EMMITSBURG, Md. – The Saint Francis women's basketball team (12-7, 10-3 NEC) fell to league-leading Mount St. Mary's (14-4, 13-2 NEC) by a 71-55 margin on Sunday in the first game of the teams' home-and-home series. After falling behind 20 points at the half, the Red Flash comeback fell short in the second half.
 
Saint Francis 55, Mount St. Mary's 71
Records: Saint Francis (12-7, 10-3 NEC), Mount St. Mary's (14-4, 13-2 NEC)
Location: Knott Arena (Emmitsburg, Md.)
 
KEY MOMENTS
Mount St. Mary's put together an 18-0 run during the second quarter to take a 20-point lead into halftime. Following a strong third quarter from Saint Francis, the Mountaineers scored nine-straight points in the fourth quarter to seal the victory.

HOW IT HAPPENED
A back-and-forth first quarter saw five lead-changes and three ties end with Mount St. Mary's holding a 15-12 lead after 10 minutes of play. Five different players had baskets for the Red Flash as Haley Thomas led SFU in scoring with four points after a pair of free throws.

Jada Dapaa brought Saint Francis within one with the first basket of the second quarter but the Mountaineers responded with an 18-0 over the next five minutes of play to take a 33-14 lead with three minutes remaining in the first half. The lead grew to 42-18 with 45 seconds to play in the half but the Red Flash scored the final four points to trail 42-22 going into the locker room.

Saint Francis put together its strongest quarter out of halftime, outscoring Mount St. Mary's 23-10 in the third quarter to cut the deficit to 52-45 after 30 minutes of play. Karson Swogger started things off with a four-point play to spark the Red Flash offense and she went on to score 12 points and tally two assists in the third quarter.

With 8:30 remaining, Saint Francis trailed 54-47 but Mount St. Mary's scored the next nine points to stretch its lead to double figures. The Red Flash could get no closer as scoring was even during the final 5:50 of the game.

STATS
Mount St. Mary's shot 50 percent from the floor in the first half and 41.3 percent throughout the game, outshooting the Red Flash. The Mountaineers were 9-of-21 from three-point range (.429) to lead in that category. Saint Francis got to the free-throw line 18 times, compared to MSM's 11.

In the sharp SFU third quarter, the Red Flash outshot the Mountaineers 44.4 percent to 22.2 percent, forcing MSM to shoot 4-of-18 from the floor and 0-of-4 from behind the arc. Saint Francis had 16 rebounds compared to Mount St. Mary's eight.

GAME NOTES

• Swogger led the Red Flash offense with 18 points, her 14^th-straight game in double figures.
• Dapaa led SFU with nine rebounds, including a game-high five offensive rebounds. She was also second in scoring with eight points.
• Katie Dettwiller recorded her third-straight game with at least three blocks.
• Thomas matched her career-high four steals.

 
UP NEXT
The two teams meet again on Monday evening inside DeGol Arena. Tip-off is scheduled for 6 p.m. The game will be broadcast live on NEC Front Row.
 
Follow Saint Francis Women's Basketball on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter to get up-to-date information and a behind-the-scenes look at the Red Flash program.
 
To learn more about Saint Francis University, visit francis.edu.