KUTZTOWN, Pa. – The Kutztown University women's basketball team, paced by 15 second-half points from Taylor Thames (Colmar, Pa./North Penn), outran the Mansfield University Mountaineers, 79-60, in a crucial Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Eastern Division matchup on Wednesday evening.
 
Don't blink. That is the message that the Golden Bears should've given to fans prior to the game this evening as, with one bat of the eyelashes, one could easily have missed one of KU's 31 fast-break points. Many of those points in transition came by way of Mountaineer turnovers as Kutztown collected 35 takeaways and a season-high 23 steals in this tilt.
 
Clinging to a three-point advantage with 8:58 remaining in the third quarter, the Maroon and Gold used a 13-3 run to take control of the game, going ahead 48-33 at the 4:53 mark capped by back-to-back lay-ups from Jenna Widdicombe (Pottstown, Pa./Pope John Paul II (West Chester)). Thames scored seven points during this run and, as a team, Kutztown forced 11 turnovers in the third quarter alone.  
 
Rylee Derr (Lititz, Pa./Warwick) shot 3-of-8 from beyond the arc in the first half, finishing with 12 points and joining Thames as KU's second double-digit scorer. Derr has now scored in double-digits 12 times in her freshman campaign, accounting for 3-of-10 three-point makes for the Golden Bears, which shot an efficient 35.7 percent from deep on 10-of-28 shooting.
 
Production from the reserve group continues for head coach Janet Malouf with the bench combining for 38 points, getting contributions from Sierra Taylor (Williamstown, N.J./Camden Catholic) (5), Kaylan Jackson (Germantown, Md./Clarksburg) (3), Gabby Bloshuk (Easton, Pa./Easton Area) (6), Alexis Smith (Dauphin, Pa./Central Dauphin) (9), Karen Lapkiewicz (Southampton, Pa./Saint Basil Academy) (4), Zoe Zerman (Jonestown, Pa./Northern Lebanon) (7) and Widdicombe (4). Keifonna Ferguson (Norristown, Pa./Norristown Area) gathered eight rebounds, three of which came the offensive end, and chipped in six points and four steals.
 
Gabbi Wright (Elkins Park, Pa./Cheltenham) scored five points and grabbed four rebounds, playing a team-high 22 minutes, a testament to the depth and rotation employed by KU. Kalee Fuegel (Philadelphia, Pa./Saint Basil Academy), in her second start of the season, moved the ball and defended effectively on the perimeter, dishing out three dimes and coming away with three steals on the night.
 
The win improves KU's record to 9-6 overall and 4-5 in the PSAC while Mansfield falls to 5-11 and 3-7 in the conference.
 
Now 8-1 on the season inside the friendly confines of Keystone Arena, the Golden Bears will now have to solve the road puzzle in their next competition, a date with the Millersville University Marauders on Saturday afternoon at 1 p.m.