MILLERSVILLE, Pa. – The Bloomsburg women's basketball team fell to Millersville during an away Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Eastern Division matchup by final tally of 70-58 on Saturday afternoon.
Millersville (12-9, 7-8 PSAC) used some excellent play in the middle quarters and solid defense throughout to pull off the double-digit win over Bloomsburg (8-12, 6-10 PSAC). The Marauders' defense forced 26 Husky turnovers that led to 18 Millersville points, and the home team outscored Bloomsburg 34-23 in the second and third quarters en route to the 12-point victory.
Katie Starr (Berwick, PA/Berwick) had a solid game for the Huskies, recording a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds.
Emma Gochnauer (Strasburg, Pa./Lampeter-Strasburg) led the team in scoring with 14 points, 12 of which came from the free throw line.
Ella Kale (Spring Grove, PA/Spring Grove) and
Abby Brown (Phillipsburg, N.J./Bethlehem Catholic) added eight points apiece.
For Millersville, Taylor Langan led all scorers with 25 points and went 10-for-19 from the field. Marin Miller was the team's only other starter in double figures as she finished with 15 points. La'shyra Williams added 10 points in 17 minutes off the bench.
The Huskies scored the first basket of the game after an offensive rebound by Gochnauer led to a converted field goal by Kale. Kale's bucket would be two of the team's 18 second-chance points of the night, and the sophomore guard would go on to score the team's first four points of the contest. The first quarter remained to be a back-and-forth battle as it saw five different lead changes and six different ties. Two free throws by Gochnauer at the end of the quarter ultimately put Bloomsburg on top 15-14 after the opening period.
The second quarter played out similarly and saw four different lead changes and two different ties, but the Marauders closed out the period on a 9-0 scoring run to go up 29-24 at the half. Defense proved pivotal in the period as Millersville was able to force nine turnovers in the period. Additionally, neither team was able to score in the last three minutes of play.
Millersville was able to add to its lead in the third quarter thanks to a sharp-shooting performance that saw the team shoot 54.55% (6-for-11) from the floor to go along with two three pointers and a 5-for-8 clip from the charity stripe. The team's hot hand on offense led to 19 points in the quarter for the Marauders, who led 48-38 heading into the fourth.
In the final period, Bloomsburg was able to cut into the double-digit deficit early on after converting four free throws on its first two possessions to make it a 48-42 game. A layup by Millersville's Langen on the ensuing possession put the Maruaders back up by eight, but two more free throws by Gochnauer made it a two-possession game once again at 50-44. The six-point deficit, however, would be as close as Bloomsburg would get as Millersville went on a quick six-point run to go up by 12 points. The Marauders would cling to a double-digit deficit for the remainder of the game despite a comeback effort by Bloomsburg.
The Huskies currently sit in the No. 6 spot of the PSAC East behind East Stroudsburg (12-10, 8-8 PSAC). Bloomsburg will host the Warriors on Monday, Feb. 6, for its next contest. The game is scheduled to tip off at 5:30 PM inside the Nelson Field House.
