Feb 4, 2007 By Mike Ciarochi 3 min read

CALIFORNIA – The Vulcans scored 80 points in an easy 80-60 win over PSAC West foe Clarion, but did it with balance. California didn’t have a player score more than 13 points and finished the night with 12 players in the scoring column. “That’s been our team all year,” Vulcans coach Bill Brown said. “We look for balance, an extra pass and keeping everybody involved.”

It’s no accident that the Vulcans have evolved into that type of team, according to Brown.

“I’d rather have a balanced team for a couple of reasons,” Brown said.

“From a scouting perspective, you can’t load up to stop one guy. Plus, you can have problems if your go-to guy gets hurt and can’t play for a while.”

Brown didn’t have to go too far for a perfect example. Clarion’s Ricky Henderson went down and out for the season before PSAC play started and the Golden Eagles struggled to score in falling to 7-13 overall and 2-5 in PSAC West games.

A couple of local players continued their stellar play for the Vulcans. Connellsville’s James Hairston scored nine points and had three assists, while Geibel Catholic’s Rob Ramsey of Belle Vernon added five points, two rebounds and two assists.

Hairston noted that balanced scoring is something the Vulcans realize can take them far.

“That’s what we do,” Hairston said. “We move the ball and stress getting it to everyone. Individual ball might good for someone’s numbers, but it doesn’t help the team as much as if you can get scoring from everyone.”

Hairston is a newcomer to this program and likes what he has seen to date.

“There is a lot of good competition in this conference and Cal is a good team,” he said. “I like their style of play. We knew coming into the season what we had to do to get to the top. Before the season started, they had us picked to finish fourth, so we’re really happy to be at the top and hope to stay there.”

James Petty led Cal (17-4, 6-1) in scoring with 13, while Osborne Gardner added 12 points and nine rebounds. Leon Kennedy paced Clarion with 17.

The Vulcans took a 37-24 halftime, thanks to seven points each from Hairston and Petty. Ramsey added a three-pointer for Cal.

Leon Kennedy kept the Golden Eagles in the game with 11 points.

Cal built its lead, in part, with sharp shooting. The Vulcans made 63.6 percent of their first-half shots, including 5-of-7 (71.4 percent) from three-point range.

Clarion, meanwhile was 1-of-7 from three-point range in the first half.

California goes out of conference when it hosts Pitt-Johnstown at 7 p.m. Wednesday.

“It’s out of conference, but it’s an important game because they are fighting for an regional berth,” Brown said of UPJ. “They’re still playing as an independent, but they’ll be in the WVIAC next season.

“As for us, we’re doing all we can to build momentum the rest of the season and playing a good team like Pitt-Johnstown doesn’t hurt.”