Jan. 9, 2005

Box Score

PHILADELPHIA - Dayton took advantage of its size, as the Flyers downed Saint Joseph's women's basketball team 78-70 Sunday afternoon at Alumni Memorial Fieldhouse.

The Flyers, who won the battle in the paint 42-30, opened up their 41-40 halftime lead early, using a 10-4 run to extend their lead to 55-47 at 15:24. Six of Dayton's 10 points and seven of its first 11 field goals came inside the paint.

Both teams exchanged baskets over the next five minutes, with the Hawks building momentum.

Saint Joseph's used an 11-5 run to cut the deficit to two, 62-60 as freshman guard Timisha Gomez made a short jump shot at 8:23.

Dayton responded with a 10-1 run to all but seal the game, going up 11, 72-61 on a free throw by Cara Wright at 3:27

The Hawks would get no closer than five, 75-70, as the Flyers made six of eight free throws over the final few minutes to seal the game.

In the first half, Saint Joseph's got out of the gate fast, jumping out to a 21-16 lead just eight minutes into the game. Junior forward Faith Schutte scored six of her career-high 12 points during that stretch.

The Flyers kept the score close, grabbing a 37-35 lead on a Nikki Oakland layup at 2:19. Dayton outscored the Hawks 10-5 over the final four minutes to take a 41-40 halftime lead.

Offensively, Saint Joseph's shot 24-of-58 from the field for 41.4 percent, including 17-of-19 from the charity stripe. At the other end, Dayton shot 57.44 percent on 31-of-54 shooting. The Flyers out rebounded the Hawks 39-22, including 16 at the offensive end. Dayton used those offensive boards to finish with 19 second-chance points.

Junior guard Christine Roth led the Hawks in scoring with 13 points as Schutte was the only other Saint Joseph's player to score in double figures, adding 12. Gomez, sophomore guard Ayahna Cornish and red-shirt freshman Erica Pollock each added nine points apiece.

Wright finished with a game-high 29 points and 11 rebounds for the Flyers, while Emily Williams added 11 points and Jennifer Strong scored 10.

With the loss, Saint Joseph's falls to 3-12 on the season and 1-2 in Atlantic 10 play. The Flyers improve to 7-7 overall and 1-2 in the A-10.

Saint Joseph's returns to action Thursday, when the Hawks host Massachusetts. The game, which will have a special noon start, will be televised on Atlantic 10 Television.