Jacksonville, Fla. – Brianti Saunders led all scorers with 21 points and McKenna Beach added a career-high 15 as Stetson defeated host UNF 67-56 Wednesday night at UNF Arena.
Stetson (15-8, 6-3 A-Sun) won its third game in a row and moved into a tie for third place in the conference standings.
“I didn't think we played with a lot of energy in the first half,” Stetson head coach Lynn Bria said. “To North Florida's credit, they played with all the energy. I thought in the second half, we came out a little bit better, but I do think the 4th quarter was a good quarter for us. We put a little more pressure on them, turned them over a couple of times, and that is what got us a couple of easy baskets.”
The teams went into the 4th quarter tied at 45, but Saunders opened the period with one of her four 3-pointers on the night to put the Hatters ahead for good. Stetson held UNF (6-18, 2-7 A-Sun) to just 11 points in the final quarter to complete a sweep of the season series.
“I think we just picked up our defensive intensity,” Beach said. “All five of us just came together and decided we were going to play defense.”
For the game, Beach hit a pair of 3-pointers and was 5-of-6 from the free throw line in reaching her career-high. She also had four assists and one steal.
“I thought McKenna had a great game on both ends,” Bria said. “She had a hard assignment in guarding their shooters, Offensively, she carried us. She did a lot of good things for us.”
Also for Stetson, Aisha Turner scored 11 points with four assists and Breana Bey registered 10 points, eight rebounds and a pair of blocks.
The Hatters shot 46 percent from the floor and 42 percent from behind the arc, hitting eight 3-pointers for the game.
Stetson will continue its three-game road trip at USC Upstate on Saturday.
Notes: Head coach Lynn Bria won her 299th career game ... Brianti Saunders and Aisha Turner each collected their 200th career assists ... The game featured eight ties and eight lead changes (none in 4th quarter) ... Stetson improved to 15-2 when holding its opponent under 69 points and to 14-1 when leading at halftime ... Brianti Saunders extended her double figures scoring streak to a season-long 23 games.
