WEST CHESTER, Pa. – The Bloomsburg women's basketball team lost in its final game of the 2023-24 season, 64-48, on the road to West Chester Saturday afternoon. 

In a day collectively struggling from the field, Lauren Kirsch (Palmyra, Pa./Lower Dauphin) led the Huskies in scoring with eight points and three rebounds while shooting three-of-six from the floor and two-of-five from behind the arc. The Huskies trailed only by seven after the first half, but second-half droughts led to the defeat. 

Bloomsburg (8-20, 6-16 PSAC) concludes its regular season. The Golden Rams (23-5, 18-4 PSAC) finishes as the second seed in the PSAC East heading into the PSAC Tournament.

How It Happened: 
The offenses for both sides were quiet through the first four minutes of the contest. West Chester grabbed its first lead at 8:25 off a layup from Emily McAteer. Kirsch gave the Huskies a spark, igniting a 9-0 run off three consecutive threes, first by the junior, followed by makes from Allison Hileman (Hollidaysburg, Pa./Hollidaysburg) and Maddie LaFrance (Harrisburg, Pa./Central Dauphin). The two sides traded baskets in the final five minutes of the opening quarter, with another jumper from Kirsch giving the Huskies a 15-11 lead after one. 

West Chester made its charge in the second quarter, outscoring Bloomsburg 23-12. After Julia Wheeler (Albion, Pa./Northwestern) made a three to give the Huskies an 18-13 edge, the Golden Rams went on a 10-0 run to take a 23-18 lead. Bloomsburg responded with a quick five points to tie, but a 7-0 stretch near the end of the half led to the Huskies trailing 34-27 at the break.

The Golden Rams used another strong quarter, a 19-9 discrepancy in the third, to further extend their lead. Kirsch used her second three of the afternoon to stop a 7-0 scoring run for the hosts and cut the deficit to 12. LaFrance would use her second three of the game to keep Bloomsburg within 12 points, but it proved not enough as West Chester extended its lead to 53-36 with one quarter to play. 

Despite outpacing the Golden Rams, 12-11, in the fourth quarter, the Huskies could not mount a comeback effort to close the gap. Ella Kale (Spring Grove, Pa./Spring Grove) and Ava Stevenson (Mechanicsburg, Pa./Trinity) combined for five points to get Bloomsburg on the board in the fourth. Kale would knock down her second jumper of the quarter at the six-minute mark, the only basket in a nearly three-minute stretch between the two sides. The two teams would exchange points down the stretch before the sound of the final whistle.

At the end of the season, Katie Starr (Berwick, Pa./Berwick) finishes a tremendous junior campaign. The Berwick native finishes as the team leader in points per game (17.1), rebounds per game (8.1), steals per game (2.1) and total blocks (21). Starr leads the team and the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference in field goal percentage (55.1 percent). The junior ranks top 10 in the conference in points (4th), steals (5th) and rebounding (6th).