Women's Basketball | 11/8/2018 8:42:00 PM

THE DETAILS
Bloomsburg (0-0, 0-0 PSAC) vs Fayetteville State (0-0, 0-0 CIAA)
Friday, November 9, 2018 - 5:30 p.m.
Keystone Arena - Kutztown, Pa.

Bloomsburg vs Lincoln (Pa.) (0-0, 0-0 CIAA)
Saturday, November 10, 2018 - 2:00 p.m.
Keystone Arena - Kutztown, Pa.
 
GAME COVERAGE
Live Stats (BOTH GAMES) - CLICK HERE
Live Audio (BOTH GAMES) - CLICK HERE

RELATED LINKS
Bloomsburg - Schedule | Roster | Statistics
Fayetteville State - Schedule | Roster | Statistics
Lincoln (Pa.) - Schedule | Roster | Statistics

STORYLINE
The Bloomsburg University women's basketball team opens the 2018-19 season with the CIAA/PSAC Challenge this weekend, hosted by Kutztown University. The Huskies will take on Fayetteville State on Friday night before squaring off against Lincoln University on Saturday afternoon.
 
ALL-TIME SERIES
Friday's matchup against Fayetteville State will mark the first-ever meeting between the two schools on the hardwood. Meanwhile, the Huskies are 2-0 lifetime against Saturday's opponent, Lincoln University. In the last meeting between the two schools, Bloomsburg needed two overtimes to take care of the Lions, 74-71, in Lincoln. Lauren Ellis (Bangor/Bangor) led the Huskies with 18 points, eight rebounds, and four assists in the victory.
 
SCOUTING BLOOMSBURG
Bloomsburg played a pair of exhibition games against Division I competition to prepare itself for the start of the regular season. The Huskies dropped a 63-34 decision at Binghamton on October 30 as sophomore Amanda Arellano (Mount Carmel, Pa./Mount Carmel) led the way with eight points. Then, on November 1, Bloomsburg suffered a 94-53 setback at Buffalo with senior Marissa Molnar (Erie, Pa./McDowell) leading with 13 points and five rebounds.

The Huskies are coming off of a 13-16 record a year ago which included a 10-12 mark against league opponents. Bloomsburg entered the PSAC tournament as the fifth seed in the Eastern Division but saw its season come to an end with a 73-60 setback at Kutztown University in the opening round of the postseason. The loss snapped a seven-game winning streak which allowed Bloomsburg to capture a postseason berth for the ninth consecutive season - the last two under head coach Alison Tagliaferri, who enters her third season with the Huskies.

Bloomsburg has the luxury of returning seven players who started at least nine games last season. Included in that list are a pair of All-PSAC Eastern Division Second Team members in senior Alyssa Mack (Walnutport, Pa./Allentown Central Catholic) and junior Taylor Montana (Berwick, Pa./Berwick). Mack led the team in scoring last season at 10.6 points per game while also leading the squad in assists with 59. She scored at least 20 points in a game five times. Montana led the team in rebounding (6.1) and was second on the team in scoring at 9.0 points per game. She was also second on the team with 23 blocked shots and led the team in field goal percentage (.530).

Also starting at least nine games for the Huskies last season were Molnar, junior Meghan Corridoni (Exeter, Pa./Holy Redeemer), and sophomores Emma Saxton (York, Pa./Central York), Payton Spadaccino (Ivyland, Pa./Council Rock South), and Megan Brandt (Lebanon, Pa./Northern Lebanon) . Molnar joins Mack as the only seniors on this year's roster and is coming off of her best season in a Huskies' uniform after averaging 6.1 points per game and finishing second on the team with 32 three-pointers a year ago. Corridoni, meanwhile, led the team in blocked shots (29) and ranked third on the team in scoring (7.7 ppg) and was second in rebounding (4.9 rpg). Saxton also had a solid rookie season by averaging 7.3 points per game while finishing second with 53 assists. She also led the team with 23 steals. Brandt averaged 4.4 points and 3.3 rebounds while finishing second on the team with 19 steals. Spadaccino posted 1.7 points per game and was fourth on the team with 39 assists.

Also contributing last season and are back to provide depth and to compete for substantial minutes are junior Bella Ricci (Etters, Pa./Red Land), redshirt sophomore Lauren Oeth (Doylestown, Pa./Germantown Academy), and sophomores Arellano and Darcy Lee (Altoona, Pa./Bishop Guilfoyle). The Huskies also brought in two freshmen in Tehya Hosey (Lemoyne, Pa./Cedar Cliff) and Shirley Piotrowski (Newtown Square, Pa./Delaware County Christian School).

UP NEXT
Bloomsburg will head to IUP on Wednesday, November 14, for a non-conference game against the Crimson Hawks. Start time is scheduled for 5:30 p.m.

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