CRESSON, PA—Franciscan University's women's basketball team fell to Mount Aloysius College 64-49 in their second to last game of the season. In a back-to-back match up throughout both halves, Franciscan kept the score relatively close, until Aloysius closed the night with a strong performance and a 15-point lead.

FUS stayed close behind Aloysius in the first half with almost identical stat-lines. Franciscan had ten turnovers while Aloysius had nine. Both teams went 4 for 4 on free throws, and both teams shot 39% from the floor. The Mounties barely edged out FUS on boards and three-pointers, however. Despite an aggressively matched first half, Mt. Aloysius went up 31-23 at the half.

"The first half was very evenly matched," head coach Suzy Delaney said. "The stats were all very close, but Aloysius had some good looks that were able to put them ahead."

The stats continued to match up throughout most of the second half. FUS grabbed 32 boards while Mt. Aloysius took 35 over the course of the game. Keeping the score close, sophomore guard Helen Raines sunk nine out of ten foul shots at the line, along with a three-pointer to bring her point total to 12

"Helen had a standout game, even while playing with an injury," Delaney said. "She kept driving in the key, getting to the line, and making her foul shots."

Also with 12 points, junior guard Hannah Flannagan followed one of her best shooting nights of the season again Medialle College on Saturday with another good night offensively. Flannagan was able to grab four rebounds and sank two three-pointers, along with three other field goals.

"Hannah looked for shots with confidence," Delaney said. "She was able to earn us some major points."

Mt. Aloysius started dominating toward the end of the second half as Franciscan began fouling to keep the score within reach. Unfortunately for FUS, Mt. Aloysius took advantage of their free throws and started to pull away.

Down by fifteen, Franciscan was unable to overcome the Mounties experienced and swift bench, and lost despite solid offensive and defensive efforts.

"Even though the girls played aggressively and stuck with Aloysius," Delaney said. "It takes experience to close out a close game like this. As a young team we lack experience, but we are learning to put it all together."

Franciscan will match up against University of Pittsburgh-Bradford on Saturday, February 16th at 1:00 PM in their last game of the season. Pittsburgh-Bradford is currently ranked fourth in the AMCC.