Kutztown University Athletics

LOCK HAVEN, Pa. – Kutztown University women's basketball placed four scorers in double figures and withstood a second-half rally by Lock Haven to pick up a 71-61 win at Thomas Fieldhouse in its season opener Tuesday evening.
 
Ariana Smuda (Exton, Pa./Downingtown East) led all players with 15 points and 11 rebounds for her fifth career double-double as a Golden Bear, while Kitty Randa (Horsham, Pa./Hatboro-Horsham) and Madison Siggins (Allentown, Pa./Parkland) had 11 points each and Bella Quinn (Ashland, Ky./Russell) 10.
 
Kutztown (1-0) played with the lead for most of the contest and twice pushed its advantage as high as 16 points in the third quarter before the Bald Eagles (0-1) ended the period on a 17-2 run capped by a buzzer-beating 3-pointer from Erin Miller.
 
Lacey Kriebel's layup early in the fourth put Lock Haven ahead 50-49, the Bald Eagles' first lead since it was 3-2.
 
Kutztown regained the lead just over a minute later on a Quinn layup and Taylor Gurysh (Langhorne, Pa./Neshaminy) drained a three from the right wing off a feed from Quinn on the very next possession. KU would never trail again. The Golden Bears knocked down 10-of-12 free throws over the final 1:39.
 
The Golden Bears shot 49.1% for the game (27-of-55), significantly better than Lock Haven's 34.4% (21-of-61), but had to contend with the Bald Eagles knocking down nine triples.
 
Despite dropping the turnover battle 23-15, KU owned the paint by a 16-point margin, 36-20. The Golden Bears were coming off a tough exhibition test last Saturday against Division I Saint Joseph's, the preseason favorite in the Atlantic-10 Conference, and the experience seemed to pay dividends Tuesday.
 
Smuda shot 7-of-12 from the floor on her way to a career-high 15 points. Randa was a perfect 5-of-5, including a 3-pointer, as she scored in double figures for the first time in her collegiate career.
 
Gurysh finished with nine points and Maggie Coleman (Clarks Summit, Pa./Abington Heights) was 3-of-3 (1-of-1 3FG) for seven points.
 
Kriebel and Sydney Lear led the Bald Eagles with 11 points, and Rhlyn Rouse had 10.
 
Kutztown travels to Frostburg State this weekend for the Jim Crawley Conference Challenge, where they'll face off against West Virginia Wesleyan (Friday at 3 p.m.) and the host Bobcats (Saturday at 3 p.m.) out of the Mountain East Conference.

  Read Full Article