EAST STROUDSBURG, Pa. – The Kutztown University women's basketball team led after each of the opening two quarters, but East Stroudsburg University stormed out of the locker room in the second half and ended up pulling out the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) East Division matchup between the two schools 58-54 Wednesday night at Koehler Fieldhouse.
 
The Golden Bears (14-9 overall, 11-6 PSAC) had their three-game win streak snapped and fell to the Warriors (16-8, 12-6) for the second time this season. KU now sits in fourth place in the division, a half-game behind the Warriors for third and one-and-a-half games behind second-place Shepherd.
 
Junior Rylee Derr (Lititz, Pa./Warwick) recorded her second double-double of the year and second in the last two games, finishing with 13 points and a season-best 11 rebounds. Classmate Zoe Zerman (Jonestown, Pa./Northern Lebanon) nearly had a double-double as she tallied 10 points and nine rebounds, while freshman Casey Remolde (Philadelphia, Pa./Saint Basil Academy) recorded 10 points, five rebounds, three steals, three assists and one block. It was the 50th block this season for Remolde, who leads the PSAC in blocked shots. Senior Brianna Tarabocchia (Woodcliff Lake, N.J./Northern Valley Regional), back after missing the previous game, finished with nine points and five boards.
 
There were five lead changes and two ties in the first quarter, which saw the Maroon and Gold leading 15-13 after the 10-minute period. The Warriors got back out in front 20-19 with 4:57 left in the second quarter, but Kutztown went on a 7-0 run over the next 3:10 to go into halftime ahead 26-20.
 
After Derr connected on a layup to put KU in front 28-20, ESU scored six straight and outscored KU 21-8 over the final 9:26 of the quarter. East Stroudsburg led by as much as seven (43-36) 1:15 into the fourth quarter, but KU netted five straight and stayed within two possessions for the entirety of the period.
 
Kutztown took its first lead since the 3:08 mark of the third quarter when freshman Annie Whalen (Ivyland, Pa./Archbishop Wood) hit a 3-pointer to put KU ahead 49-48 with 5:50 to go. There would be three ties and two lead changes until the score was at 54-53 in favor of the Warriors and 1:14 on the clock. Each team would go 1-for-2 from the free-throw line on back-to-back possessions as ESU led 55-54 with 0:27 remaining. East Stroudsburg then connected on two free-throws its next possession and then forced a missed KU 3-point attempt with 0:06 left to hold on for the victory.
 
Junior Alexis Smith (Dauphin, Pa./Central Dauphin) contributed five points and four rebounds and Whalen added five points and five rebounds. Sydney Pierson (Elizabethtown, Pa./Elizabethtown) rounded out the KU scoring with two points.
 
Kutztown hosts Shepherd on Saturday, Feb. 15, at 1 p.m., inside Keystone Arena for its Pink Zone game.