GAINESVILLE, Fla. - Santa Fe women's basketball took on Indian River State College for the second time this season, and the Pioneers, ranked No. 4 in the FSCAA, came away with a 66-56 victory inside the SF Gymnasium.

First Quarter – IRSC 11, SF 11

Jasani Buchanan opened the game's scoring, and the two teams went back-and forth to begin the contest.

Buchanan had six points in the frame, and Carlo Soto four to get Santa Fe started offensively.

Second Quarter – IRSC 31, SF 27

Neither team could get much separation from the other. Andrea Torres hit two three-pointers in the quarter, but it was Indian River State College that eventually broke a 25-25 tie with four consecutive points, a four-point lead that would hold at the halftime whistle.

Third Quarter – IRSC 50, SF 43

Indian River established a lead as large as eight points, 35-27.

A 13-5 run by Santa Fe, however, knotted it up at 40-40. The run was started by two three-pointers from Lauren Carmona.

The Pioneers would respond with an 8-1 spurt to grab a 48-41 edge, and still led by seven headed into the final quarter.

Fourth Quarter – IRSC 66, SF 56

Trailing 61-52 as the clock went under four minutes, Santa Fe made one final push.

Back-to-back buckets from Buchanan brought the Saints to within two possessions, 61-56, with a minute and a half to play.

In the ensuing offensive possessions for Indian River, however, Pioneer offensive rebounds and free-throws hampered the Saints' comeback cause, and the final 20 seconds were able to be calmly dribbled out by the visitors.

Key Statistics

Buchanan, who was recently selected as the FCSAA/NJCAA Region 8 Player of the Week, had another huge double-double to lead the way for Santa Fe. She finished with a season-high 23 points to go along with 10 rebounds. Carmona finished with nine points and Bowers had eight.

Coach Stebbins' Take

"Jasani Buchanan had a great night, but we weren't able to get the all-around contributions we needed in the close game. The offensive rebounds that they had in the final minutes really hurt our chances to make a comeback."

Up Next

Santa Fe stays on the home floor and returns to Central Conference action when it hosts Hillsborough Community College on Friday, March 12 at 5:30 p.m.