EMMITSBURG, Md. (Jan. 10, 2011) – With a three-pointer at the 10:36 mark of the second half, senior Allison Daly (Harrisburg, Pa./Trinity) became the 20th player in program history to reach the 1,000-point plateau, as Saint Francis defeated Mount Saint Mary's 75-62 on Monday evening.
But it wasn't easy.
The Red Flash (9-7; 4-0 NEC) watched two huge leads – a 19-point edge in the first half and a 21-point advantage in the second – evaporate as the Mountaineers pulled to within five points on each occasion.
“Mount St. Mary's can really shoot the ball,” said Flash coach Susan Robinson Fruchtl. “I don't know if we relaxed or what we did. We lost focus and that can't happen. That's something we'll evaluate when we watch it on film. We have to get better.”
SFU answered Mount St. Mary's second half run with an 11-to-2 stretch and re-extend their lead to 13 points on a pair of Alexandra Williams free throws with just under four minutes to play to all but seal the victory.
Daly finished the night with 14 points, just behind Brittany Lilley (Severna Park, Md./Severna Park), who was the game's high scorer with 18. Samantha Leach (Mount Sterling, Ohio/Miami Trace) tossed in 15 and Williams had 13 to round out SFU's double-digit scorers.
“Alli Daly is a special kid,” said Robinson Fruchtl. “I can't say enough about her. She plays with a lot of heart and plays with everything she has. I really appreciate that.”
Saint Francis opened up the second half with a Shené Fleming (Dayton, Ohio, Chaminade-Julienne) layup but The Mount (3-12; 0-4 NEC), quickly, got back to work to pull within five points, 38-33, with 17:24 to play before allowing the Flash to gain their second big lead of the game.
The Flash got off to a fast start in the contest, racing out to a 16-3 lead by hitting five of their first six shots including a pair of Daly threes. Mount St. Mary's Mary Dunn hit a pair of free throws at the 14:04 mark to halt a 12-point Red Flash run.
Down by a 23-6 margin, The Mount went on an eight-point run to cut the lead to nine (23-14) before a Fleming lay-up stopped the bleeding. The Mountaineers continued to roll, however, slicing their deficit to six (27-21) by the 6:31 mark.
The Flash regrouped to take a 37-26 edge into the locker room. Lilley took first-half scoring honors with 14.
Mary Dunn – Mount St. Mary's high scorer with 18 – also scored her 1,000th point in the contest.
The Red Flash will play at DeGol Arena for the first time in 42 days when they welcome Farleigh Dickinson for a 4 p.m. contest on Saturday.
