• Saturday's top 14 contest has huge implications for both No. 15 Edinboro and No. 14 California(Pa.). The Fighting Scots enter the weekend with a 17-2 overall mark, while the Vulcans are 18-3. However, they're both 13-2 in the PSAC West, and are in a three-way tie with IUP for the best record in the PSAC.
• A win would help the winning team increase its chances of earning a bye to start the PSAC Tournament. The top-six teams from each division qualify for the PSAC Tournament. Edinboro was picked to finish second in the PSAC West coaches' preseason poll, while California(Pa.) was projected to finish second in the Western Division.
• Edinboro returns to McComb Fieldhouse for three of their next four games. It is also the first home contest where students have been on campus, as the previous five contests have occurred during holiday break.
• The Fighting Scots lone two losses on the year have come at California(Pa.) and against IUP by a combined nine points. Edinboro and Cal first met back on December 30, where the Vulcans prevailed at home, winning in a nail-biting 74-71 decision. The two teams combined for six ties and nine lead changes, but Shatara Parsons converted back-to-back three-point plays in the final 90 seconds to secure the win. With the win, California(Pa.) has won three straight against the Fighting Scots. However, the last two contests have each been decided by three points, and 10 points during the skid.
• Edinboro and California(Pa.) rank atop the PSAC amongst all 18 teams in winning the turnover battle. The Vulcans lead the conference and rank sixth nationally with a 7.76 margin, while the Fighting Scots are second and 12th in Division II with a 6.95 differential.
• On Wednesday, Edinboro concluded a three-game road trip with a 76-53 win at Pitt-Johnstown. The Fighting Scots enter the weekend winners of four straight games. California(Pa.) will be well rested for Saturday's contest, as they had a bye on Wednesday. Its most recent game was on Saturday, as the Vulcans defeated Slippery Rock, 61-41.
• On December 2, head coach Stan Swank became the all-time winningest basketball coach in PSAC history, after his then 560th career victory over Mansfield, 81-54. In the win, he passed Charles Chronister of Bloomsburg for the most wins all-time by a men's basketball coach in the PSAC. In his 31 years at Edinboro, Swank has gone 570-303 overall, and entered the year ranked ninth among Division II coaches with 554 career wins.
• Jontay Walton (17.0 ppg.), Ciara Rosten (14.6), Michelle Jahn (13.5), and Michaela Barnes (12.2) are each averaging double figures per contest this season. Combined, they are responsible for 57.3 points (72.1 percent) of the Fighting Scots' 79.5 points averaged per game this year. Against UPJ, they combined for 47 points. Ciara Rosten led the way with 16 points and 15 rebounds, en route to her 10th double-double of the season.

• The Edinboro-California(Pa.) game can be heard on WFSE-FM 88.9. Gabe Hypes will handle the play-by-play with Jacob Hart on color commentary.
• In addition, this year Edinboro is part of the PSAC Network. All men's and women's home basketball games will be streamed live through Stretch Internet.

• Edinboro leads 44-41
• First Meeting: 1970-71 – Edinboro 52, California 35
• Last Meeting: December 30, 2017 – at No. 10/25 California 74, No. 12/11 Edinboro 71 at California, Pa.
• Current Streak: California(Pa.) has won the last three contests by a combined 10 points.
• Swank vs. California(Pa.): 33-38

• The Vulcans handed Edinboro its first loss of the season as Shatarra Parsons converted a pair of 3-point plays in the final 90 seconds. Leading 68-67, Parsons converted her first 3-point play with 1:23 remaining. Jontay Walton cut the deficit to 71-69 with a layup, but Parsons added her second 3-point play with 50 seconds left for a 74-69 advantage.
• Michaela Barnes' two free throws trimmed the lead to three, and the Fighting Scots had one last chance, but Ayana Vaughn's 3-pointer with seven seconds to play was off the mark.
• Edinboro was the better shooting team on the day, making 50.9 percent (28-of-55) of its baskets, while the Vulcans shot 44.8 percent (30-of-67) from the floor. The two teams combined for six ties and nine lead changes throughout the game.
• Cal outscored Edinboro 21-13 in points off turnovers. The Fighting Scots forced 17 turnovers, but the Vulcans pressured Edinboro into 23 turnovers, to go with 13 steals.
• Ciara Rosten scored 22 points on 10-of-13 shooting. The 6'2" senior also grabbed seven rebounds blocked three shots, before fouling out. Walton added 18 points, and Michaela Barnes contributed 13 points on 5-of-7 shooting.
• Whitney Allen was tasked with guarding Parsons, who leads all PSAC's players with 23.3 ppg. She was held to 18 points on 6-of-12 from the floor, but shot a perfect 6-for-6 on free throws. Parsons also recorded seven rebounds and four blocks.
• Three other Vulcans scored in double figures. DJ Hahn also ended the game with 18 points on 7-of-11 shooting and 3-of-7 from beyond the arc. Mia Cushon came off the bench for 14 points, and Abbey Sporio nearly recorded a double-double with 10 points and eight boards, to go along with five steals.

The Head Coaches
Edinboro: Stan Swank (Purdue '76) -- 571-303, 31st Year

• Stan Swank is in his 31st season as the Edinboro women's basketball head coach. He has led the Fighting Scots to seven straight 20-win seasons, and is currently 182-48 overall during that period. In total, Swank has had 13 20-win seasons as Edinboro's head coach.
• Swank is the all-time leader in victories among PSAC men's and women's coaches with 570 wins. He entered the campaign with 554 wins, which was the most wins by a women's basketball coach in PSAC history. He then passed former Bloomsburg men's basketball coach Charles Chronister for the men's title in Edinboro's 81-54 triumph at Mansfield.
• Entering the 2017-18 season, Swank ranked ninth in Division II with 554 wins at Edinboro, and 41st in the NCAA. As a program, Edinboro ranked 13th all-time in Division II with 779 wins. Over the last five years, he has coached the Scots to a .733 winning percentage, which is 25th in Division II. Swank also ranks 38th in Division II history with a .648 winning percentage.
• In his 31 years at Edinboro, he has led the Fighting Scots to four PSAC championship titles, and ten appearances in the NCAA Division II Tournament. During March Madness, the Fighting Scots have made two Elite Eight appearances, three Sweet Sixteen births, and have made the Round of 32 on four occasions.

California(Pa.): Jess Strom (Penn State, 05) -- 159-42, 7th Year

• A Western Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic League Hall of Famer, Strom graduated from Penn State where she was a four-year starter for the Nittany Lions. Prior to arriving at California(Pa.), she served as an assistant coach at Appalachian State, before taking the same spot with the Vulcans. During the 2011-12 campaign, Strom was named interim head coach.
• Strom, who ranks third with 159 career wins, guided the Vulcans to their first NCAA Championship title during the 2014-15 season, and has an 11-3 overall record during postseason play. She has made the PSAC Tournament in her previous six seasons, while winning double-digit contests in all seven years as head coach.
• Last season, she was named the 2016-17 WBCA Atlantic Region Coach of the Year. She is also a two-time PSAC West Coach of the Year recipient (2014 and '15).

• Edinboro improved to 17-2 overall and 13-2 in the PSAC West with a 76-53 at Pitt-Johnstown on Wednesday. The win gave the Fighting Scots a 3-0 mark on their road trip, its fourth consecutive win and a three-way tie with California(Pa.) and IUP for the best conference record in the PSAC. The Fighting Scots currently rank 15th in the WBCA Top 25 and are among teams "also receiving votes" in the D2SIDA poll.
• Stan Swank is the winningest basketball coach in PSAC history. In December, he picked up his then 560th career victory over Mansfield, 81-54. In the win, he passed Charles Chronister of Bloomsburg for the most wins all-time by a men's basketball coach in the PSAC. In his 31 years at Edinboro, Swank has gone 570-303 overall, and entered the year ranked ninth among Division II coaches with 554 career wins.
• Over its last four games, Edinboro has held its opponents to under 55 points. Six of their last seven opponents have failed to reach 57 points. In total, 11 opponents have been held to under 60 points this season.
• Edinboro was picked to finish third in the PSAC West, after going 21-9 overall and 16-6 in conference play last season.
• Edinboro is averaging 79.5 ppg., which is second in the PSAC and 14th in Division II. The Fighting Scots have scored over 73 points in their last four contests, and have scored over 70 points in 16 games this year. Defensively, they are allowing 59.6 ppg., for third in the conference. Edinboro is winning by an average of 19.8 ppg., which is atop the PSAC and eighth nationally.
• Edinboro is winning the turnover battle against opponents by a 6.95 margin per game. That ranks second in the PSAC and 12th nationally. The Fighting Scots are also giving up the ball nearly 14.1 times a game, which is the third-fewest amount in the conference.
• In the win at UPJ, the Fighting Scots defensive play was the difference in the victory. Edinboro forced 22 turnovers, while committing 11. The Fighting Scots then capitalized the Mountain Cat turnovers for 34 points, compared to seven points for UPJ. Dominance in the paint was also key for Edinboro, doubling UPJ's point total, 44-22.
• Four Fighting Scots scored in double figures. Ciara Rosten, led Edinboro in scoring and rebounding with 16 points and 15 rebounds, respectively. The 6'2" forward also improved her double-double count to 10, which is a conference-high. She also extended her block count of at least three per game to four straight and 13 of the last 14 contests.
• Jontay Walton, Michaela Barnes and Ayana Vaughn also scored double digits against the Mountain Cats. Walton scored 14 points, dished out four assists, had four steals and committed zero turnovers in 33 minutes. Barnes added 11 points and three steals, while Vaughn came off the bench and contributed 10 points.
• Michelle Jahn has climbed to sixth place on the all-time 3-pointers made list. The junior guard has 175 and needs four more to move past Lauren Hippo into fifth place. In addition, she needs 76 points to join the 1,000-point club at Edinboro University. Jahn has been Edinboro's top 3-point shooter, converting 43-of-120 baskets from beyond the arc.
• Rosten leads the PSAC and ranks third in Division II in blocks, averaging 3.74 blocks per game. She ranks seventh in program history with 122 career blocks, despite just playing the last two years. Rosten also leads the PSAC and is fifth nationally with 71 blocks this year. 
• Jontay Walton leads the PSAC and is 14th nationally with 3.1 steals per game. The 5'8" guard is averaging the second-most assists per game in the conference with 4.2 apg. and is sixth in scoring, averaging a team-best 17.0 ppg.

Scouting the Vulcans

• California(Pa.) went 2-0 last week, climbing to 18-3 overall and 17-2 in the PSAC West with a 61-41 victory over Slippery Rock last Saturday and a 71-39 win at Clarion on January 24. They enter the weekend with plenty of rest, as they had a bye on Wednesday. Cal is ranked 14th in the WBCA Division II Top 25 and 19th in the D2SIDA poll.
• Jess Strom is in her seventh season as the Vulcans head coach. The former four-year starter at Penn State led Cal to the 2015 NCAA Division II National Championship. She has led the Vulcans to a 157-42 record, ranking third in career victories at Cal. She has guided California(Pa.) to four NCAA Tournament appearances, advancing to at least the Atlantic Regional Championship three times.
• The Vulcans have held every PSAC opponent to under 70 points, with the exception of Edinboro in their win over the Fighting Scots on December 30.
• Cal was picked to finish second in the PSAC West Coaches' Preseason Poll. Last year, the Vulcans went 30-4 overall and 20-2 in the PSAC West. They concluded conference play as runner-up to IUP in the PSAC Championship game, 84-79. Additionally, they were also a host site in the NCAA Tournament, falling to Virginia Union in the Atlantic Region Championship, 85-69.
• California(Pa.) is averaging 68.9 ppg., which is sixth in the PSAC, and is allowing opponents 55.9 ppg., for second. The majority of the Vulcan's points have come inside the paint. They are third in the conference in shooting with a 43.1 field goal percentage. Additionally, they have made 59 3-pointers on the campaign, which is 82 fewer than Edinboro and the fewest in the PSAC.
• Cal makes defense a priority. The Vulcans allow just 55.9 ppg., for second in the PSAC and 15th in Division II. They lead the PSAC in steals and rank sixth nationally with 14.0 per game. Cal ranks first in the conference and sixth nationally in turnover margin ( 7.8), forcing over 24 turnovers per game.  
• Senior Shatara Parsons leads the PSAC and ranks seventh in Division II in scoring at 21.6 ppg. The 6'0" forward also leads the conference with 63 steals, and has 63 blocked shots, good for second in the PSAC behind Edinboro's Ciara Rosten. She spends a good deal of time at the free throw line, making 100-of-135 free throws.
• Parsons has been named PSAC West Women's Basketball Athlete of the Week on five occasions this season. She last received this accolade on Monday, following a career-high eight blocks against Slippery Rock.
• Mia Cushon is the only other player scoring in double figures. The junior guard averages 14.9 ppg. while ranking third in the PSAC with 58 steals. Cushon leads the Vulcans on the glass, averaging 8.0 rpg. Parsons is a close second with 7.9 rpg.
• Former Warren(Pa.) High School standout DJ Hahn averages 8.7 ppg. She is the Vulcans top 3-point shooter this year, shooting 25-of-70 from behind the arc.