Flash Points: 

• Jessica Kovatch (Phillipsburg, N.J./Phillipsburg) had a game high 25 to lead the Flash
• SFU was held to a season-low 5 first-quarter points and 19 in the first half
• Cornell placed four players in double figures in the win

LORETTO, PA- Saint Francis got off to a slow start and could never recover, falling 78-72 on Monday night to the Cornell Big Red inside DeGol Arena. 

The Flash were out scored 22-5 in the first quarter and cut the lead to six on several occasions but could get no closer after the rough start. Maya Wynn (Reisterstown, Md./McDonogh) hit an early three for the Flash, but Saint Francis was held to just one field goal in the final 8:49 of the quarter as Cornell ended the frame on a 15-0 run. Saint Francis was uncharacteristically sloppy, turning it over 10 times, leading to 14 Big Red points. 

Saint Francis started to chip away at the Cornell lead, going on a 8-0 run capped by a Kovatch three to cut the lead to eight. The theme of the night was Cornell's response to any SFU rally. The Big Red countered back with a pair of baskets to push the lead back out to double figures. The Flash would get it to nine once more in the quarter on a pair of Ace Harrison (Baltimore, MD/Digital Harbor (Maryland)) free throws but Cornell would take a 32-19 lead into the half. The 19 points were by far a low for the Red Flash in a half this year and prior to the game, only six times this year had SFU scored under 19 points in a quarter. 

A Courtney Zezza (Plum, Pa./Plum) three tried to jump start the Red Flash out of the gates in the second half as they once again were able to whittle the lead down to eight. Again, Cornell would let SFU get no closer, reeling off five straight of their own to extend the lead out to 13. After the media timeout, five-straight points by Samiah Bethel (Jacksonville, Fla./Potter's House Christian Academy), capped by a three-point play, drew the Flash to within six at 42-36. Just as it looked like the Flash were taking the momentum of the game, the Big Red grabbed it back. Cornell closed the quarter on a 7-2 run to lead 49-38 after three. 

The Cornell lead would grow to as big as 15 in the early stages of the quarter before SFU again began to chip away. The Flash did damage at the free throw line as Bethel and Cydney Smith each sank a pair to bring the deficit back into single digits. Cornell bled the shot clock and continually converted late in the possession, forcing SFU to trade baskets. Midway through the quarter, the Flash defense got a pair of turnovers and Bethel and Wynn converted them into quick points to shave the lead down to six. After Wynn drew an offensive foul, the Flash had the ball with a chance to cut it to three. However, a missed three by Kovatch turned into two Cornell points on the other end and turnovers on back-to-back possessions sealed the Red Flash's fate on Monday. 

SFU won each of the last three quarters, but could not overcome the sluggish start. Megan LeDuc led four Cornell players in double figures with 16. Kovatch finished with 25 and was joined by Harrison (18) and Bethel (11) in double figures. Harrison also had a game-high nine rebounds and six steals. The Big Red out rebounded SFU 42-26, using a team effort as all five starters had at least five rebounds. The rebounding edge gave Cornell a 16-4 advantage on second-chance points. 

The loss drops SFU to 2-3 on the year while Cornell improves to 5-2. SFU will hit the road for the next eight games. The trek starts with Youngstown State on Saturday. The game time against the Penguins has changed and will now start at 5:30 p.m. because of the Youngstown State playoff football game.