BLOOMSBURG, Pa. – The Bloomsburg University women's basketball team was given quite a scare by the University of the Sciences at Nelson Field House on Sunday afternoon, but was able to hang on for a 62-61 win in the team's first home game of the season. The Huskies needed a missed jumper at the buzzer to improve to 4-1 overall on the year while the Devils dropped to 1-5 overall.
 
Junior Alex Ross (Lancaster/Manheim Township) led the Huskies with a career-high 18 points, making nine of her twelve field goal attempts. She added six rebounds, two assists, and a block in the victory.
 
The Huskies, who never trailed in the contest, led 55-43 after three quarters but were limited to just seven points in the fourth quarter as the Devils began to chip away at the lead. After junior Kristie Costantino (Norristown/Archbishop John Carroll) nailed a three-pointer to start the fourth quarter, increasing the lead to 15, the Huskies went quiet and did not score again until Ross converted a layup with 4:42 left.
 
During the cold spell, the Devils went on a 13-0 run to cut the Bloomsburg lead to 58-56 with 5:05 left.
 
After Ross put the Huskies in front by four, 60-56, Bloomsburg went scoreless again for another three minutes until Hopkins buried a 17-foot jumper with 1:43 left, which not only proved to be Bloomsburg's final points but also the game-winning shot.
 
The Devils' Molly Greenberg hit 1-of-2 foul shots with 43 seconds remaining and, after Costantino missed a three-pointer, Sarah Abbonizio missed a jumper from the free throw line as the horn sounded and Bloomsburg averted the upset bid.
 
Bloomsburg got off to a great start, building a 17-9 lead after the opening quarter and then taking a 29-23 lead to the locker room at halftime. The Huskies then scored 26 third-quarter points to stretch the lead to a dozen before the Devils outscored the Huskies, 18-7, in the fourth.  
 
Junior Mia Hopkins (Pittston/Pittston Area) posted her fifth consecutive double-double, scoring 13 points while adding a season-high 16 rebounds. She also had five assists and two steals. Junior Morgan Klunk (Felton/York Catholic) also finished in double figures, posting 12 points along with six rebounds, and four assists.
 
Freshman Alyssa Mack (Walnutport/Allentown Central Catholic) added seven points while fellow rookie, Casey Warley (West Chester/Bayard Rustin), scored a career-high six points after knocking down a pair of third-quarter three-pointers.
 
Abbonizio almost single-handedly kept the Devils in the game and gave her team an opportunity at the buzzer to win it. She finished with a game-high 23 points after going 7-of-15 from three-point range. Five of her threes came during the second half.
 
Bloomsburg shot 43.9% from the field (25-of-57) but had its three-point struggles continue after making just five of 22 attempts from long distance (22.7%). The Huskies were 7-of-8 from the foul line. Turnovers also remained a concern as the Huskies committed 18 miscues which led to 14 Devils' points. On the other side, University of the Sciences shot 37.7% from the field (23-of-61) but made 11 of its 29 three-pointers (37.9%). The Devils went 4-of-8 from the foul line and committed 12 turnovers.
 
Bloomsburg held a significant 43-29 margin on the glass.
 
The Huskies will play three Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) games this week, all at Nelson Field House. Bloomsburg will host East Stroudsburg on Tuesday, December 1, at 7:30 p.m. and then will entertain Mercyhurst on Friday, December 4 (5:30 p.m.) and Gannon on Saturday, December 5 (2:00 p.m.).