SLIPPERY ROCK, Pa. — The Slippery Rock University women's basketball team will square off with Clarion 1 p.m. Saturday in a pivotal Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Western Division contest on the road.
 
The Rock head to Clarion with a 7-9 overall record that contains a 4-6 showing in PSAC competition. The Golden Eagles, who are also coming off a conference loss, will seek improvement upon an 11-6 mark on the year and a 5-5 record in the PSAC.
 
CLARION TICKETS
General admission tickets sold at Waldo S. Tippin Gymnasium are $7 for adults, while general admission tickets for ages 6-18 as well as non-Clarion students with college IDs are $3. Children under six years old will be admitted for free. More ticketing information can be found on Clarion's website HERE.
 
WATCH LIVE
Fans can watch Saturday's game live for free via the links below provided by Clarion Athletic Communications.
 
GAME 17 of 26
Opponent: Clarion
Date: Saturday – 1 p.m.
Location: Clarion, Pennsylvania
Venue: Waldo S. Tippin Gymnasium
Live Video: PSAC Sports Digital Network
Live Stats: Clarion Athletic Communications
In-game Updates: X (@Rock_Athletics)
All-Time Series: 57-45
Current Streak: L1
Last Played: Feb. 21, 2024 at Clarion (SRU lost, 82-64)
 
TOP ACTIVE SRU CAREER STATS vs. CLARION
Regan Atkins – 37 points, 21 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, 1 block (2 GP)
Kaylin Venick – 21 points, 15 rebounds, 9 assists, 6 steals, 1 block (6 GP)
Deryn Moye – 18 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal, 1 block (2 GP)
Endya Robinson – 15 points, 10 rebounds, 1 assist, 3 steals, 1 block (2 GP)
Alyssa Gillin – 11 points, 8 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 blocks (2 GP)
 
SERIES HISTORY
The Rock and the Golden Eagles will be meeting for the 103^rd time Saturday, a series that Slippery Rock owns a 57-45 record in. The Rock have maintained the majority of success recently in the series, winning 11 of the last 18 games against Clarion since 2015.
 
Slippery Rock defeated Clarion last year at home but lost to the Golden Eagles on the road in an 82-64 decision. The Rock are 25-27 all-time when playing the Golden Eagles on the road, most recently defeating Clarion at Tippin Gymnasium two years ago in a 77-68 win. That win was SRU's first road victory at Clarion since 2018.
 
Regan Atkins double-doubled in both contests with Clarion last year, averaging 18.5 points and 10.5 rebounds per game. Atkins tied a then-career-high 23 points while pulling down 10 rebounds against Clarion in SRU's 62-60 home win. She posted 14 points and 10 rebounds in The Rock's 82-64 loss at Clarion Feb. 21, 2024.
 

TEAM COMPARISON
THE ROCK	STAT	CLARION
63.8	Points per Game	77.0
64.8	Opp. Points per Game	72.4
40.5%	Field Goal Pct.	40.3%
38.5%	Opp. Field Goal Pct.	40.9%
32.1%	3-Point Pct.	25.9%
30.3%	Opp 3-Point Pct.	26.9%
6.6	3-Pointers Made per Game	5.6
71.3%	Free Throw Pct.	67.5%
37.5	Rebounds per Game	43.3
38.5	Opp. Rebounds per Game	41.6
-1.0	Rebounding Margin	+1.7
13.4	Assists	10.8
-2.1	Turnover Margin	+2.2
5.9	Steals	13.4
3.2	Blocks	3.4
Per game averages

 
THE ROCK BY THE NUMBERS   |   Roster   |   Stats
Overall Record: 7-9
PSAC Record: 4-6
Home Record: 4-4
Away Record: 2-4
Neutral Record: 1-1
Last Five: 2-3
Streak: L1
PSAC West Rank: 7^th of 8
Head Coach: Ryenn Micaletti | Second season at SRU (9-32)
 
LAST TIME OUT
Slippery Rock dropped a wire-to-wire loss, 80-65, at No. 16 Gannon University Jan. 15. Brooklyn Jones led The Rock with 12 points, four rebounds and two assists. Atkins and Alyssa Gillin both contributed 10 points and one block. Atkins pulled down a team-high seven rebounds, while Gillin tallied three boards for SRU.
 
SRU shot 31.7 percent from the floor (19-of-60) and 19 percent from behind the 3-point arc (4-of-21). The Rock won a 14-12 advantage in fastbreak points with a +4 turnover margin (19-15).
 
WKBN-TV TO TELEVISE WHITE OUT GAMES JAN. 22 vs. IUP
The Slippery Rock Athletic Communication Office and WKBN-TV will partner for a live television broadcast of Rock Basketball's White Out Night doubleheader against Indiana University (Pa.) next Wednesday, Jan. 22.
 
The Rock women's basketball team will open the action against IUP with a 5:30 p.m. tip with the men's game following around 7:30 p.m. It will mark the first home games for SRU in nearly six weeks where students will be back on campus as the spring semester classes are set to begin Tuesday. The Rock Athletic Club will also welcome club members for receptions during both games. Tickets are available online and can be purchased HERE. SRU students will be admitted free.
 
Fans are encouraged to wear white to the game and can pick up an official "White Out" t-shirt at the SGA Bookstore for just $5 for sizes small through XL and $8 for 2XL. A limited supply of shirts will also be on sale in the lobby of Morrow Field House on game day.
 
Both games will air live to viewers in the Youngstown, Ohio television markets. They will also be simulcast on the Rock Athletics Digital Network, where SRU broadcasts more than 100 athletics events each year.
 
The games will air live on the following channels for viewers in the Youngstown, Ohio TV markets:

•     Streaming LIVE on WKBN.com
•     Digital over the air at 33.2 or 62.2 HD
•     Armstrong Cable Channel 13 or 108
•     Comcast Cable Channel 3
•     Direct TV Channel 15
•     Spectrum Channel 997 or 1008
•     Hulu TV
•     YouTube TV
•     Fubo TV  

The Slippery Rock Athletic Communication Office will also simulcast the WKBN-TV broadcast on the Rock Athletics Digital Network and the PSAC Sports Digital Network, allowing fans access to the game through their normal viewing outlets if they are not in the Youngstown market.
 
More information regarding the White Out and the viewing options can be found HERE.
 
LEADING THE ROCK
Atkins has continued to sit atop Slippery Rock's scoring with 13.1 points per game. Tahmala Thorpe and Sophia Hook are both tied for second on the team with 10.3 points per game with Kayley Joseph-Bernard close behind at 8.4. Gillin ranks fifth for Slippery Rock with 7.1 points per game.
 
Joseph-Bernard has made a team-leading 49.6 percent of her shot attempts (58-of-117). Atkins joins her above 40 percent from the floor with a 43.6 field goal percentage (72-of-165). Rebecca Goetz has shot 57.1 percent on the year as well, knocking down 16 of her 28 field goal attempts.
 
Jones is SRU's top 3-point shooter percentagewise with a 35.9 percent clip (14-of-39). She ranks just a hair ahead of Atkins (35.3 percent, 18-of-51) and Hook, who has made more 3-pointers than anyone else on the team (35.1 percent, 26-of-74).
 
8.1 rebounds per game from Joseph-Bernard leads Slippery Rock off the glass. Atkins has contributed 6.3 rebounds per game after serving as SRU's leading rebounder for the eight time this season. She recorded seven rebounds at Gannon, now averaging 6.7 rebounds per game in her last three outings.
 
In addition to rebounding, Joseph-Bernard continues to lead Slippery Rock in assists (3.9 per game), steals (1.5 per game) and blocks (1.1 per game).
 
THE FRESHMAN MAKING AN IMPACT
The final two minutes of SRU's game at Gannon saw true freshmen Ava Darney and Hannah Pugliese see time on the court to record the first statistics of their collegiate careers.
 
Pugliese, a guard from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, sunk a 3-pointer and made two free throws to record the first five points of her career. They also went down as SRU's final five points of the night against the Golden Knights. Pugliese becomes the 15^th different player to score for SRU this year and the ninth to make a 3-pointer.
 
Darney registered the first assist of her career on Pugliese's 3-pointer. The forward from Youngstown, Ohio is now the 11^th different player to assist on a made field goal for Slippery Rock this year.
 
WINNING THE TURNOVER BATTLE
Slippery Rock forced 19 turnovers out of Gannon, the most that SRU has garnered in six games. The game marked the sixth time this season that The Rock forced at least 19 turnovers. SRU's season-high came against Millersville University, a game in which The Rock pressured the Marauders into 21 turnovers through 50 minutes of play.
 
SRU also won the turnover battle for the second time in four games, committing just 15 turnovers itself.
 
Joseph-Bernard led The Rock with three steals, while Goetz recorded two takeaways herself. Hook came away with one of SRU's six steals with a takeaway in the second quarter.
 
IN THE CLEAR
SRU additionally edged its opponent in fastbreak points for the second time in four games with a 14-12 advantage against Gannon. The game marked the fifth time this season that The Rock had tallied at least 14 fastbreak points. SRU cashed in a season-best 16 fastbreak points against Glenville State University.
 
SRU's 14 fastbreak points against Gannon were well distributed among five different players:
 
SRU fastbreak points against Gannon
4 – Regan Atkins
4 – Kayley Joseph-Bernard
2 – Alyssa Gillin
2 – Sophia Hook
2 – Brooklyn Jones
 
KAYLEY BY THE NUMBERS
Joseph-Bernard continues to rank highly throughout the conference in a plethora of statistical categories:
 
Joseph-Bernard per-game stat (rank in PSAC)
1.35 assist/turnover ratio (3^rd)
3.9 assists per game (4^th)
62 total assists (4^th)
6.6 defensive rebounds per game (4^th)
34.2 minutes per game (5^th)
130 total rebounds (7^th)
1.1 blocks per game (8^th)
8.1 rebounds per game (8^th)
17 total blocks (9^th)
 
Additionally, Joseph-Bernard is tied for second nationally among all Division II forwards with 3.9 assists per game. Only Southern Nazarene University's Hannah Giddey (4.4) and Wayne State University's Shea Tripp (3.9) have produced at least as many. Only five Division I forwards and three Division III forwards have averaged at least 3.9 assists per game.
 
SOPHIA LEADING THE ROCK FROM THE ARC
Now having hit per-game and season-long minimums, Hook ranks fourth in the PSAC and second in the PSAC West in 3-point percentage.
 
PSAC 3-Point Field Goal Percentage Leaders:
1. Hallie Cowan, Seton Hill (38.3%)
2. Kali March, Millersville (37.1%)
3. Leila Hurley, Kutztown (36.0%)
4. SOPHIA HOOK, THE ROCK (35.1%)
5. Carissa Dunham, Gannon (34.8%)
 
Additionally, Hook ranks highly in the PSAC West in 3-pointers made per game:
 
PSAC West 3-Point Field Goals Per Game:
1. Autumn Taylor, Clarion (2.4)
2. Hallie Cowan, Seton Hill (2.3)
3. SOPHIA HOOK, THE ROCK (2.2)
T4. Helene Cowan, Seton Hill (2.1)
T4. Carissa Dunham, Gannon (2.1)
 
REGAN ON A ROLL
Atkins, who leads Slippery Rock with 13.1 points per game, has now reached double-digit scoring totals in her last eight consecutive games. Since Dec. 7, Atkins has averaged 14.9 points per game.
 
Atkins reached double figures in 23 of last year's 25 games on her way to being named SRU's first PSAC West Freshman of the Year winner in 24 years. Through 41 total games with Slippery Rock, Atkins has now averaged 14.4 points per game throughout her collegiate career. As it stands, that ranks 12^th all-time in SRU's record book.
 
FINISHING A MARATHON
Slippery Rock will be concluding its busiest chunk of the regular season Saturday by playing its sixth game in a 16-day span. In the 20 days following Saturday, The Rock will play just three games:

•Wednesday, January 22 vs. Indiana University (Pa.) – 5:30 p.m. at Morrow Field House
•Wednesday, January 29 vs. Edinboro – 5:30 p.m. at Morrow Field House
•Saturday, February 1 at Seton Hill University – 1 p.m.
 
That road game at Seton Hill marks the first of seven games to be played in the month of February. SRU's final regular season game is slated for Feb. 26 at Edinboro.
 
WHAT SATURDAY COULD MEAN
While SRU still has 10 games to be played in its PSAC West slate, Saturday's game has the potential to carry significant playoff implications for The Rock and the Golden Eagles.
 
The top six of eight teams in the PSAC West will qualify for the 2025 PSAC Tournament, which begins March 3. SRU is four games ahead of Pitt-Johnstown, which is 0-10 in conference play. The Rock are just one game behind Clarion and California (Pa.), two 5-5 teams currently tied for fifth.
 
A Slippery Rock win would move The Rock to 5-6 in PSAC competition and drop Clarion to 5-6 in the league, momentarily giving SRU the head-to-head tiebreaker over Clarion with another game to be played between the two sides Feb. 19 at Morrow Field House. 
 
While anything can happen throughout the course of the regular season, it is likely that the SRU-Clarion series will weigh heavily in separating the two teams in the standings.
 
THE REBOUNDING ROCK
Slippery Rock is 5-3 this season in games immediately following a loss and 6-3 if The Rock's season-opening win over Davis & Elkins College is factored in following a regular-season-finale loss to end the 2023-24 year.
 
Since the turn of the calendar to 2025, The Rock have gone 2-0 in games after a loss. Slippery Rock responded to its loss to Seton Hill with a 71-58 win over Pitt-Johnstown and turned things around after a three-point loss at California with a three-point win over Lake Erie College.
 
ROCK STARS OF RECENT
• In addition to Pugliese's first points, 3-pointer and free throw, the freshman guard notched her first career rebound at Gannon.
 
• Hook recorded her first career block at GU to become the ninth SRU player with at least one block this season.
 
• Goetz earned a personal-best two steals increasing her career tally to five.
 
• Jones matched a season-high four rebounds for the third time this year. Her career-high came two years ago in her junior year at Niagara University. Jones led the Purple Eagles with eight rebounds in addition to 11 points, three assists and a steal in an 86-62 win over Siena College March 2, 2023. 
 
• Deryn Moye registered a season-high two assists against the Golden Knights to become the seventh different SRU player with at least 10 assists this year.
 
• With 12 points, Jones served as SRU's top scorer for the second time in her career. Her 19-point performance against Tiffin University also led The Rock. Jones surpassed 100 points at SRU and enters Saturday with 102 points on the year. She became the sixth different Slippery Rock player to ascend 100 points this season.
 
• With 10 points at Gannon, Atkins surpassed 200 points on the season with 209. The sophomore from New Castle, Pennsylvania is now just 10 points away from 600 with 590 points throughout her career.
 
THE GOLDEN EAGLES BY THE NUMBERS   |   Roster   |   Stats
Overall Record: 11-6
PSAC Record: 5-5
Home Record: 6-1
Away Record: 4-5
Neutral Record: 1-0
Last Five: 1-4
Streak: L1
PSAC West Rank: T-5^th of 8
Head Coach: Danielle Fleming | Second season at Clarion (12-33, .267)
HC Career Record: 62-86, .419 (five seasons)
 
CLARION SCOUTING REPORT
Following a 1-27 record last year, the Golden Eagles are out and flying in the 2024-25 season, able to boast an 11-6 overall record heading into Saturday. Clarion has gone 6-1 against non-conference opponents this season while leading the PSAC in rebounds per game (43.3), steals per game (13.4) and forced turnovers per game (23.7).
 
Clarion brings an aggressive style of play that draws enough contact to attempt 25.4 free throws per game – fourth-most in Division II. The Golden Eagles rank inside the top 20 in D-II in both steals and forced turnovers, cashing in opportunities on the attack with the 17^th-ranked scoring offense in the country at 77.0 points per game.
 
Autumn Taylor, who dueled with Atkins for PSAC West Freshman of the Year accolades last year, now ranks fourth in the league and 21^st in Division II with 18.7 points per game. The sophomore from Twinsburg, Ohio has reached 20 points nine times this year including two showings of at least 30 points. Additionally, Taylor is shooting 41.4 percent on the season.
 
Tearra Cook is Clarion's top rebounder with 5.5 boards per game but has not appeared in the Golden Eagles' last two games. True freshman Madison Palek out of Woodbine, New Jersey is the team's second-ranking rebounder with 5.4 per contest.
 
Two more talented freshmen – Zoe Guice of Westerville, Ohio (9.4 points, 4.6 rebounds per game) and Arianna Seitz from Wrightsville, Pennsylvania (11.0 points, 4.5 rebounds per game) – highlight Clarion's starting lineup. Guice ranks second in the PSAC with 3.0 steals per game, also leading the Golden Eagles with 2.5 assists per contest.
 
LOOKING AHEAD
Slippery Rock will host IUP in its annual White Out Game 5:30 p.m. Jan. 22 at Morrow Field House. The Slippery Rock Athletic Communication Office has partnered with WKBN-TV out of Youngstown, Ohio to simulcast the game in the Youngstown television markets. More information regarding the White Out and the viewing options can be found HERE.





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