Smick Pushes West Chester past Bloomsburg in PSAC East Opener, 81-67

WEST CHESTER, Pa. - Sr., F Tori Smick (Pilesgrove, N.J./Woodstown) poured in a career high 24 points to help West Chester claim an 81-67 victory over Bloomsburg to open up PSAC East play this evening inside Hollinger Field House. The win places West Chester (3-7, 3-3) tied for first in the PSAC East with East Stroudsburg. Meanwhile, Bloomsburg (1-9, 0-6) dropped a tough one as the Huskies are still searching for their first conference victory. Smick was nearly flawless from the charity stripe, going 18-22 from the line in the PSAC matchup. The 20 plus attempts were the most in a game, dating back to 1989. Additionally, the 18 made attempts from the line sets a new season high for the squad. The New Jersey native also chipped in seven rebounds. The Golden Rams never trailed in the game, jumping on the Huskies early in the contest. West Chester dropped a season high 42 points in the first half to capture a 13-point lead heading into the half. Bloomsburg cut the deficit to six in the opening minutes of the third quarter. However, junior Madison Torresin (Mechanicsburg, Pa./Cumberland Valley) connected on consecutive 3-pointers to increase the lead back to double-digits. Torresin finished the contest with her fourth double-double of the season by adding 12 points, 11 rebounds, and a pair of steals. Freshman guard Gabrielle Troisi (Norristown, Pa. / Pope John Paul II) was stellar running the offense, generating nine points to go along with a career and new team high eight assists. West Chester shot 50 percent from the field (24-48), while also knocking down 33.3 percent of its shots from downtown (4-12). Bloomsburg on the other hand shot 47.4 percent (27-57) and 35.3 percent from behind the arc (6-17). The big difference in the contest was from the free throw line, where West Chester managed go 29-39 from the line for 74.4 percent. The Huskies were unable to capitalize only shooting 50 percent (7-14). West Chester opens up the New Year by traveling to Mansfield for a PSAC matchup inside Decker Gymnasium on Tuesday, January 3rd at 5:30 p.m. Game Notes Bloomsburg leads the all-time series, 38-36. The Golden Rams improved their winning streak to four games against the Huskies. West Chester is currently tied for first in the PSAC East with East Stroudsburg.