SYRACUSE, N.Y. (Dec. 28, 2010) – Three Saint Francis players scored in double figures but a second half run by no. 24 Syracuse proved to be too much as the Red Flash fell to the Orange, 94-60, in women's basketball action at the Carrier Dome on Tuesday afternoon.
Samantha Leach (Mount Sterling, Ohio/Miami Trace) paced SFU with 17 points and Brittany Lilley (Severna Park, Md./Severna Park) and Allison Daly (Harrisburg, Pa./Trinity) were close behind with 14 and 13, respectively, as the vaunted Syracuse defense allowed its fourth-highest output of the season.
Syracuse (10-1) was led Iasia Hemingway who tossed in a game-high 22 points and pulled down 10 rebounds for the double-double.
“We can score,” said Saint Francis head coach Susan Robinson Fruchtl. “Obviously, 60 points isn't where we want to be, but against a decent Big East team like Syracuse we proved we can play.”
“We need to work on our effort, intensity and focus as we head into conference play on Sunday.”
Saint Francis (5-7) forced five Orange turnovers in the game's first five minutes but were unable to fully capitalize by shooting only 30 percent from the floor during the stretch. A Leach three at the 15:25 mark pulled the Flash to within two at 9-7.
Syracuse scored the game's next 12 points to jump out to a commanding 21-7 advantage by the halfway point of the opening period.
A layup by Allison Daly (Harrisburg, Pa./Trinity) at the 10:14 mark eventually snapped the Red Flash drought.
The Syracuse offense continued to click over the contest's next four minutes as the Orange extended their lead to 20 points on a pair of Shakeya Leary free throws at the 6:30 mark.
A seemingly inconspicuous Kelley Doogan (Claymont, Del./Ursuline Academy) layup at the 5:46 mark, however, sparked a 14-3 SFU run that culminated with back-to-back three-pointers by Thorn and Doogan less than a minute later that shaved the Syracuse edge to single digits, 32-23.
Hemingway pushed the differential back to 11 moments later but a Daly jumper with 1:52 remaining in the period cut the lead back to nine.
Another Hemingway layup made the score 36-25 at the intermission.
“I thought we played 10 good minutes of defense toward the end of the first,” said Robinson Fruchtl. “We held a good team to seven points in eight minutes and we showed we're capable of scoring.”
Hemingway and the Orange opened up the second half with a 13-5 run but a proficient offensive effort kept the Flash within striking distance thanks in to a barrage of four three-pointers in the first six minutes of the half. The Flash shot 70 percent (7-for-10) from the field during the flurry, while holding the margin to within 15, 57-43.
Syracuse, however, proved to be nearly unstoppable in the paint and on the boards, converting at a 55.9 percent clip from the floor while out-rebounding the Flash 48-to-26 on the afternoon. The Orange racked up 60 points in the paint in the game.
The Red Flash open their Northeast Conference schedule on Sunday, Jan. 2 when they visit St. Francis College for a 2 p.m. contest.
