Women’s Basketball Edged by No. 24 St. Petersburg, 80-73
March 8, 2021

Women’s Basketball Edged by No. 24 St. Petersburg, 80-73

GAINESVILLE, Fla. - Santa Fe women's basketball came-down to the wire with No. 24 St. Petersburg, but the Titans were able to hold off the Saints, 80-73. 
 
No. 24 St. Petersburg remained unbeaten in Central Conference play and improved their overall record to 10-1 by getting past the Saints, but it didn't come easily inside the SF Gymnasium.
 
First Quarter – SPC 27, SF 17
St. Petersburg raced out to a double-digit lead and were in control early. establishing a 12-2 advantage.
 
Carla Soto sunk two three-pointers in the quarter, but the St. Petersburg lead still sat at 10, 27-17.
 
Second Quarter – SPC 41, SF 38
The Titans' lead grew to as large as 14 points, 33-19. 
 
Santa Fe scored the game's next nine points, however, which included two three-pointers from Andrea Torres to get the Saints to within five, 33-28. 
 
The deficit was trimmed down to just two points, but St. Petersburg responded to get back ahead by six.
 
Soto's third three-pointer of the half came at the buzzer, bringing the score to 41-38 at the break. 
 
Third Quarter – SF 58, SPC 55
With the Titans leading 45-41, the Saints rattled off six straight points to take their first lead of the game, 47-45. Jasani Buchanan had the go-ahead bucket out of a timeout. 
 
 Neither team could gain much traction the rest of the quarter, as the game went back-and-forth.
 
Zoé Alexander's basket was the final score of the quarter, and the Saints went into the fourth quarter with a narrow three-point lead.
 
Fourth Quarter – SPC 80, SF 73
The final period saw each team make two big runs. St. Petersburg made the first surge, turning a 62-59 deficit into a 75-64 lead on the strength of a 16-2 run.
 
The run was capped off by a three-pointer with about 3:40 remaining on the clock, and it appeared as if the Titans may escape with a double-digit victory.
 
Santa Fe had other plans, however, and stormed right back with a quick seven unanswered points, forcing a St. Petersburg timeout with 1:50 on the clock and the Titans leading 75-71. 
 
After possession changed hands a couple of times, Buchanan made her way to the free-throw line and converted on two attempts to make it a single-possession game.
 
On their next possession, the Titans found a basket. After the Saints had an empty-possession, the clock became a factor and Santa Fe had to begin to foul.
 
In the final seconds, St. Petersburg was able to take care of the ball and do enough to stem the Santa Fe comeback efforts.  
 
Key Statistics
Buchanan had a team-high 17 points to go along with nine rebounds. Alexander put in 13 points and dished out four assists as well.
 
Soto tied a season-high with 11 points, and Bowers had 11 points of her own. Ashley Duviella tied Buchanan with a team-high in the rebounding category, corralling a season-high nine boards. 
 
Coach Stebbins' Take
"I am proud of the grit that we showed, and we are getting better," said Head Coach Chanda Stebbins. "St. Petersburg is a really good team, and we were right there with them. We had our opportunities but couldn't finish around the basket on a few occasions down the stretch, and St. Petersburg took advantage on the other end for a few crucial four-point swings."
 
Up Next
The Saints (3-7, 2-4 CC) host nonconference opponent Indian River State College on Wednesday, March 10 at 5:30 p.m. 

 

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Team Stats