LAKEWOOD, N.J. - The Bloomsburg women's basketball team took care of business in a 78-44 road victory over Georgian Court Saturday afternoon.

After finding herself in foul trouble the last time out, Katie Starr (Berwick, Pa./Berwick) came out with a point to prove for the Huskies. The senior finished with 18 points, 11 rebounds, and three blocks on an efficient 7-of-10 day from the floor and going 4-of-5 from the free throw line. Leah Kale (Spring Grove, Pa./Spring Grove) joined Starr in double figures with 14 points on the day, shooting 4-of-8 from the field, 2-of-5 from behind the arc, and 4-of-4 from the charity stripe to go with three boards, two assists, and a steal. 

Bloomsburg had control of the contest from the opening tip, scoring more points in the first three-and-a-half minutes of the game (11) than the Lions scored in the first half (10). The Huskies held Georgian Court to 4-of-25 (16 percent) from the floor through the first two quarters.

How It Happened: 
Bloomsburg (2-1) and Starr wasted no time getting onto the scoreboard as the senior scored the team's first five points and seven total in an 11-1 run to begin Saturday's game. Ella and L. Kale played their roles in the opening quarter, combining for nine points and three assists to help the Huskies to a dominant 20-7 start through the first 10 minutes of action. 

Despite cooled shooting in the second quarter, Bloomsburg leaned on its defense to generate positive momentum. The Huskies forced Georgian Court to shoot 1-of-13 (7.69 percent) from the floor with just one additional free throw, making for three total points leading into halftime.

Offensively in the second quarter, Starr had nine of the team's 16 points, continuing to will her way into the paint and shoulder a chunk of the offensive load. Maddie LaFrance (Harrisburg, Pa./Central Dauphin) knocked down a triple in the quarter as L. Kale knocked down all four free throw attempts to send Bloomsburg into the break up 36-10.

Both offenses came out firing in the second half, but the Lions remained no match for anything the Huskies threw their way. Despite posting its single-best quarter of the day (17 points, 8-of-17 shooting), Bloomsburg responded with its highest-scoring quarter, registering 23 points on 9-of-11 (81.8 percent) shooting from the field in the third. 

Starr and the Kales all had one basket through the first three minutes of the second half, while Alison Hatajik (Duncansville, Pa./Hollidaysburg) joined in with a 2-for-2 trip from the line to open the quarter on an 8-4 stretch. After three successful jumpers from Georgian Court, Kelly Leszcynski (Nazareth, Pa./Nazareth) and L. Kale got Bloomsburg back into form to make it a 49-20 contest. Leszcynski worked with the Huskies' four freshmen to close out the third quarter with every player on the court (Leszcynski, Lex Ferguson (Harrisburg, Pa./Central Dauphin), Kalleigh Nerone (Pittsburgh, Pa./Highlands), Kash Santos (Bethlehem, Pa./Bethlehem Catholic), and Maddison Maynard (Lansford, Pa./Panther Valley)) notching two points and redshirt sophomore guard tallying two assists. 

That group continued to work well together through the first few minutes of the third quarter, recording the first seven points of the game's final stretch. Madison Johnson (West Orange, N.J./Union Catholic) joined in on the closing run in the fourth quarter for the Huskies, dropping five points, including a triple to help the Huskies to a 34-point victory. While Bloomsburg got strong performances from several starters in the game, the Huskies ability to rely on its bench led to the lopsided result, wrapping up the game with a 36-3 edge in bench points. 11 players recorded points for Bloomsburg and all 16 players saw game time on Saturday. 

Bloomsburg spread around the scoring and got steady contributions from the entire roster. E. Kale finished the game with six points, four rebounds, four assists, and two steals without a turnover in the contest. Leszcynski provided similar contributions with seven points, three assists, two rebounds, and two steals. In the post, Ferguson recorded six points, two blocks, and two steals to go with an assist, while Santos had five points and finished second on the team with five rebounds.

Numbers of Note: 
13 - Starr's role as the prominent post player for the Huskies takes many forms. For the forward, Saturday was her 13th career game with a double-double and her 10th over the last two seasons.

2022 - Finding winning momentum on the road is a positive sign for the Bloomsburg women's basketball team. The Huskies won consecutive games away from Nelson Field House for the first time since February 9 and 12, 2022. 

10 - The defensive intensity from Bloomsburg continued into this weekend with another solid outing from the Huskies. The team held Georgian Court to just 10 points in the first half to pull away in the contest 

28.5 - Part of the continued defensive play from the Bloomsburg women's basketball roster is forcing opponents to earn their points. The Huskies' opponents are shooting a combined 28.5 percent from the floor through the first three games of the season.

On The Horizon:
The Huskies continue their six-game stretch away from home to start the season on Tuesday, November 19, at 3:30 p.m. against Chestnut Hill.