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BLOOMSBURG, Pa. - Don't look now, but the Bloomsburg University women's basketball team is on a roll.
Five Huskies scored in double figures, led by sophomore
Alyssa Mack (Walnutport, Pa./Allentown Central Catholic)'s 20-point effort, as Bloomsburg defeated visiting West Chester University, 81-68, at the Nelson Field House on Wednesday evening. It marked the third straight victory, and sixth in the last seven games, for the Huskies who improved to 7-13 overall and 6-10 in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Eastern Division. The Golden Rams dropped to 9-11 overall and 9-7 in league play.
The win also gave first-year head coach
Alison Tagliaferri her first career win over West Chester, which includes her four seasons at Mansfield University.
Mack did most of her damage in the second half as she scored 18Â - 12 in the fourth quarter - of her 20 points over the course of the final 20 minutes. Seniors
Alex Ross (Lancaster, Pa./Manheim Township) and
Morgan Klunk (Felton, Pa./York Catholic), along with sophomore
Marissa Molnar (Erie, Pa./McDowell), chipped in 13 points apiece while freshman
Taylor Montana (Berwick, Pa./Berwick), the reigning PSAC East Freshman of the Week, added 12 points in 18 minutes off the bench.
The first quarter was back-and-forth as neither team could generate a lead larger than four points. The biggest lead of the quarter belonged to West Chester, 22-18, with 1:08 left in the period. That's when Molnar struck. She nailed a three-pointer with 56 seconds remaining to cut the lead to 22-21 and then connected on a three-pointer from roughly 30-feet away as the buzzer sounded to give the Huskies a 24-22 lead after the opening quarter.
Bloomsburg never trailed in the second quarter and used a 15-5 run over a seven-minute span to build a 39-29 advantage with exactly three minutes remaining. After the Golden Rams trimmed the lead to four, 41-37, with 49 seconds left, Ross converted an old-fashioned three-point play for the final points of the half to give the Huskies a 44-37 lead at intermission.
Montana and Molnar each had ten points in the opening 20 minutes to pace the Huskies' offense. Bloomsburg shot 18-of-33 (54.5%) from the field in the first half.
West Chester got on the board first to start the second half on a jumper from Alexis Anderson before Klunk answered with a layup just 14 seconds later. But, the Golden Rams then went on a 7-0 run to tie the game at 46-46 with 6:12 left in the third quarter. Klunk gave the Huskies the lead right back before West Chester's Mariah Traywick knotted the game, again, at 48-48 on a pair of free throws with 4:50 remaining in the quarter. But, the Huskies went on an 8-0 run to take a 56-48 lead with 3:10 left in the period. Mack had six of the eight points during the spurt. The teams exchanged points the rest of the quarter and, when the dust settled, the Huskies enjoyed a 59-52 lead after three quarters.
The visitors cut the lead to one, 60-59, by opening the quarter on a 7-1 run. But, Mack answered with a three-pointer to push the lead back to four with 6:24 left in regulation. Moments later, West Chester's Jenna Widdicombe cut the lead to two on a pair of foul shots. That, however, would be as close as the Golden Rams would get. Bloomsburg went on a 10-0 run over the next three minutes to take a 73-61 lead with 2:55 left in regulation. Mack, again, led the charge with seven points during the run. The Huskies then closed out the win with some free throws down the stretch.
Sophomore
Taylor Sneidman (Mechanicsburg, Pa./Cumberland Valley) narrowly missed giving the Huskies six players in double figures but posted a solid all-around line of eight points, nine rebounds, five assists, and three steals.
The Huskies ended up shooting 29-of-61 (47.5%) from the field and cashed in on 6-of-17 (35.3%) from long range. Bloomsburg also outrebounded West Chester, 44-35, for the contest with Sneidman and Ross tying for the team-high with nine each.
Porscha Speller led West Chester with 18 points while Tori Smick added 14 points and a team-high nine rebounds.
Bloomsburg will look to stay hot when it hosts PSAC East-leading Shippensburg at the Nelson Field House on Saturday, February 4. Start time is scheduled for 1:00 p.m.
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