BLOOMSBURG, Pa. - The Bloomsburg women's basketball team secured a 63-50 win over Georgian Court in the home opener at Nelson Field House Wednesday evening.

After a back-and-forth beginning to the first quarter, the Huskies (3-0) managed the game well, holding onto the lead for the final 34:43 of action. Bloomsburg's best arguably came in the second quarter, with the Huskies holding the Lions (0-3) to just five points to take a 30-17 advantage into halftime. Georgian Court, led by 22 points from Amyah Bray, did enough to prevent the game from getting out of hand, but never got the game back down to a two-possession contest at any point in the second half.

Bloomsburg pieced together a well-balanced effort offensively, with all five starters recording at least eight points and making four shots. Kelly Leszcynski (Nazareth, Pa./Nazareth) paced the team on Wednesday with a well-rounded final stat line. The guard finished the night with 15 points on 6-of-10 shooting from the floor with seven assists, five rebounds, and two steals. Ava Stevenson (Mechanicsburg, Pa./Trinity) and Leah Kale (Spring Grove, Pa./Spring Grove) each finished with 11 points in the contest. Stevenson added four assists and three steals to her totals, while Kale had two rebounds and two blocks in the game. Maddie LaFrance (Harrisburg, Pa./Central Dauphin) ended the day with nine points, three rebounds, an assist, and a steal, while Alison Hatajik (Duncansville, Pa./Hollidaysburg) grabbed a team-high eight rebounds to go with eight points, two assists, and a steal.

How It Happened:
The night got off to a slow start with a scoreless first two minutes before a basket by the Lions' Farrah White. Another minute would pass, including an empty sequence with three offensive rebounds for the Huskies, before Bloomsburg would get on the board with a mid-range jumper by Hatajik. The two teams would trade baskets on the next several possessions to make it a 6-6 game just past the halfway point of the first quarter. 

The game began to open up for the Huskies in the back half of the quarter, with the team finding its shooting touch in the closing moments. Kale started the stretch of three straight three-point baskets for Bloomsburg before follow-up makes from Leszcynski and Stevenson from behind the arc. A key to the Huskies' run was the ball movement on the offensive end. On all three three-pointers, a Bloomsburg player recorded an assist, whether as a pass along the perimeter or an outlet from the post. The Huskies would take a 16-12 edge into the second quarter. 

The second had a similar air to it, as nearly three minutes went by before either team recorded a point. Leszcynski got Bloomsburg on the board with some free throws. After a three-pointer by Bray and Georgian Court, the Huskies locked in for the final 5:50 in the half to establish their presence. Bloomsburg would go on a 10-0 run in that span of time, establishing a smothering presence in the paint on both ends. Eight of the team's 10 points in the stretch came from the paint, with a jumper from Kalleigh Nerone (Pittsburgh, Pa./Highlands) coming off an assist by Lex Ferguson (Harrisburg, Pa./Central Dauphin) with a foot in the lane. The Lions would get one final desperation shot up with the shot clock and game clock expiring to signal the end of the first half.

Up 13, the Huskies had their sights set on pulling away in the contest, but were reeled back in by the efforts of Bray on the offensive end for Georgian Court. The Lions' guard finished with 13 of her team's 18 third-quarter points to make it a 12-point contest at 47-35 entering the fourth. For Bloomsburg, it was a different story, as five different players recorded a basket in the quarter, including three with at least four points to maintain the double-digit advantage.

The Lions continued to battle into the fourth quarter in hopes of giving the Huskies a game in the last stretch of Wednesday's game. Bloomsburg responded well to Georgian Courts' attempt to claw back into the contest thanks to the playmaking abilities of Leszcynski and Stevenson. Leszcynski spearheaded the charge with six points and an assist. Stevenson herself racked up two points and two assists to give the Huskies a dynamic rhythm in the half-court. The Lions would tack on some final points in the dying moments of the game, as Bloomsburg walked away with its third victory of the season.

Numbers of Note: 
20-8 - The biggest discrepancy for Bloomsburg in the win was its ability to create and capitalize on turnovers. The Huskies forced Georgian Court into 20 turnovers on Wednesday, the most by an opponent this season. From those 20 turnovers, Bloomsburg scored 20 points, compared to the eight points the Lions managed on only 10 turnovers for the Huskies.

8.7 - Through the team's first three games, Bloomsburg is taking a balanced approach to its offensive creativity. All five of the Huskies' starters have averaged at least 30 minutes played. Thus, all five starters average at least 8.7 points per contest. Any mix of the group offers a by-committee approach to the offensive production as well. Four of the five starters are at least shooting 43 percent from the floor, and four of the five at a clip of 34.8 percent or greater. The team is also sharing the basketball well, again with four of the five starters averaging at least two assists in the early proceedings of the season. 

3-0 - The Bloomsburg women's basketball team's 3-0 feat to start the 2025-26 season is a positive momentum builder and not a common occurrence. Wednesday's win marked the first time since the 2015-16 campaign that the Huskies began with a 3-0 record. It is just the fifth time Bloomsburg has won three consecutive games to start a season since the 2010-11 season.

On the Horizon:
The Huskies head back on the road for a matchup on Saturday, November 22, at 1:00 p.m. against No. 11 Fairmont State.