Franciscan 69, Westminster 75

Franciscan Starters 
Abbigail Jannuzi, Ilena Gonzales, Jazzlyn Melnyk, Caroline Reedy, & Maria McCallen

How It Happened 
    Two teams entered Finnegan Fieldhouse with identical records on a cold and snowy Saturday in January. The game lived up to the hype, as it was a thriller from start to finish, but unfortunately, the Barons did not secure victory.

    The scoring started with an administrative technical foul for a shot clock issue to give the Titans a 1-0 lead before the opening tip. Franciscan answered quickly as they led 2-1, but from there the Titans controlled the opening quarter which was quite fast-paced. A Giuliana Biasutto three-pointer tied this one up at 16-16 with 1:29 to play in the opening quarter, but the Titans would end the quarter on a 5-0 run to take a commanding lead. Ilena Gonzales sparked the offense to start the second quarter, and they would tie it up at 23-23 with eight minutes left in the half. The Barons would continue their strong offensive play, and hold a five-point lead of their own with a little over three minutes to play in the half. The Titans ended the half on a 5-0 run to tie it up at 35-35.

    The third quarter looked very similar to the first half, as both teams were getting a lot of shots up and in a hurry. Franciscan held the lead for most of the third quarter, and they ran it up to a seven-point advantage with two minutes left. The Titans cut it to a six-point deficit at 57-51, as we headed to the fourth quarter. The Barons maintained that lead of five points for most of the fourth quarter. With 3:30 to play, the Titans hit a three-pointer to make it a two-point game, and then they tied it up at 69-69 with 1:33 to play. The Barons got several good looks and offensive rebounds, but they could not get a bucket to fall. The Titans made their free throws to ice the game and earn the win. 

Inside the Numbers 
- McCallen scored 24 points, her 6th 20+ point performance of the season.
- McCallen had double double by pulling in a team-high 11 rebounds.
- Reedy scored 17 points while going 4-4 from the free throw line.
- Franciscan shot 82.4% (14-17) from the free throw line, their best mark from the charity stripe in a game this season.

Up Next 
Franciscan will head to Washington & Jefferson on Wednesday to take on the Presidents for the second and final time of the 2024-25 season. The Presidents were able to beat the Barons in November in Steubenville, just as they have beat every other PAC opponent, as they are still undefeated in PAC play. They are set to tip at 6:00 p.m.

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