KUTZTOWN, Pa. - A cold shooting night and unfavorable road conditions led to a 67-56 defeat for the Bloomsburg women's basketball team against Kutztown Wednesday evening. 

After leading after the first quarter, the Huskies (10-6, 4-5 PSAC) fell behind a Golden Bears' side (8-10, 4-6 PSAC) that benefited from a red-hot middle 20 minutes in the second and third quarters. Kutztown shot 14-of-22 (63.6 percent) from the field in those quarters, outscoring Bloomsburg 40-30.

Kelly Leszcynski (Nazareth, Pa./Nazareth) led the Huskies in the game with 15 points, tacking on three rebounds and three assists to go with a pair of steals. Katie Starr (Berwick, Pa./Berwick) added 13 points with four rebounds and a team-high four steals. Maddie LaFrance (Harrisburg, Pa./Central Dauphin) led a late charge in the fourth quarter with 10 points, while Ava Stevenson (Mechanicsburg, Pa./Trinity) proved a supplier in the contest with a career-high six assists.

How It Happened:
The midweek contest opened up with both sides on the slow foot, with 19 total points on the scoreboard. After nearly three minutes of scoreless basketball in the first, both teams found their opening points. Alison Hatajik (Duncansville, Pa./Hollidaysburg) found Lauren Kirsch (Palmyra, Pa./Lower Dauphin) for a midrange jumper before Kutztown answered on the other end. 

The Golden Bears flipped a quick five points to grab their first lead of the game before the Huskies netted eight of the final 10 points of the opening quarter to take a 10-9 lead. Starr and Stevenson dropped back-to-back makes in the paint as Leszcynski joined in with Stevenson for the edge. 

Kutztown took control of the second quarter to close the half up eight. Another quarter-opening cold stretch allowed the home team to settle in and rattle off an 8-0 run and a 17-10 advantage. Ella Kale (Spring Grove, Pa./Spring Grove) broke the drought for Bloomsburg just past the halfway point of the quarter to provide some relief. That spark only motivated another 5-0 spurt out of the Golden Bears to find a 22-12 advantage. 

With Kutztown still finding the basket, the Huskies managed to find an avenue to score from the free throw line. Leszcynski provided needed energy for Bloomsburg off an and-one conversion, with E. Kale able to tack on a pair of her own from the charity stripe. Leszcynski carried her momentum behind the line for a three to make it 28-20 at the half.

The Huskies continued their chase into the second half, with the Golden Bears keeping Bloomsburg at length around a double-digit deficit. Hatajik dropped in the first basket of the second half for the Huskies and turned it into a three-point play. As the third quarter ensued, the whistle was not at Bloomsburg's behest, with Kutztown able to build its lead off the back of five straight makes from the free-throw line. 

Another lull in the offensive action kept the Huskies stuck at a 15-point, 42-27 hole halfway through the quarter. Leszcynski provided another self-started 5-0 run with another make from behind the arc. The reigns then fell into the hands of Kirsch from three and Starr in the paint to cut the deficit down to single digits. Starr's and-one on the final offensive possession for the Huskies made it 49-40 with 10 minutes to play.

Not going down without a fight, Bloomsburg remained focused on inching back into the midweek matchup. With the lead back to eight, LaFrance knocked down consecutive jumpers, including one from distance to cut the lead to seven with seven minutes remaining. Those were the last points before two minutes, leading to more free throws for the Golden Bears. 

LaFrance's valiant fourth-quarter effort included an answer from the charity stripe and another bucket from behind the arc to cut the deficit to four at 56-52 with just over three minutes remaining. Kutztown's Naia Pulliam, the game's leading scorer, had a strong individual effort to close the contest with eight consecutive points over two minutes to thwart the Huskies' comeback hopes. 

Numbers of Note: 
27-12 | 18-10 - Bloomsburg heard too much of the metal on Wednesday, facing a hefty discrepancy in fouls and foul shots. Kutztown finished the game with a 27-12 edge in attempts from the line and an eight-foul difference by the final whistle. 

10 - LaFrance flashed in the fourth quarter and provided life to an offense forced out of rhythm. The guard scored all 10 points in the fourth quarter and 10 of the team's 16 down the final stretch. 

25 - One of the select highlights for Bloomsburg as a team was holding one of the more fervent three-point shooting teams in the conference to few makes and a lowly percentage. Kutztown shot just 4-of-16 from behind the arc for a 25-percent shooting night from distance. 

On the Horizon: 
The Bloomsburg women's basketball team continues its road stint on Saturday, January 18, at 1:00 p.m. with a trip to take on East Stroudsburg.