Saints Fall Just Short in Comeback Bid Against PBSC, 67-64

November 4, 2011

November 4, 2011 Contact: Scott Jamison 352-395-5616 scott.jamison@sfcollege.edu

SF WOMEN'S BASKETBALL

PALM BEACH HOLDS ON TO DEFEAT SAINTS 67-64 AFTER WILD SF COMEBACK

Gainesville, FL – Stephenie Coney and the Saints mounted a furious second half comeback on Friday night against Palm Beach State College (2-0), but came up just short in a 67-64 loss. Coney finished the game with a team high 15 points and three assists.

"We can't continue to put ourselves in first half holes and expect to recover every game," said SF Coach Chanda Stebbins. "We need to play better from the opening tip."

Santa Fe (0-2) trailed 43-28 at the half but immediately began to chip away at the Panthers lead in the second half.

"I thought we did a much better job in the second half defensively, holding them to only 23 points," said Stebbins. "I'm proud of how we played on both ends of the court. We took good quality shots and pressured Palm Beach into a lot of turnovers."

A three point shot by Monique Bunk cut the margin to 47-38 with 15 minutes remaining and just five minutes later Alexis Fitts nailed a three off a PBSC turnover to tie the score at 52-52. The three by Fitts capped a 14-5 run by the Saints.

Stephenie Coney gave SF their first lead of the game at the 5:40 mark, making two free throws to put Santa Fe up 58-56. The score went back and forth over the next three minutes until PBSC's Meme Ward sunk two free throws to give the Panthers back the lead for good. A last second shot to tie the game by Santa Fe's Lonna Turner came up just short, sealing the win for the Panthers.

Santa Fe took 27 more shots than Palm Beach over the course of the game, but shot only 29% from the field. The Saints were outrebounded 48-40, thanks in large part to PBSC's Meme Ward, who finished with 20 rebounds to go along with 21 points.

"Our players need to do a better job pursuing the ball off the glass on missed shots," said Stebbins. "You can't get outrebounded and expect to win on a consistent basis."

The Saints continue their challenging early season schedule when they travel to Chipola College on November 11, 12 and 13 to take on Roxbury College, Indian River State College and Monroe College.

"This is just the beginning of a long season and I have seen improvement already from our team," said Stebbins. "We are getting better and more mature every day and as the girls continue to work hard in practice I think we will see this team do some great things down the road."

For complete schedules and more information on Saints Women's Basketball, please visit santafesaints.com. To see game photos and other updates, follow Santa Fe College Athletics on Facebook.

-30-