BOX SCORE BROOKLYN, N.Y. – The Saint Francis women's basketball team (11-4, 9-0 NEC) held off St. Francis Brooklyn (3-10, 3-10 NEC) by a 56-55 margin on Saturday in the first of the teams' two meetings this weekend.

The Red Flash led by as many as 10 points with 3:44 remaining in the game before three-unanswered three-pointers by the Terriers trimmed the SFU lead to one.
 
Saint Francis 56, St. Francis Brooklyn 55
Records: Saint Francis (11-4, 9-0 NEC), St. Francis Brooklyn (3-10, 3-10 NEC)
Location: Daniel Lynch '38 Gymnasium at the Pope Physical Education Center (Brooklyn, N.Y.)
 
KEY MOMENTS
Saint Francis scored the final seven points of the first half to increase the lead to 33-24 going into the locker room.

St. Francis Brooklyn hit three triples in the final 3:37 but a safe inbound play by the Red Flash sealed the victory.

HOW IT HAPPENED
Katie Dettwiller scored the first points of the game following an offensive rebound. Back-to-back three-pointers from Karson Swogger and Haley Thomas gave the Red Flash an 8-3 lead after two minutes to play.

Lili Benzel hit a three-pointer out of the media timeout to give SFU its largest lead of the quarter, 15-7. After leading 17-9 with three minutes to play in the opening quarter, SFBK scored the final six points to close the gap to 17-15 after 10 minutes of play.

The Red Flash scored the first five points of the second quarter, including a three-pointer from Sam Miller. The SFU defense held SFBK scoreless in the quarter for 4:30 before the Terriers got onto the scoreboard.

St. Francis Brooklyn cut the Saint Francis lead to as little as two points with 2:29 to play in the second quarter. The Red Flash finished the half on a 7-0 run to take a 33-24 lead into the locker room.

The Terriers opened second-half play with a 5-1 run but the Red Flash responded with five-straight points to take its first double-digit lead, 39-29, at the third quarter media timeout.

Both defenses tightened up during the remainder of the third quarter as SFU held a 43-36 lead going into the final quarter of play.

The Terriers cut the Red Flash lead to four points to open the final quarter but SFU responded with back-to-back baskets to lead 47-39 with eight minutes remaining. The teams traded baskets until a layup by Kaitlyn Maxwell pushed the Red Flash lead back up to 10 points with 4:28 remaining.

Back-to-back three-pointers by the Terriers cut the Red Flash lead to 56-52 with 2:35 to play. Both teams were scoreless until SFBK hit a three-pointer with two seconds to play in the game. A safe inbound play by the Red Flash sealed the victory.

STATS
The Red Flash defense held the Terriers to 2-of-11 from three-point range during the first half while the offense went 5-of-12. SFU's bench outscored the SFBK bench 16-4 during the first half. The Red Flash recorded four blocks during the first half, including two from Jenna Mastellone.

SFU shot 43.4 percent during the game, compared to SFBK's 35.9 percent, and 43.8 percent from three-point range, compared to the Terriers' 34.8 percent. The Red Flash bench outscored the Terriers bench 29-15.

GAME NOTES

• All nine players who saw playing time for the Red Flash scored points.
• Christina Nichols scored a career-high eight points.
• Jada Dapaa totaled 11 rebounds during the game, seven coming in the first half. This is the fourth game this season she's recorded more than 10 rebounds.
• Benzel has made a three-pointer in 22 consecutive games, dating back to last season.
• Swogger scored in double figures for the 10^th-straight game, finishing with 11 points.
• Miller reached double figures for the fourth time this season.
• Though by a narrow 39-37 margin, this is the first win of the season that the Red Flash have been outrebounded by its opponent.

UP NEXT
The Red Flash and Terriers meet again on Sunday in Brooklyn. Tip-off is scheduled for 4 p.m. The game will be broadcast live on NEC Front Row.
 
 
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To learn more about Saint Francis University, visit francis.edu.