LEWISBURG, Pa. — Saint Francis University split its final games on the last day of the 2023 Bucknell University Invitational at Kinney Natatorium. The Red Flash opened the day with a 14-10 defeat of Salem University prior to suffering a 5-4 setback against La Salle University.
Against Salem, Emese Szucs (Jr., Budapest, Hungary) scored seven times – including trios in the first and third quarters – as Saint Francis outmatched the Tigers.
Trailing 1-0 with 6:48 left in the first quarter, the Red Flash burned Salem for six goals to acquire a 6-1 lead with time winding down in the opening frame. Leading 7-2 at the start of the second quarter, SFU held off a Salem comeback try to maintain a three-goal lead (9-6) entering halftime.
Following another Saint Francis goal at 7:40 of the third quarter to expand the lead to four at 10-6, the Tigers clawed back with strikes at 5:47 and 5:08 to move within 10-8. However, the Red Flash scorched Salem with back-to-back-to-back tallies at 4:45, 59 seconds and 14 seconds to make it 13-8 heading into the final eight minutes of the fourth quarter.
Salem was unable to overcome a 14-8 Saint Francis lead with 3:02 left in the final frame as SFU held on for a 14-10 victory.
Besides Szucs, Saint Francis received a hat-trick by Taylor Halbauer (Sr., Edmonton, Alberta/Mother Margaret Mary) along with a pair of goals courtesy Addison Williams (Sr., Clovis, Calif./Sanger). Haiden Lang (Sr., Placentia/Calif./Esperanza) and Caylah Olay (Fr., Redondo Beach, Calif./Redondo Union) also dented the twine with solo markers.
The second contest of the day saw La Salle outscore Saint Francis 2-1 in the fourth quarter to escape with a 5-4 victory in the 17th of 17 games at the Bucknell Invite.
Saint Francis appeared poised to run away with the game in the first quarter as Lang (3:41) and Abigail Carter (Sr, Abbotsford, B.C./St. John Brebeuf) (39 seconds) staked the Red Flash to a 2-0 lead.
La Salle answered back at the 3:27 mark of the second quarter as the Explorers trimmed their halftime deficit to 2-1.
Tied at two-all with 6:43 remaining in the third quarter, La Salle gained its first lead of the game at 2:39 by going ahead 3-2. Szucs pulled Saint Francis even at three-all with 1:45 on the clock as the teams entered the final eight minutes of regulation deadlocked at three-all.
Olay pushed SFU back in front at 4:03 with 4:39 to play, but back-to-back the Explorers’ discovered the back of the cage at 2:02 and 1:14 for the deciding blows to claim a 5-4 win.
Laing, Carter, Szucs and Olay combined to account for the entirety of the Red Flash offense against La Salle.
