TOWSON, Md. (Nov. 16, 2010) – The Red Flash led by as many as 13 points mid-way through the first half but went cold down the stretch as the Towson Tigers turned back Saint Francis, 65-55, in women's basketball action Tuesday night at Towson Center.
“It wasn't for a lack of shots – we had 64 to their 58,” said head coach Susan Robinson Fruchtl. “I think it comes down to the final minute. We missed a ton of layups, we missed free throws, there was a lack of rebounding.”
“It's going to be a long night when you get out-rebounded like that.”
The Tigers pulled down 16 boards off of the offensive glass which led to 15 second-chance points. SFU was out-rebounded 22-to-18 in the first half.
The Flash got out to a hot start by shooting 48.4 percent in the opening period but, after the intermission, Saint Francis converted on just seven of 33 field goal attempts. That, coupled with an 8-for-15 night from the free throw line, made for an uphill battle with the game on the line in the waning minutes.
“We had stretches where we played some really good defense but then we don't convert,” said Robinson Fruchtl. “It can be a four- to five-point swing. You get a stop then score – that can be a momentum swing. We didn't get that tonight.”
Red Flash guards Samantha Leach (Mount Sterling, Ohio/Miami Trace) (Mount Sterling, Ohio/Miami Trace) and Brittany Lilley (Severna Park, Md./Severna Park) (Severna Park, Md./Severna Park) provided the bright spots for the offense, scoring 13 and 12 points, respectively.
For Towson, Simona Petronyte paced her teams' three double-digit scores with 17. Dovile Miliauskaite notched a double-double with 11 points and 12 boards.
Sophomore Shené Fleming (Dayton, Ohio/Chaminade-Julienne) grabbed eight rebounds for the Flash, with four coming on offense.
The road doesn't get any easier for the Red Flash, who fell to 0-2 on the season.
Saint Francis will resume Preseason WNIT action on Friday with a 7 p.m. game at James Madison.
The Flash will remain in Harrisonburg on Saturday for its third and final game of the tournament. The time and opponent of that contest will be determined after Friday's action.
