BOX SCORE   |  GAME HIGHLIGHTS

LORETTO, Pa. (Dec. 10, 2011) – Saint Francis nearly rode a late second-half surge to a come-from-behind win, but a lethargic start and an inability to connect on easy buckets allowed the Towson Tigers to earn the victory, 59-53, at DeGol Arena on Saturday.

With 71 field goal attempts, the Red Flash (4-4) had its chances.  However, it hit on only 20 of those for a 28.2 percent effort on the afternoon.

“I just don't think we were as focused as we should have been for the entire game,” said SFU head coach Susan Robinson Fruchtl, whose team dropped just its third home game in two seasons.  “If we would have played the entire game like we did the last eight-to-ten minutes, we probably would have come out of here with a victory.”

“You've got to make layups.  We missed layups the entire game.”

The Red Flash struggled in the first half, after holding its own through the game's first 12 minutes.  The contest was tied at 15-all at the 6:40 mark, but the Tigers (7-2) used a 16-to-8 run to claim a, 29-21, advantage at the intermission.

Saint Francis struggled from the floor in the first, shooting 19.4 percent (6-of-31) from the floor – its worst mark for a half of the season.  Towson, meanwhile, shot 42.3 percent during the period.

The Tigers maintained an edge of at least eight points for the first 10 minutes of the second half until a Nickia Gibbs (Greenbelt, Md./Eleanor Roosevelt) three at 9:59 pulled Saint Francis to within five points, 41-36.

Towson quickly rebuilt a nine-point lead, but four straight points from Alli Williams (Altoona, Pa./Bishop Guilfoyle) with less than five minutes on the clock gave the Flash a fighting chance.  After missing the second half of a 1-and-1, Williams fought for her rebound, made up a layup and was fouled in the process.  The reigning NEC Player of the Week hit the subsequent free throw to make it a one-possession game, 45-42.

With a layup at the 52 second mark, Williams once again made it a three-point contest, but that was a close as the Flash would get.

Gibbs led Saint Francis with 19 points, while Williams – who tallied one point in the first half – scored 18.  The forward also pulled down a career-high 17 rebounds for her fourth double-double of the season.

Krystal Parnell led Towson with 16 points. 

SFU has an eight-day break for final exams before returning to action on Dec. 19 when it visits St. Joseph's for a 7 p.m. contest.