Audio | KU Game Notes
KUTZTOWN, Pa. – The Kutztown University women's basketball team hits the road for their second Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) East Division matchup of the season against Cheyney University on Saturday, Feb. 11, beginning at 3 p.m.
Kutztown (9-16, 6-11 PSAC) is coming off of its second straight win against Mansfield at home on Wednesday, Feb. 8, 62-39. The Golden Bears are looking for their first three-game winning streak since winning four in a row from Jan. 31 - Feb. 7, 2015, which also marked the last time that KU won at least three straight PSAC games.
Kutztown is currently holding onto sixth place in the PSAC East –the Division's final playoff berth—by two games with five contests remaining in the season.
Mansfield's 39 points and 21.7 field goal percentage on Wednesday were the fewest KU has allowed in over five years, dating back to Dec. 9, 2010.
Opening on an impressive 18-0 run capped off by
Sierra Taylor (Williamstown, N.J./Camden Catholic), the Maroon and Gold managed to keep the Mountaineers scoreless for the first 8:32 of play. KU maintained its double-digit lead throughout the night, taking a 33-7 lead into the locker room.
Although Mansfield opened the second half with four points, the Golden Bears responded with five shortly after, beginning with
Jenna Altomare (Pennsylvania Furnace, Pa./State College Area)'s 3-pointer at the 6:20 mark and capped by
Kelsey Watson (Collegeville, Pa./Methacton)'s jumper 40 seconds later. KU continued to outpace the Mounties with a 15+ point lead for the rest of the evening.
Wednesday's matchup saw multiple Golden Bears set new career-highs. Taylor racked up nine assists as she now sits at sixth in the PSAC in assists per game (4.4), while
Keifonna Ferguson (Norristown, Pa./Norristown Area) topped her previous rebound record with 14.
Karen Lapkiewicz (Southampton, Pa./Saint Basil Academy) made a career-high two 3-pointers, while
Alex Leader (Hummelstown, Pa./Lower Dauphin) helped bolster Kutztown's lead with a career-high five points off the bench.
Notably, Watson, who racked up 12 points and seven rebounds, moved into seventh place in program history for points scored with 1,259 for her career. She is now ninth place in the PSAC at 8.0 rebounds per game.
Altomare is now tied for ninth in single-season program history with 52 3-pointers and sits at fourth in the PSAC in 3-pointers per game (2.3).
Kutztown's previous matchup against Cheyney on Jan. 9 resulted in an 89-64 win, with the Maroon and Gold posting their best shooting performance of the 2016-17 season (59.3). The Wolves trimmed a double-digit deficit in the first half to just eight at the break, but two triples from Altomare and a jumper from
Alex Heck (Willow Grove, Pa./Archbishop Wood (Philadelphia U.)) helped extend KU's lead back to 42-26 just 1:08 into the third quarter. The Golden Bears would lead by double digits the remainder of the contest.
Cheyney (4-15, 4-14) is coming off of a 58-54 win against West Chester University on Feb. 8, which snapped a six-game losing streak. The Wolves are led by two double-digit scorers - TaKayla Ellis (11.2) and Marlon Herring (10.1).
Following Saturday's contest, the Golden Bears return home next Wednesday, Feb. 15 to face East Stroudsburg University at 5:30 p.m. KUSSI will be holding giveaways for Fan Appreciation Night.
