BLOOMSBURG, Pa. – A second straight double-double from Taylor Montana (Berwick, Pa./Berwick) and a team-high 16 points from Alyssa Mack (Walnutport, Pa./Allentown Central Catholic) powered the Huskies past visiting Lock Haven 66-54 on Saturday (Feb. 3) for National Girls and Women in Sports Day.
 
Bloomsburg has now won back-to-back games for the first time since Dec. 3-Dec. 9 when they picked up a pair of home wins over Slippery Rock (57-52) and Clarion (52-42) respectively.
 
The two teams began the game with a fast-paced first quarter that Bloomsburg won 18-16. Rileigh Devine began the game with a triple, before Meghan Corridoni (Exeter, Pa./Holy Redeemer) scored BU's first points with a jumper. Jalyn Shelton-Burleigh scored a layup to get Lock Haven up by three, before a long ball from Marissa Molnar (Erie, Pa./McDowell) knotted the game at five. After a missed three-pointer from Molnar, it was Corridoni who pulled down the rebound and gave it back to her, Molnar did not miss the second time around. Bink Redman got on the scoresheet with a layup, before Shelton-Burleigh extended Lock Haven's lead to four with two good free throws. After about a minute and a half scoreless, Mack drilled a long ball that got Bloomsburg back within 9-8, before Molnar knocked down another triple on the next possession to put the Huskies up 11-9. A layup with contact from Shelton-Burleigh would tie the game at 11 with 3:27 to play in the quarter, before the teams went to a media timeout. Out of the break, Shelton-Burleigh completed the three-point play to put Lock Haven up 12-11. Corridoni and Ahnera Parker would trade buckets to leave the Bald Eagles up by one with under three minutes left in the opening frame. With 1:20 left in the quarter, Mack missed a layup from close in before the offensive rebound was grabbed by Lauren Oeth (Doylestown, Pa./Germantown Academy). Oeth put the shot back up to give BU a 15-14 lead. Lock Haven took a brief lead inside the final minute on a layup from Parker, before the Huskies held for one shot, the possession did not go as planned, and left Darcy Lee (Altoona, Pa./Bishop Guilfoyle) heaving a shot from long range at the buzzer. Her attempt fell through and Bloomsburg took re-gained the lead to end the opening frame.
 
Bloomsburg did most of its damage in the second quarter, doubling up Lock Haven 16-8. The quarter included a 7-0 run in a period of 4:49 of the final five minutes and change. Another second chance got things started for Bloomsburg, off a missed long ball by Lee. Montana grabbed the board and the Huskies set up their offense. It was Oeth knocking down the jumper with help from Mack to get BU up by four. Redman got the game back within two with a layup, before the teams would trade empty possessions for the next two minutes. It was a triple from Mack with six and a half minutes to play in the half that put Bloomsburg up by five, before Megan Brandt (Lebanon, Pa./Northern Lebanon) put back her own rebound after a miss to stretch the lead to seven. The five unanswered forced a Lock Haven timeout with six minutes left in the half. Out of the media break, Lock Haven was able to get a second chance and make it count. Off a missed jumper from Devine, Mackenzie Livinston got the rebound and put it back up through contact. The bucket fell and Livinston would go to the line for one. The free throw as good, and thus the run would begin. Two quick baskets began the run for Bloomsburg. Another offensive board by Corridoni led to another bucket, and the next trip down the floor it was Montana netting a close-range basket. 1:51 went by with no scoring, before Montana would make one of two free throws to put BU up by nine with 2:14 to play in the half. The clock would tick down inside the final minute when Montana would be sent to the line again. The sophomore would make both this time around, stretching Bloomsburg's lead to a quarter-high 11 with 50 seconds to play. Devine would stop the cold spell for Lock Haven with a three-pointer to get the game back to single digits, before BU would get last possession and play for one shot. It was Bella Ricci (Etters, Pa./Red Land) getting in on the scoring with a jumper with six seconds left to send Bloomsburg to the half up 34-24.
 
Bloomsburg would extend its lead to as many as 20 in the third quarter, and carried an 11-point lead to the fourth quarter. Emma Saxton (York, Pa./Central York) and Shelton-Burleigh traded buckets to open the second half, before BU would up its lead to six in the first four minutes. Montana and Mack would knock down jumpers, before another layup from Montana put the Huskies up 42-26. A layup from Redman was countered by two good free throws from Lee, and the teams would go to a media timeout with the score 44-28. Out of the break, the two teams traded a handful of empty possessions, before Mack put the Huskies up by 18 with a pair from the charity stripe with 3:37 to play in the quarter. Parker would make two free throws, before two good free throws from Corridoni would cancel them out leaving BU up 48-30. Redman and Montana would trade buckets just inside the three-minute mark, before two free throws from Mack put Bloomsburg up by 20 (52-32) with 2:19 to play in the quarter. The Bald Eagles countered with a run over the final 2:18 of the third to trim the lead to 11. Jumpers from Shelton-Burleigh and Kloster cut the lead to 16, before one good free throw from Redman made it 52-37. Again in the final minute, it was Shelton-Burleigh and Kloster back-to-back, with Kloster's bucket falling through the net as the quarter ended.
 
Lock Haven would get as close as nine in the final frame, but Bloomsburg would keep the lead at double-digits for the last seven minutes and change. The frame began with A pair of free throws from Saxton, which were countered by a layup from Shelton-Burleigh. A little over a minute passed scoreless, before two free throws by Shelton-Burleigh cut Lock Haven's deficit to just nine. Saxton would get BU their double-digit lead back with a jumper at 7:20 of the fourth, and from there the Huskies would put the victory on ice.
 
In total, the Huskies shot 37.3 percent (22-59) from the field, 29.4 percent (5-17) from beyond the arc and a season-high 94.4 percent (17-18) from the free throw line. Mack led the scoring with 16 points, while Montana completed her second straight and third career double-double with a 13-point, 11-rebound effort. The sophomore did so on 5-10 shooting and a 3-4 night from the foul line. The Huskies earned a 47-31 advantage on the glass, including 18-13 on the offensive end and 29-18 on the defensive end. Molnar recorded her first career block in the win, while Corridoni dished out a career-best four assists. Four other Huskies shot perfect from the foul line, led by Mack's 8-8 effort.
 
The second consecutive win moves Bloomsburg to 8-15 overall and 5-12 in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC), while Lock Haven falls to 4-16 overall and 3-13 in league play.
 
The Huskies look to win their third straight and complete the season sweep of Cheyney when they go on the road Wednesday night (Feb. 7) to take on the Lady Wolves. Tip-off for that game is set for 5:30 p.m.