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Saint Francis will play the seventh installment of its ongoing eight-game road trip – and its fourth-straight game in the state of New York – on Saturday when it visits Wagner for a 3 p.m. contest.
The Red Flash hold a sizeable 34-20 advantage in the all-time series, including 15 of the last 17, but have swept the season series from the Seahawks only once over the past three years. Saint Francis, though, feels quite at home in the Spiro Sports Center, having won nine straight contests in the building, dating back to the 2001-02 campaign.
SFU's last loss in Staten Island came in on Feb. 10, 2001 – a 74-70 setback under Myndi Hill.
Wagner is 7-6 heading into the contest, having won three of its last four contests. On Monday evening the Seahawks had a three-game winning streak derailed by Sacred Heart, 70-52, which dropped them to 0-2 in early NEC play.
Saint Francis improved to 2-0 in the NEC in its opening weekend of league play by winning back-to-back road games for the first time this season. The Flash have not started 3-0 in the NEC since the 2004-05 season.
Next up: MOUNT?ST. MARY'S
The Red Flash wrap-up their longest road swing of the season – an eight-game jaunt that began on Dec. 16 – when they visits Mount St. Mary's on Monday for a 7 p.m. contest. The Mount is one of only two NEC schools against which Saint Francis trails in the all-time series: MSM holds a 26-24 edge in meetings which date back to the 1988 season. SFU, however, has won the last three meetings against the Mountaineers, who enter Saturday's action with a 3-10 (0-2) record.
FLASH?NEC's EARLY?RPI?LEADER
The NCAA released its first official RPI rankings on Jan. 2 where the Red Flash debuted at 132. However, after Northeast Conference wins at St. Francis (N.Y.) and Long Island, Saint Francis has jumped well into the top 100. As of Jan. 6, RealTimeRPI.com projects the SFU's RPI as 91 and its strength of schedule at 91. The NEC's next highest RPI belongs to Monmouth (117) which, at 10-3, has played 247th toughest schedule in the nation.
Daly gunning for 1,000
Senior
Allison Daly (Harrisburg, Pa./Trinity) is a strong candidate to become Saint Francis' 20th 1,000-point scorer. The 5-11 guard enters today's game with 977 career points. After scoring only 75 points as a freshman in 2007-08, Daly averaged just over 360 points per season as a sophomore and junior.
Lilley ranks among national leaders
Brittany Lilley (Severna Park, Md./Severna Park)'s 15 assists against Kent State tied for the most in an NCAA?DI game so far this season. As of Jan. 2, her 6.2 helpers per contest also ranked 12th in the country.
Robinson Fruchtl notches 40th win
Saint Francis head coach Susan Robison Fruchtl earned her 40th career win with Nov. 28th's victory, 77-67, victory over Coppin State. Looking ahead, Robison Fruchtl needs 12 wins to catch her predecessor Jill Poe (2003-07) in career wins. Poe went 57-62 in her four seasons at the helm.
ROOKIE?WILLIAMS?HEATING?UP
Over the past seven games, freshman
Alli Williams (Altoona, Pa./Bishop Guilfoyle) has begun to emerge as one of SFU's key players. The Red Flash rookie has averaged 12.0 points per game since exploding for 29 points against Kent State on Dec. 4. After joining the starting lineup a game later in place of injured Shené Fleming, Williams scored 22 points at Howard and also had a strong outing at Duquesne, scoring 13. She notched her first career double-digit rebounding night by grabbing 12 at Long Island on Jan. 4.
DEEP?THREATS LEACH, DALY PACE?POTENT?OFFENSE
As of Tuesday afternoon's NCAA Statistical report, the Flash can stake claim to the country's 27th-best three-point field goal percentage. Shooting a collective 36.8 percent (166-for-257), Saint Francis is paced from long range by the NEC's three-point leader
Allison Daly (Harrisburg, Pa./Trinity). Daly is shooting 42.3 percent (41-for-97) from the arc. SFU's 3FG percentage leader is
Samantha Leach (Mount Sterling, Ohio/Miami Trace), who converts at a 43.3 percent (29-for-67) clip.
SFU'S STRUGGLES AT?THE?LINE CONTINUE
The Red Flash have struggled from the free throw line this season, converting on only 166 of 257 (64.6%) opportunities through 14 contests. Saint Francis has, however, shown a modest improvement over the past six games, converting at a 70.2 percent (66-for-94) clip.
Samantha Leach (Mount Sterling, Ohio/Miami Trace) is currently SFU's strongest option from the line with an 84.7 percentage (50-of-59) on the season.
FIVE?non-conference WINS?TIES?MODERN?MARKS
SFU wrapped up its non-conference slate with a 5-7. Dec. 16's victory at Howard – Saint Francis' fourth in a row – tied the program record for consecutive non-conference wins since the program joined the Division I ranks in 1985-86. The school mark of five-straight non-conference wins was set during the 1974-75 season. Five is also SFU's most wins since joining the ECAC Meto Conference (now the NEC) in 1986-87.