BOX SCORE

HACKENSACK, N.J. (Jan. 21, 2012) – The beleaguered Saint Francis defense shrugged off a pair of lackluster performances and the offense found its stroke as the Red Flash earned a, 60-58, Northeast Conference win at Fairleigh Dickinson.

The Red Flash (7-11; 4-3 NEC) led by as many as nine points in the first half and 10 midway through the second, but the Knights battled back to cut the SFU advantage to a pair with nine seconds to play on a layup by Erika Livermore. 

FDU had a chance to complete its comeback but a potentially game-winning Stephanie Isaacs 3-point attempts fell to the floor as time expired.

“What can I say? We gutted it out,” said Flash head coach Susan Robinson Fruchtl.  “We had some people step up big.”

“We have a long way to go, but this was a good win.  Now we have to keep improving and move on to the next one.”

The Knights (9-10; 4-3 NEC) entered the game as one of the league's hottest teams, but a trio of Flash double-digit scorers led by freshman Alexa Hayward (Beaver Falls, Pa./Blackhawk) was up to the challenge.  The loss was the first for FDU in four games.

Hayward went 4-for-7 from 3-point range as she racked up 16 points.  Nickia Gibbs (Greenbelt, Md./Eleanor Roosevelt) and Alli Williams (Altoona, Pa./Bishop Guilfoyle) each tossed in 13.  Senior Sarah Thorn (Yardley, Pa./Pennsbury East) did a solid job setting up the offense, dishing out seven assists.

Saint Francis scored the game's first eight points in an opening run that spanned nearly five minutes.  The Flash kept the Knights off the scoreboard until Isaacs converted on a free throw at the 15:16 mark. FDU's first field goal of the game didn't come until the 14:48 mark.

Mariyah Laury, who had scored 20 points or more in her past four games, had two at the intermission.  She scored 10 in the second half to finish with 12.  Livermore wound up with a game-high 18 points.

Saint Francis rebounded from an all-too-familiar cold-shooting first half to fire at a 51.9 percent (14-of-27) clip in the second half.  The Flash shot 41.1 percent for the game.  The Knights shot 33.9 percent on the night.

Despite being out-rebounded 42-to-33, SFU's Allison Smith (Lebanon, Pa./Cedar Crest) accumulated a season-high-tying eight assists.  FDU's Esther Wallace pulled down nine boards.

Saint Francis wraps up its stay in the Garden State on Monday when it visits Monmouth for a 7 p.m. contest.