After a sluggish second quarter the Santa Fe Saints caught fire in the second half to earn a 76-63 win over Miami Dade State College Thursday night in the first day of the Florida State College Women's Basketball Shootout.

The Saints led 23-16 after the first period but scored only nine points in the second quarter and the Sharks held a 34-32 lead at the break.

The two teams scored at an even pace through much of the third quarter and it took a pair of free throws by Stephanie Jackson in the closing seconds to give the Saints a 54-53 lead after three quarters.

The Saints (5-4) turned up the tempo in the final stanza, opening the period with a 9-0 run to build a comfortable lead at 63-53 with 7:30 left to play.

MDSC (4-4) worked their way back into the game but a 3-pointer by Janasia Law with 1:35 to play restored the Saints double-digit lead heading into the final minute.

SF Head Coach Chanda Stebbins was happy to see the Saints even the score with Miami Dade who defeated SF earlier this season. "It was nice to get a make-up win against Miami Dade," said Stebbins. "I thought our guards did a better job of managing the game late and it paid off."

Law led four Saints in double figures with 14 points while Jackson hit for 12. Keaubree Edwards scored 11 points and hauled down 11 rebounds for a double-double and Rhea Smith and Danasia Bogle scored 10 apiece.

The Saints will face ASA Miami in day two of the shootout scheduled to tip off at 8 pm Friday evening.

All games will be live streamed through the FSW Athletics website at https://www.fsw.edu/livestream.