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SFU women get chance to see their depth

LORETTO — Saint Francis wasted no time opening a big lead on Division II foe Seton Hill as the Flash scored the first 18 points of the game.

The Griffins weren’t giving up that easily as they battled all the way back to within six before the Red Flash regrouped and did what they were supposed to do in this matchup as they blew out Seton Hill, 103-71, on Tuesday afternoon during an Education Day contest at DeGol Arena.

“It’s exactly what I would have looked for for today. I think we got everything out of it that I could have wanted and hoped for as a coach,” Saint Francis coach Joe Haigh said. “We came with great energy — got up really big with our press and turnovers, and we were running. Then Seton Hill came back and made it a close game, so we had to deal with a competitive game up through and including the third quarter … We got a lot of players minutes. They had some success, they got to play a lot.”

The Flash evened their record at 2-2 and reached the century mark for points for the first time since upsetting Wisconsin, 103-100, on Nov. 13, 2016. Meanwhile, the game doesn’t count in the standings for the Griffins.

Jessica Kovatch, who had struggled to score in the previous two games, opened with the first four points, while Kyasia Duling, who tallied 10 points and a game-high 13 rebounds, and Courtney Zezza added two points each before Ace Harrison converted the next seven. Maya Wynn’s 3-pointer from the right corner had the Red Flash up 18-0 at the 6:26 mark of the opening quarter.

Alexandra Hay finally got the Griffins on the board when she knocked down a pull-up jumper in transition with 6:10 showing.

Seton Hill, which plays in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference, didn’t allow Saint Francis to embarass it, scoring 22 of the next 34 points to pull within six (30-24) when Forest Hills graduate Courtney Cecere drilled a trey at the 7:34 point of the second quarter.

The Red Flash seemed to relax a little too much while Seton Hill made its comeback as they turned the ball over five times during the run.

“It was an incredible opportunity for us to see this speed and physical nature of that team and how good they are. I think the way that we responded for that (early deficit) is something we’ve done early this year,” Seton Hill coach Mark Ketarski said. “… We had that thing to six in the second quarter and I think our players really settled in and got it.”

As soon as the lead dwindled to six, Kovatch, who finished with a game-high 25 points, went on the offensive by hitting SFU’s next six points in a 6-2 spurt to push the lead back to double digits.

Saint Francis cranked the defensive pressure up and forced four turnovers — two of which came on steals by freshman Haley Thomas that led to a Kovatch bucket and a coast-to-coast layup by herself — before Maya Wynn made a layup right before the half to stretch the SFU advantage up to 17 with a 53-36 lead.

While the Red Flash seized back control late in the second stanza, they put the game out of reach in the third as they outscored Seton Hill, 32-18, as Kovatch sparked a 12-3 SFU run with eight points, while Thomas, who posted nine points and 10 caroms, knocked down a triple.

“I think we were kind of letting up a little bit,” Kovatch said. “… When we know we have little let-ups, we know we have to be more aggressive, and I think that’s what we did during the (third) quarter.”

The closest Seton Hill got the rest of the way was 20 points (69-49). Harrison, who recorded a double-double with 19 points and 11 rebounds, scored nine points during a 16-3 Red Flash spurt.

SFU was able to feed off of the energy and excitement from the elementary school kids that played a part in the second annual event. Schools in attendance were Cambria County Christian, Cambria Heights, Forest Hills and Glendale.

“I know what it’s like to be one of those kids sitting in the stands at a college game. To them, we are at such a higher level that everything we do they look at,” Harrison said. “So, in many ways we are a role model for them … To understand that they’re watching everything we do, so even bad calls … we can’t react a certain way because they’re watching us.”

The fourth quarter allowed Haigh to get plenty of minutes for his freshmen and sophomores.

Bellwood-Antis grad Karson Swogger reached double figures with 10 points as her first collegiate basket came on a 3-pointer from the top of the arc with 56.2 ticks left in the third.

SETON HILL (71): Kaufman 1-4 3-4 6, Laslo 2-6 3-4 7, Hay 3-5 2-2 9, Mifsud 0-1 2-2 2, Trest 3-6 2-2 8, Rabold 1-5 0-0 3, Torris 3-10 0-0 8, Weeks 3-10 2-2 10, Cecere 2-5 2-6 8, Nolan 4-7 2-4 10. Totals: 22-59 18-26 71.

SAINT FRANCIS (103): Duling 4-7 2-2 10, Harrison 7-11 3-4 19, Kroll 2-7 0-2 5, Morrow 2-6 2-2 6, Kovatch 7-19 9-12 25, Swogger 3-5 2-3 10, Shuke 0-1 0-0 0, Mastellone 0-2 4-6 4, Wynn 2-6 0-0 5, Carroll 0-2 0-0 0, Scott 0-1 0-0 0, Falvey 0-1 0-0 0, Zezza 2-5 2-2 6, Smith 1-4 0-1 2, Thomas 4-9 0-0 9. Totals: 35-86 24-34 103.

SCORE BY QUARTERS

Seton Hill 14 22 18 17 — 71

Saint Francis 28 25 32 18 — 103

3-point field goals: Seton Hill 9-26 (Weeks 2-3, Cecere 2-5, Torris 2-7, Kaufman 1-1, Hay 1-3, Rabold 1-4, Mifsud 0-1, Trest 0-2); Saint Francis 9-42 (Swogger 2-3, Harrison 2-6, Kovatch 2-9, Thomas 1-3, Kroll 1-4, Wynn 1-4, Shuke 0-1, Falvey 0-1, Mastellone 0-1, Zezza 0-2, Smith 0-2, Duling 0-2, Morrow 0-2, Carroll 0-2). Rebounds: Seton Hill 32 (Nolan 6); Saint Francis 65 (Duling 13). Assists: Seton Hill 15 (Trest 4); Saint Francis 20 (Kroll 6). Blocks: Seton Hill 1 (Laslo); Saint Francis 5 (Zezza, Smith 2 each). Steals: Seton Hill 9 (Laslo, Nolan 3 each); Saint Francis 14 (Kovatch, Thomas 3 each). Turnovers: Seton Hill 21; Saint Francis 19. Total fouls: Seton Hill 21; Saint Francis 26. Fouled out: none. Technicals: none.

Officials: Dirk Link, Katlyn Tortorice, Warren Harding. A: 1,012.

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