LEWISBURG, Pa. — The Saint Francis University Red Flash could not complete a perfect opening weekend by falling 11-8 to the St. Francis College Brooklyn Terriers in the finale of the Bucknell University Bison Invitational for both teams.
The Red Flash struck first as Emily Wickenheiser (Mechanicsburg, Pa./Cumberland Valley) connected on a shot just 31 seconds into the match for her 11th goal of the season. The lead didn’t last long as Kristen Kleist scored the first of her two first quarter goals 90 seconds into the match to knot the game at one. After the Red Flash killed off a Terriers’ power play, Kleist struck against midway through the quarter to give SFBK a 2-1 lead they would carry into the second.
The two teams would go scoreless until the midway point of the quarter. The Red Flash couldn’t cash in on a power play in the opening minutes. The Terriers wrapped up the half strong by striking three times in the final four minutes, including twice in the final minute of play, as St. Francis (N.Y.) held a 5-1 lead into the half.
Kleist’s third of the game would make it 6-1 SFBK and the lead would grow to 8-1 before the Red Flash would begin their comeback. Wickenheiser would score three times in just over a minute to make it an 8-4 game. Junior Missy McCreary (Altadena, Calif./LaSalle (Citrus College)) would strike with just 12 seconds left in the third to bring SFU within three at 8-5 going into the fourth.
Kelly Fehr (Erie, Pa./Villa Maria Academy) scored twice in the third quarter, but the Red Flash traded goals with the Terriers in the final period. Saint Francis could not get any closer than three in the final eight minutes as they suffered their first loss of the season. The biggest stat of the game was SFU going 0-for-10 on the power play while holding SFBK scoreless on five power play opportunities.
Release courtesy Saint Francis University Athletics Communications
