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Saint Francis University Athletics

Haley Thomas
71
Winner Liberty Lib 5-6,0-0 ASUN
52
Saint Francis (PA) SF-PA 2-8,0-0 NEC
Winner
Liberty Lib
5-6,0-0 ASUN
71
Final
52
Saint Francis (PA) SF-PA
2-8,0-0 NEC
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Liberty Lib 24 16 18 13 71
Saint Francis (PA) SF-PA 20 10 18 4 52

Game Recap: Women's Basketball | | David Halstead

Red Flash drop midweek contest to Liberty, 71-52

Loretto, Pa. – Saint Francis women's basketball (2-8) was unable to hold off a fourth quarter Liberty (5-6) surge as the Lady Flames defeated the Red Flash 71-52 on Wednesday at DeGol Arena. Haley Thomas (Hooversville, PA/Bishop McCort) led SFU with a season-high 19 points, while Karson Swogger (Bellwood, PA/Bellwood-Antis) added 16 points.

Liberty jumped out to an early 11-3 lead with 7:08 to play in the first quarter. Saint Francis responded as Thomas connected on a three-pointer to cut the lead to 16-10 with 4:13 to go in the period. The Lady Flames led 20-10 before a spirited 8-4 run by the Red Flash over the final 3:14 trimmed the Liberty advantage to 24-20 at the end of the first stanza.

Lili Benzel's (Altoona, PA/Bishop Guilfoyle (Shippensburg)) three-pointer pulled the Red Flash within one at 27-26 with 5:40 to play in the second quarter. A quick 7-0 Liberty spurt extended the lead to 34-26 with three minutes to go in the frame. Back-to-back Sam Miller (Red Lion, PA/Dallastown) layups cut the lead to 36-30 with 1:27 to play. The Lady Flames scored the final four points to hold a 40-30 lead at halftime.

Swogger started the third period on fire for the Red Flash, knocking down three consecutive three-pointers to pull SFU within 40-39 with 7:31 to go in the stanza. Liberty continued to hold off the Red Flash as the Lady Flames grabbed a 46-39 lead with 6:09 left in the third quarter. Liberty then raced out to a 58-45 advantage until Thomas knocked down a trifecta with 22 seconds to go. The Lady Flames took a 58-48 lead into the final period.

SFU came within eight points in the first two minutes of the fourth quarter, but couldn't inch any closer. The Lady Flames outscored the Red Flash 13-4 in the final frame to hand Saint Francis its third straight loss.
 
Inside the Box Score
  • Saint Francis shot 17-of-50 (34.0%) from the floor, including a stellar 11-of-24 (45.8%) from three-point range.
  • Thomas shot 6-of-12 from the floor, including 5-of-9 from three-point range, while Swogger was 5-of-10 from the field and 5-of-6 from behind the arc.
  • Miller scored eight points on 3-of-6 from the floor and 2-of-3 from the free throw line.
  • Phee Allen (Newport News, VA/Woodside) played valuable minutes off the bench, scoring three points, while adding five assists.
  • Liberty held a narrow 32-31 rebounding advantage.
  • The Lady Flames scored 24 points of 20 Red Flash turnovers.
Notes
  • Saint Francis falls to Liberty for the second year in a row as the Lady Flames improve to 2-0 in the all-time series history.
  • Swogger and Thomas both scored in double figures in the same game for the fourth time this season.
  • Swogger recorded exactly five assists for the fourth straight game and the sixth time in the last eight outings.
  • SFU is still searching for its first win on its home court this season. 
Up Next
Saint Francis returns to action hosting Bucknell on Saturday, Dec. 21. Tipoff at DeGol Arena is set for 2 p.m.
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