BLOOMSBURG, Pa. - The Bloomsburg women's basketball team picked up its first win in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Saturday afternoon with a 64-48 victory over Slippery Rock at Nelson Field House.

Katie Starr (Berwick, Pa./Berwick) was the story of the night, as the senior became the 27th player in program history to reach 1000 points scored. Starr took control of the Huskies' offense in the third quarter, and the forward's 12th point of the night notched the milestone. Starr's second-half performance catalyzed the second-half surge, scoring 17 of her game-high 21 in the second half on perfect 8-of-8 shooting from the floor. The post added eight rebounds, two assists and a block to her tallies.

Bloomsburg (5-3, 1-2 PSAC) received several contributions from its roster to come away with the decision. Ella Kale (Spring Grove, Pa./Spring Grove) shined in every phase of the game, filling the stat sheet with 15 points on 7-of-9 (77.8 percent) shooting from the field with seven rebounds, seven assists and two blocks. Maddie LaFrance (Harrisburg, Pa./Central Dauphin) recorded a season-high 11 points on the day with three rebounds and a block, steal and assist to aid the Huskies' cause. 

Searching for sparks off the bench, Bloomsburg received solid efforts from Lauren Kirsch (Palmyra, Pa./Lower Dauphin) and Kelly Leszcynski (Nazareth, Pa./Nazareth). Kirsch added an outside threat for the Huskies, finishing with eight points and a pair of threes. Leszcynski provided a strong supplementary playmaking performance with five assists and added three rebounds to help push the pace on the open floor. 

With her 12th point against SRU, senior Katie Starr (Berwick, Pa./Berwick) became the 27th player in @buwbb_huskies history to score her 1,000th career point for the Huskies!! #Unleashed pic.twitter.com/45QqtBxMGw

— Bloomsburg Huskies (@GoBUHuskies) December 7, 2024

How It Happened: 
The Huskies made a statement in the opening minutes against The Rock (4-5, 2-2 PSAC), jumping out to a 10-2 lead through the first five minutes. E. Kale instigated Bloomsburg's initial run, contributing to nine of the team's first 10 points with four points and two assists. Leah Kale (Spring Grove, Pa./Spring Grove) gave the Huskies their largest lead of the first half of nine at 13-4 before Slippery Rock made a 10-0 run to close the quarter with a 14-13 advantage. The two sides were nearly identical in every major statistical category through one, with an extra free throw the difference for The Rock through the first 10 minutes.

After trailing for the first time in the game, Bloomsburg worked back into the contest to reclaim as much as a four-point edge in the second quarter. Kirsch provided energy off the bench, supplying five points as part of an 11-4 run for the Huskies to make it 24-20 with four to play in the half. Defense dictated the next three minutes of the matchup, with the sides locked at 24-22 from 3:47 until Slippery Rock cut the lead to one and grabbed an offensive rebound off a missed free throw to grab a 25-24 lead. Both sides got points on their final offensive possessions, with LaFrance knocking down a pair from the charity stripe. Kayley Joseph-Bernard banked in a hook shot in the closing seconds for Slippery Rock to give the visitors a 27-26 advantage heading into the break. 

The Rock held onto their edge through the beginning minutes of the second half at 36-32, fending off efforts from E. Kale and LaFrance to regain the lead for Bloomsburg. Starr began her takeover at the 5:29 mark in the third with her first points in the second half, kicking off a 14-0 run for the Huskies, contributing 12 of her team's 14 with nine points and an assist. LaFrance closed out the quarter with Bloomsburg's final four points, going to the rack on her own before receiving a feed from Leszcynski to take a 48-38 advantage into the fourth.

Starr and E. Kale continued to dictate the play on the offensive end as the Bloomsburg defense locked in down the stretch to close out the contest. The seniors combined for 13 of the Huskies' 16 fourth-quarter points to ice the game. On the other end of the hardwood, Bloomsburg forced The Rock to shoot just 32 percent (8-for-25) in the second half of the field to come away with the win. 

Numbers of Note: 
38-21 - The Huskies came out of the halftime break with clear intention, dominating the final stretch of the weekend matchup. Bloomsburg outscored Slippery Rock 64-48 in the final 20 minutes of Saturday's contest.

1009 - Starr became the 27th player in team history to reach the 1000-point threshold on Saturday. The forward currently sits with 1009 points in her career. 

5.1 & 2.56 - E. Kale's playmaking ability has been on full display for the Huskies through the first quarter of the schedule. Bloomsburg's lead guard leads the conference, averaging 5.1 assists per game, and is at the top of the PSAC in assist-to-turnover ratio at 2.56.

+8 - The Huskies have made a concerted effort so far this season to increase the emphasis on attacking the class. Bloomsburg finished Saturday with a +8 rebounding margin for the fourth time this season and is 3-1 in those games. The Huskies did not have a single game last season at the threshold, with the best margin coming out to +3. Bloomsburg has won the rebounding differential in five of its eight games this season after doing so just seven times a season ago.

On The Horizon:
The Huskies have extended break with no midweek action to prepare for a contest on Sunday, December 15, at 1:00 p.m. against No. 13/21 Jefferson at Nelson Field House.