CLARION, Pa. – The Kutztown University women's basketball team suffered a 71-66 setback at the hands of Clarion University on Wednesday night in a Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) matchup inside Tippin Gym.
 
Kutztown (6-7, 4-6 PSAC) dropped its fourth straight game on Wednesday after starting the season with a 6-3 record.
 
Clarion (6-10, 6-4) controlled the game for most of the first half, outscoring KU 18-15 in the first quarter and 22-14 in the second.
 
KU had a huge third quarter, outpacing Clarion 23-14 and cutting the lead down to two with a quarter to go. The Golden Bears used an 8-0 run that began at the end of the third quarter and into the beginning of the fourth to take a 56-54 lead with 8:36 to play.
 
Clarion followed up KU's run with a 12-4 spurt of its own over the next five minutes of play, taking a 66-60 lead with three minutes to go in the fourth.
 
Junior Kelsey Watson (Collegeville, Pa./Methacton) made back-to-back layups for Kutztown in its next two possessions to cut the lead to two at 66-64. Natalya Lee (Feasterville, Pa./Rancocas Valley Regional) followed that up with a layup of her own after an empty possession by Clarion, tying the game up at 66-66 with a minute remaining.
 
Unfortunately for KU, it came up empty on the rest of its possessions and Clarion finished the game on a 5-0 run that included a layup and three free-throws for a 71-66 win.
 
Watson posted a game-high 22 points and team-high 10 rebounds for Kutztown. It was her third consecutive double-double and 12th game of the season with double-digit points. Watson attempted a career-high 24 shots from the field and made 10 shots, one off her career-high.
 
Lee was the only other Golden Bear in double-figures with 15 points. She also recorded a team-high four assists.
 
Freshman Taylor Thames (Colmar, Pa./North Penn) was productive off the bench, producing nine points and three rebounds in 19 minutes. Keifonna Ferguson (Norristown, Pa./Norristown Area) posted seven points and seven rebounds, her third straight game with at least six points and six rebounds.
 
Jenna Altomare (Pennsylvania Furnace, Pa./State College Area) recorded eight points, five rebounds and three steals. She was 2-of-5 from three-point land and extended her streak to 13 consecutive games with a three-pointer. Altomare has made two or more 12 times this season and four or more in six games.
 
Delrika Jones-Carey posted a huge double-double for Clarion, posting team-highs of 19 points and 18 rebounds. Tyra Polite had 19 points and six rebounds, while Tania Holmes had 15 points and five steals.
 
Clarion outscored Kutztown 32-28 in the paint and had 13 second-chance points compared to seven for KU. The Golden Bears held a 16-8 advantage in bench scoring over Clarion.
 
Kutztown returns to the court at home on Saturday, Jan. 9, in a PSAC battle with Bloomsburg inside Keystone Arena at 1 p.m.