WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
>> Fueled by career-high performances by juniors Jade Campbell and Natalie Johnson, Saint Francis opens Northeast Conference (NEC) play with a 79-63 win against CCSU in women's basketball action on Thursday.
>> Campbell recorded her second career double-double, finishing with 19 points and 11 rebounds. Johnson had 20 points in her first career NEC tilt.
>> Yanessa Boyd stuffed the stat sheet with 10 points, six rebounds, and three assists in the win.
>> The Red Flash opens up league play with a win for the 27th time in program history and the fourth time in six years under head coach Keila Whittington.

TURNING POINT OF THE GAME
The Blue Devils scored the game's first basket, but that would be the only time they would have the lead for the rest of the afternoon. Saint Francis went on an 18-5 run after that basket, including a 12-0 spurt, to take an 18-7 lead with 2:27 left in the first quarter. Johnson led the way with seven points in the surge, including giving Saint Francis the lead for good on a layup with 8:45 left in the first quarter. The squad had points from five different players in the run. Along with Johnson's output, Boyd had five points, while Campbell, Julianna Gibson, and Marissa Shelton also had baskets to give the Red Flash an 11-point lead.

CCSU could not get any closer than six points the rest of the game, with the Loretto program holding a double-digit lead for most of the afternoon.

FLASH MOMENTS
Saint Francis extended its lead to 25-12 on a Campbell layup before the Blue Devils cut the margin to six points with 5:11 in the second quarter. The Red Flash closed the half on an 11-5 run to take a 36-24 advantage going into the locker room. Three players seeing their first conference action powered the run, posting nine of the 11 points. Alary Bell had a pair of layups, Airah Lavy hit a three, and Ineivi Plata registered a steal and layup as time expired in the half in the spurt.

An 11-1 run gave Saint Francis its largest lead at 47-27 with 6:30 left in the third quarter. Campbell had four straight points to end the surge. The margin did not go below 12 points in the final 14 minutes. 

FLASH NUGGETS
Reminiscent of Saint Francis' last win, a 69-60 decision at Delaware State, Johnson and Campbell led the way for the Red Flash. In that game, Campbell had her first career double-double with 17 points and 19 rebounds, and Johnson had 14 points. Both of those outputs were career-bests for points before Thursday's performances.

Johnson, who was near perfect on the day, shooting 8-for-9 from the floor and 4 of 5 from long range, becomes the second player to register 20 points in a game after Boyd scored 20 points at Duquesne on December 1. The junior transfer from Robert Morris has a team-leading six games with 10+ points; five of those efforts are coming on the road. 

Campbell, playing in her first NEC action since February 25, 2023, at Wagner, registered her fifth 10+ rebound performance of her career and her third against a league opponent. The 11 boards tied the most caroms in an NEC game for the junior after grabbing 11 rebounds against Merrimack on February 4, 2023. All three of her double-figure rebound games in the circuit have come against teams from New England.

Boyd registered double figures for the sixth time this season. It was the third time she had recorded 10+ points in NEC play and registered the most points in a road league game. The sophomore posted consecutive 10-point games in the Nutmeg state after scoring 10 points in the NEC Quarterfinals at Sacred Heart on March 11, 2024.

Plata had a nice afternoon with seven points, six assists, and three steals in her first NEC action. Bell was 3-for-3 from the field for six points and had three rebounds in her first game since November 20 at Robert Morris.

Saint Francis improved to 27-12 all-time in the league lidlifter and 13-8 on the road. Whittington is now 4-2 in the NEC opener and 4-1 on the road. Nine of the 12 NEC Championship teams for the Red Flash opened the season on the road, including six of the first seven.

The 79 points were the most scored in a game since an 82-72 win against St. Francis Brooklyn at home on January 11, 2020, and the most scored on the road since an 83-72 win at Mount St. Mary's on February 2, 2019.

NEXT UP FOR FLASH
Saint Francis returns to action on Saturday at Stonehill. Game time is 2 p.m.