four of their last six games which included a season-low 13 in the overtime loss at American International College on January 30th.  They now are averaging 16.9 turnovers per game.  However, they are only managing to force 12.7 out of their opponents.    

Block Party
The Lakers picked up another eight rejections in the two games against Saint Rose last week bringing their season total up to 75 good for ninth in the country, while their 5.8 blocks per game sits them at fifth.  Centrulla has led the party with 25 on the campaign, while Boyd as well as Komendarek have added 16 and 14 respectively.  Emma McDermott, Arnold, Buchman and Shopene each have over four.  

Stat Pack
Through 13 games the team is averaging 65.3 ppg and are allowing just 59.7 for a +5.6 scoring margin.  They shoot 39.2% from the floor, 31.4% beyond the three-point line and 74.2% at the foul line.  The Lakers tend to share the ball more than their opponent handing out 15.1 assists per game to the competition's 8.9.  On the defensive end, the Lakers average 5.3 steals. 

NCAA Leaders
As a team the Lakers are 38th in rebounds per game (41.9).  At the defensive end they are now sixth in field-goal percentage defense (32.3).  Individually, Shopene ranks 32nd in assists per game (4.7).  With her 25 blocks Centrulla ranks 28th, while the 16 by Boyd and 14 from Komendarek leaves them at 77th and 99th.  Komendarek ranks 91st rebounds per game (8.1) 

Inside the Nest (2-6)
Clarion comes into this week's action with a mark of 2-6 and are coming off a 1-2 week with a win over Carlow along with a pair of setbacks against Bryant & Stratton.  The Golden Eagles are led by a pair of double-digit scorers in Ke'Airah Massiah (11.7) and Devon Adams (10.0).  Abby Gatesman and Emily Hegedus both put up over nine points.  On the boards Adams and Gatesman each bring down more than seven rebounds per game.  Adams also have double-digit blocks with 10.  As a unit, Clarion shoots 38.4% on the floor, 29.9% from downtown and 66.7% at the the charity line.  They average 62.8 points, while allowing 64.0 to the competition.  The Golden Eagles turn the ball over 16.5 times, but only force 13.7.  At the defensive end they record 7.3 steals and 4.0 blocks per contest.   Heading the Eagles nest is Jana Ashley in her seventh season.            

On Deck
The Lakers and Golden Eagles will conclude their series on Friday afternoon at the Mercyhurst Athletic Center with tip set for 3pm.  They will then be back on the floor next Wednesday, March 3rd at 5:30pm when they welcome Gannon University.