Â
| Saint Francis Probable Starters |
| Pos. |
No. |
Name |
Ht. |
Yr. |
PPG |
RPG |
FG% |
Note |
| GÂ |
0 |
Yanessa Boyd |
5-9 |
So. |
8.8 |
3.4 |
37.5 |
Recorded six+ rebounds in last two games |
| G |
5 |
Natalie Johnson |
5-8 |
Jr. |
8.2 |
1.8 |
47.5 |
Scored career-high 20 points at CCSU |
| G |
10 |
Ineivi Plata |
5-3 |
Fr. |
3.9 |
3.1 |
32.8 |
Tallied seven points, six assists at CCSU |
| F |
12 |
Julianna Gibson |
6-2 |
Jr. |
4.5 |
2.9 |
47.2 |
Scored season-high 15 points at RMU |
| F |
23 Â Â Â |
Marina Artero |
5-11 |
So. |
1.1 |
3.4 |
22.2 |
Grabbed seven boards at CCSU |
| Top Players Off the Bench |
| Pos. |
No. |
Name |
Ht. |
Yr. |
PPG |
RPG |
FG% |
Note |
| GÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â |
1 |
Kameryn Dorsey |
5-6 |
So. |
7.0 |
5.0 |
60.0 |
Out for season due to an injury |
| F |
3 |
Jade Campbell |
6-0 |
Jr. |
7.8 |
6.9 |
50.0 |
Career-high 19 points, 11 rebounds at CCSU |
| G |
4 |
Marissa Shelton |
5-8 |
Jr. |
5.0 |
2.0 |
29.1 |
Scored season-high 11 points at Butler |
| G |
11 |
Harris Robinson |
5-8Â Â Â Â |
Sr. |
2.8 |
2.4 |
27.3 |
Tied season high with eight points at Delaware St |
| G |
20 |
Airah Lavy |
5-10 |
Fr. |
6.2 |
1.2 |
33.3 |
Playing in her first NEC weekend |
| GÂ Â Â Â |
21 |
Gemma Walker |
5-10 |
Fr. |
1.6 |
0.6 |
21.4 |
Playing in her first NEC weekend |
| G |
24Â Â Â Â |
Destini Ward |
5-8 |
Jr. |
--- |
--- |
--- |
Team captain in 2024-25 |
| F |
32 |
Fanta Daffe |
5-10 |
Sr. |
0.0 |
0.4 |
0.0 |
Playing her second season in Loretto |
| F |
33 |
Giselle Eke |
6-3 |
Fr. |
1.9 |
2.2 |
26.7 |
Playing in her first NEC weekend |
| F |
34 |
Alary Bell |
6-2 |
So. |
5.4 |
3.3 |
59.3 |
Had six points, three boards at CCSU |
SELECT GAME NOTES VS. STONEHILLÂ (FULLÂ GAME NOTES PDF)
FRANKIES TIDBITS IN A FLASH
• Saint Francis wraps up its first conference road weekend in Massachusetts against Stonehill. It will be the fifth meeting between the two teams since the Skyhawks joined the Northeast Conference in 2022-23.
• The Red Flash won both games in the 2022-23 season before Stonehill returned the favor in 2023-24. The two games almost finished with identical scores after the Skyhawks won 66-57 in Massachusetts and then posted a 66-56 decision in Loretto nearly a month later.
• The two teams went to overtime on February 2, 2023 with the Red Flash winning the game 71-70. It was the last win in the series for the Loretto program and the last time the team played an extra session. If this note is a jinx for saying the word overtime, the last time Saint Francis played overtime on the road was at St. Francis Brooklyn on February 19, 2022, if you are curious.
• This road trip gets the most extended conference bus trip out of the way and ends consecutive trips to New England after wrapping up non-conference play at Rhode Island on December 20. The team still has a journey to Chicago State on the docket, but that will be the first time the team flies to a conference game.
• Saint Francis improved to 27-12 and 13-8 on the road in NEC lidlifters in program history. The Red Flash are now 4-2 in the first league game of the year under head coach
Keila Whittington and 4-1 on the road.
• With a win against Stonehill on Saturday, the Red Flash will win the first two games of a league season for the 20th time in program history and the third time under Whittington. The team started 2-0 in Whittington's first two seasons (2019-20, 2020-21). Saint Francis has registered a winning league record 16 times after starting the season 2-0 and had a non-losing mark twice.
• A loss would give the Red Flash a 1-1 mark after two league games for the 14th time in program history. The squad has registered a winning mark in the circuit eight times after splitting the first two contests. Under Whittington, Saint Francis went 1-1 on the first weekend of the last two campaigns.
• Saint Francis has won 12 NEC Tournament titles. The Red Flash started league play 2-0 for nine championships and 1-1 for three titles.
• After the Stonehill game, Saint Francis will play its first home game in 32 days when NEC preseason favorite FDU comes to town on January 9. The last time the Red Flash played at DeGol Arena was December 8 against UMBC. The team will complete its NEC home schedule of eight games in 42 days from January 9-February 20.
AN SFU WIN WOULD
• Open the NEC slate 2-0 for the 20th time in team history and the third time under head coach Keila Whittington
• Notch the first win streak since downing LIU on February 3, 2024 and Wagner on February 15, 2024
• The the fourth road win this season, the most since 2020-21
• End a two-game losing streak to Stonehill
• End four-game road trip 2-2 and with consecutive wins to go home for first home game in 32 days
ABOUT THE SKYHAWKS
• Stonehill comes into the contest 5-9 overall and 1-0 in Northeast Conference play after defeating new NEC member Mercyhurst 72-54 on Thursday.
• The Skyhawks had a non-conference strength of schedule ranking of 293. Stonehill and Saint Francis both played Rhode Island this season. The Skyhawks opened the season against the Rams with a 68-45 loss on November 4, while the Red Flash concluded non-conference play against URI on December 20.
• Brooke Paquette paced Stonehill with 26 points against the Lakers. Sharn Hayward added 15 points and Kylie Swider narrowly missed a double-double finishing with nine points and 11 rebounds.
• Hayward leads the team with 15.4 points per game, while Paquette is second with 12.6 points per game. Swider powers the team on the boards with 7.8 rebounds per game and is averages double figures in points with 10.5 points per game.
LAST TIME WE MET
• Stonehill defeated Saint Francis 66-56 in Loretto on February 24, 2024.
• Kendall Carruthers paced the Red Flash with 18 points. Yanessa Boyd added 12 points.Â
• Jada Thorton paced the Skyhawks with 18 points, while Cameron Ward (17 points), Sharn Hayward (12 points), and Maureen Stapleton (10 rebounds) also found double figures.
LAST TIME OUT
• Fueled by career-high performances by junior
Jade Campbell and
Natalie Johnson, Saint Francis opened NEC play with a 79-63 win against CCSU 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.
•
Sophomore
Yanessa Boyd stuffed the stat sheet with 10 points, six rebounds, and three assists in the win.
• Saint Francis had three players in double figures after only having three 10+ point games from as returning player with double figures in 2023-24.
•
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.
TRENDING UP
• Junior
Natalie Johnson scored a career-high 20 points against CCSU on January 2 to become the first player to register 20 points in the first NEC game of the year since Karson Swogger recorded 25 points against Bryant on January 2, 2020. In addition, Johnson was the first Red Flash player to have 20 points in her league debut since Jess Kovatch posted 35 points against Wagner on January 2, 2016.
• Johnson has six 10+ point games this season including five on the road. The Red Flash is 3-3 when she reached double figures in points and is averaging 14.6 points per game in the three wins. The junior registered her two best outputs of her career in Saint Francis wins. Along with her 20-point game at CCSU, she had a then career-high 14 points at Delaware State on December 5.
• Junior
Jade Campbell has joined Johnson in posting two of her best career outputs in Saint Francis wins. The junior had a career-high 19 points and 11 rebounds against CCSU and 17 points, and a career-best 19 rebounds at Delaware State. She was still making her way back from the injury in the team's win against Robert Morris on November 20. 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. All three of her double-figure rebound games in the circuit have come against teams from New England.
• Sophomore
Yanessa Boyd is averaging 9.5 points and 6.5 rebounds per game in her last two games, which have both taken place in New England. The sophomore had seven rebounds at Rhode Island on December 20 and six boards against the Blue Devils for her second and third-best rebound efforts of her career after posting a career-high eight boards against Wagner in last year's NEC opener on January 6, 2024. Boyd's 10 points against CCSU were the most points in a road league game in her career. 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.
• Freshman
Ineivi Plata had seven points and six assists for her second-best performance in both categories in her career. The freshman had a career-high nine points at Coppin State on November 12 and a personal-best nine helpers at Duquesne on December 1.
• 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.
• The last time the Red Flash posted 70 points in a game was a 76-60 win against Wagner on February 15, 2024, the second win in a row after defeating LIU 61-56 on February 3, 2024, for the team's last winning streak. A victory against Stonehill would give the team its first winning streak since those two tilts.
• The win against CCSU ended a 13-game losing streak to teams located in New England.
