LA VERNE, Calif. — The Red Flash of Saint Francis University continue to dominate West Coast teams as the team downed the Division III No. 5-ranked University of La Verne Leopards, 12-8, on the strength of a balanced attack to improve to 10-3 on the season.
Saint Francis, which improved to 5-0 during its trip to California, was powered by Marialena Seletopoulou (Glyfada, Athens Greece/Yannopoulos School) who led five Red Flash scorers with five goals.
La Verne scored first but Saint Francis responded with goals by Missy McCreary (Altadena, Calif./LaSalle (Citrus College)), Seletopoulou and Ani Aghakhanian (La Crescenta, Calif/La Valley College) to take a 3-1 lead into the second period.
Tallies by Aghakhanian and Erin O’Neill (Landsdale, Pa./North Penn) in the early second quarter gave the Red Flash a cushion that Seletopoulou inflated to 6-3 by halftime with a strike.
La Verne drew within 6-4, but Seletopoulou shut the door on the Leopards with another tally. McCreary provided extra reinforcement, while Lani Merrill (San Clemente, Calif./San Clemente (Saddleback College)) finished off the third quarter with a goal to make it 9-5 entering the final frame.
Three goals by Seletopoulou and Aghakhanian placed the advantage at 12-6 before the Leopards pawed in a pair of markers in the final moments for the 12-8 final score.
In cage, Kate Wilke (Burbank, Calif./Burroughs) saved seven shots and chipped in two assists off long passes.
Information courtesy Saint Francis University Athletics Communications
