Cougars Tame Tigers in Home Opener
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Olivet Nazarene (IL) (0-2) | 18 | 19 | 12 | 22 | 71 |
|
Saint Francis (Ind.) (2-0) | 13 | 21 | 26 | 20 | 80 |
FORT WAYNE, Ind. - The University of Saint Francis (Ind.) women's basketball team earned an 80-71 win over Olivet Nazarene in the Cougars' home opener on Wednesday, November 6.
After the Tigers grabbed an18-13 lead at the end of the first quarter, USF and ONU battled back and forth in the second quarter. With the score tied 32-32 with under a minute left to play in the first half, Olivet Nazarene scored a pair of buckets to take the 37-34 lead at halftime.
USF retook the lead thanks to a three-point shot from Julia Mantyla at the 6:09 mark of the third quarter. Saint Francis extended their lead to 11 points with 17 seconds left to play as USF outscored ONU 26-12 in the third quarter for a 60-49 lead. The Cougars maintained their lead for the rest of the game, fending off a late rally by the Tigers to secure an 80-71 victory in Wednesday night's matchup to improve to 3-0 on the season.
As a team, USF shot 46.2% from the floor (30-65) and 33.3% from three-point range (6-18). Chloe McKnight led the Cougars with 27 points, nine rebounds and six assists. Freshman Cali Gregory added 19 points and five assists, while graduate student Cassidy Crawford had 18 points and eight rebounds. Isabella Gizzi and McKnight finished the night with two steals each, and Samiyah Stout had a block.
Up next, USF women's basketball (3-0) will travel to Marian University for the Franciscan Classic on November 8-9. The Cougars will face Saint Xavier University on Friday before battling MidAmerica University on Saturday.
Cougar fans can stay updated on all events and recaps with USF Athletics by visiting saintfranciscougars.com.
