TEANECK, N.J. (Jan. 26, 2009) – Janie Killian (Verona, Pa./Penn Hills) (Verona, Pa./Penn Hills) had her third double-double of the season as the Saint Francis women's basketball team defeated the Fairleigh Dickinson Knights 78-61 to roll to a three-game win streak.
SFU, who improves to 5-4 in the Northeast Conference, has not had a three game win streak since March of the 2004-05 season.
The Red Flash were red hot from the start, quickly jumping out to a 15 point lead on a free-throw shot with 15:00 remaining in the first half. Their advantage improved to 18 points less than a minute later when Allison Daly (Harrisburg, Pa./Trinity) (Harrisburg, Pa./Trinity) sunk a three-pointer to bring the score to 24-6.
FDU didn't hit double-digits until Jordan Sykes made a free-throw with 7:24 left in the first half. But by that time, Saint Francis was already up 30-10.
By the end of the first, the Red Flash had already put up 22 points in the paint and had picked up 18 points off turnovers.
The Red Flash's defensive prowess continued for the early minutes of the second half. After letting Christy Altamarino sink a three-pointer on the Knight's first possession, Killian and Britney Hodges (Dayton, Ohio/Mount de Chantal) (Dayton, Ohio/Mount de Chantal) both made lay ups and Daly sunk a jumper to again give Saint Francis a 20 point lead with 16:29 remaining.
Two free-throw shots by Samantha Leach (Mount Sterling, Ohio/Miami Trace) (Mount Sterling, Ohio/Miami Trace) put the Flash up 59-36 just three minutes later. Leach, who had a stellar night overall, went 6-for-6 at the line.
The lead increased to 29 points when Sarah Thorn (Yardley, Pa./Pennsbury East) (Yardley, Pa./Pennsbury East) chipped in with her first points of the night, nailing a jumper to bring the score to 67-38 with a little over ten minutes left to play.
After the Flash's advantage hovered in the mid-twenties for most of the half, Fairleigh Dickinson was able to whittle the deficit down to 14 when Sykes sunk a three-pointer with 2:49 remaining.
Altamarino went to the line and came away with two more points, putting the score at 71-59. Brittany Lilley (Severna Park, Md./Severna Park) (Severna Park, Md./Severna Park) made a lay up and a three-pointer in the last 40 seconds of play to end the night with the Red Flash on top 78-61.
Leach was the high scorer for the Red Flash with 20 points, but showed up in almost every category with 7 assists, 3 steals and a blocked shot. Killian notched her third double-double of the season with 12 points and 10 rebounds.
Five Red Flash players finished the night in the double-digits, as Lilley finished with 11 points, Daly put up 10 and Quinessa Johnson (West Chester, Ohio/Lakota West) (West Chester, Ohio/Lakota West) came off the bench to score 13 points.
Kelsey Caruthers (Conestoga, Pa./Penn Manor) (Conestoga, Pa./Penn Manor) was 2-of-2 from the field for 4 points and also picked up 7 boards and a steal.
Altamirano put up her best effort for the Knights with 22 points. Sykes and Alyssa Mayrose also factored in with 17 and 10 points respectively.
As is the trend lately, the Red Flash out-rebounded the Knights, racking up 40 boards to FDU's 37. The Flash also outscored them in the paint 46-16 and 10-2 on fast breaks. The SFU bench put up 19 points to the Knights' 7.
The Red Flash showed a big improvement on both defense and turnovers, as they only turned the ball over to the Knights 14 times. The Knights lost possession a total of 21 times, with 11 of the instances being steals by the Flash.
Head coach Susan Robinson Fruchtl was impressed with her team's effort, particularly on defense.
“The defensive improvement was great to see,” said Robinson Fruchtl, who in the midst of her second season has already tied her win total from last season with the team's sixth victory tonight. “I just wish it had happened a little earlier in the season. The communication has improved as well. They're definitely growing and maturing.”
