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KUTZTOWN, Pa – After falling to second-place East Stroudsburg Wednesday night 60-54, the Kutztown University women's basketball team looks to bounce back in its next Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) East Division matchup against Millersville on Saturday, Feb. 18 at 1 p.m inside of Keystone Arena.
KU (10-17, 7-12 PSAC) is currently tied with Millersville for fifth place in the PSAC East with three contests remaining in the season. The top six teams in the division clinch a playoff berth. KU can clinch a berth with a win and a Lock Haven loss.
The Maroon and Gold fell in their previous matchup on the road against Millersville on Jan. 21, 62-40. Keeping the score within striking distance for much of the first half, neither team led by more than six points until a 3-pointer from the Marauders gave them a 22-14 lead heading into the half.
Although a layup from
Taylor Thames (Colmar, Pa./North Penn) helped reduce Millersville's lead to 32-27 with 3:44 left in the third, the Marauders responded with a 13-4 run, taking a double-digit lead for the rest of the afternoon.
The Marauders (9-15, 7-12 PSAC) will enter Saturday's matchup on of a three-game losing streak, most recently falling to Lock Haven 77-70 in double overtime on Saturday, Feb. 11. They are led by Celeste Robinson, who is notably averaging 16.8 points per game, fifth in the PSAC.
Kutztown hits the road for it final two games of the regular season beginning with a matchup at Bloomsburg on Wednesday, Feb. 22 at 5:30 p.m.
Prior to tip, six members of the KU basketball program – manager Kristen Miller and players
Gina Lewis (Atlantic City, N.J./Holy Spirit),
Kara Funk (Dover, Pa./Dover),
Jenna Altomare (Pennsylvania Furnace, Pa./State College Area),
Alex Heck (Willow Grove, Pa./Archbishop Wood (Philadelphia U.)) and
Kelsey Watson (Collegeville, Pa./Methacton) – will be honored for Senior Day.
Miller has been with the program for four years as its team manager. Since her freshman year, she has excelled in her role and the women's basketball team would like to thank her for her dedication over the last four years.
Lewis is a team captain and four-year member of the Golden Bears. Her senior season got cut short due to injury, but she played in 42 career games and averaged a career-high 7.6 points and 4.4 rebounds per game last season.
Funk is a four-year member of the Golden Bears and has played in 104 games in her career. She has scored nearly 400 points in her career and has dished out 152 career assists – including a career-high 59 this season. In the classroom, she is a two-time Dean's List student and was named to the Lehigh Valley's Small College Basketball Scholar-Athlete Team this season.
Altomare is a four-year member of the Golden Bears, including a starter the last two seasons. She has become one of KU's all-time greatest 3-point shooters, as she holds school records for most 3's in a game and season, and is seven shy of breaking the career record. She also made history this season by making a 3-pointer in 44 consecutive games.
Altomare has scored 834 career points, made 184 3-pointers, and has played in 104 career games. In the classroom, she is a six-time Dean's List student, a three-time PSAC Scholar-Athlete, and a two-time member of the Lehigh Valley's Small College Basketball Scholar-Athlete Team.
Heck is a graduate student who joined the Golden Bears this season and has made an immediate impact. She is averaging 13 points per game with 7.4 rebounds and has started in all 27 games played.
Heck came to KU from Philadelphia University, and has combined to score 897 points in her four-year career.
Watson is a four-year member of the Golden Bears and has been a starter since her sophomore year. She has the most experience of this year's senior class at 109 games, with 73 starts.
Watson earned All-PSAC honors as a junior last year and was named to this year's Lehigh Valley's Small College Basketball Team of the Year. She ranks seventh in school history in scoring with 1,269 career points, fourth in rebounding with 763, and seventh in blocks with 98 in her career.
In the classroom, Watson is a member of the Honors Program, has earned Dean's List honors in each of her seven semesters at KU, and is a three-time PSAC Scholar-Athlete.
