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CLARION, Pa. - The Bloomsburg University women's basketball team got off to a fast start on Saturday afternoon but was held to 32 points over the final three quarters and dropped a 74-53 decision at Clarion University. The Huskies dropped to 1-7 overall and 0-5 in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Eastern Division while the Golden Eagles improved to 7-4 overall and 4-1 in the PSAC West.

The Huskies jumped out to a 21-18 lead after the opening quarter thanks to 10-of-15 (66.7%) shooting over the first ten minutes. Senior Morgan Klunk (Felton, Pa./York Catholic) paced the way with six points in the opening quarter while sophomore Casey Warley (West Chester, Pa./Bayard Rustin) had five points on 2-of-2 from the field. Senior Alex Ross (Lancaster, Pa./Manheim Township), who posted her first double-double of the season, did a little of everything in the first ten minutes by contributing four points, five rebounds, and three assists.

Sophomore Alyssa Mack (Walnutport, Pa./Allentown Central Catholic) extended Bloomsburg's lead to five points, 23-18, with a tip-in to start the second quarter. However, the Golden Eagles went on a 14-2 run over the next five minutes to turn a five-point deficit into a seven-point advantage - a lead Clarion would never relinquish. Sophomore Marissa Molnar (Erie, Pa./McDowell) knocked down a three-pointer to stop the bleeding with 4:09 left in the first half to cut the Clarion lead to 32-28. But, the hosts scored eight of the final ten points of the quarter to take a 40-30 lead into the locker room at halftime.

Clarion outscored Bloomsburg, 22-9, in the second quarter which proved to turn the game completely around.

Freshman Meghan Corridoni (Exeter, Pa./Holy Redeemer) and Ross combined to score six of the first eight points of the third quarter as the Huskies cut the Golden Eagle lead to 42-36 with 7:36 left in the period. But, Clarion, which went on a number of runs throughout the contest, scored 13 of the final 17 points of the quarter to extend the advantage to 55-40 heading to the fourth. Quorea Pearyer jump-started the Clarion run with the first four points to get the lead back into double figures.

The Huskies got to within 11 points, 58-47, with 4:47 left in regulation after Mack buried her first, and only, three-pointer of the contest. But, the Golden Eagles ended the thought at a Bloomsburg comeback bid as they scored the next 13 points of the game to extend the lead to 71-47 - the largest advantage of the contest. Back-to-back threes from Klunk and Molnar ended the run before Clarion's Amesha Harden-Pullium knocked down a triple for the final points of the game.

Klunk led the Huskies with 15 points but was only 7-of-20 from the floor. Ross finished with 10 points, 12 rebounds, and five assists. Bloomsburg shot 40.7% from the field (24-of-59) but was unable to connect on all six of its free-throw attempts. The Huskies also turned the ball over 20 times which led to 20 Clarion points. The Huskies, meanwhile, were only able to turn nine Golden Eagle miscues into two points.

Clarion, which was led in scoring by Tyra Polite's 17 points, had three players in double figures. Jordan Bekelja added 13 while Harden-Pullium chipped in with 10.

The Huskies, who have not played at home since November 22, will return to the Nelson Field House to host the third-ranked Vulcans of California (PA) on Sunday, December 18. Tip-off is scheduled for 1:00 p.m.