CHICAGO -- The University of St. Francis women's basketball team saw a double-digit second-half lead shrink to just a two-point margin before claiming a 62-58 Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference win over Saint Xavier University on Saturday afternoon.  A consistent defense and free throws proved to be key factors in the outcome with the Saints burying 14-of-17 chances from the charity stripe and cashing in on another 14 points off turnovers in the four-point victory.  The win marked the Fighting Saints' 12th in a row, improving their overall record to 12-0, while also maintaining a perfect 7-0 mark in league play.

With St. Francis holding a six-point lead (36-30) after the first half, the Saints led by as many as 10 points in the third quarter to extend their lead to double digits (56-46) heading into the fourth period.  The Cougars would take advantage of a poor USF shooting performance in the final quarter, outscoring the Saints 8-0 in the first five minutes of the period.  SXU defenders held St. Francis to zero baskets in nine attempts in the five-minute stretch, but a steal from Tykara Harrison at the 4:30 mark resulted in a breakaway layup and kept the Saints in the contest.  A Le'lani Harris layup on USF's next possession eventually slowed the Cougar momentum, but Saint Xavier would get the difference back to four points (60-56) with a layup of their own with 2:43 to play in the contest.

After two free throws from Harrison, Saint Xavier looked to cut their deficit in half with a long-range attempt.  The Cougars came down with the offensive rebound after the unsuccessful try, but Mia Kennelly would come through with a big defensive steal with 1:29 remaining, forcing the Cougars to allow more time to come off the clock.  SXU would later connect for two free throws to bring the score to 62-58, but a shot clock violation from the Saints would give the Cougars the ball back with 20 seconds on the clock.  A missed three-pointer resulted in SXU needing to resort to fouls in the game's remaining seconds, but after needing to commit four more fouls to put the Saints at the line, the remaining time ran off the clock allowing the Saints to hold on and seal the four-point win.

Harris led the way for USF with a game-high 19 points, shooting 6-for-21 from the field.  Harrison provided 14 points and pulled down six boards, while Harris recorded a team-best nine rebounds.  Symone Harrell also chipped in 13 points to USF's total with the help of three treys.  For the game, St. Francis shot 35.6 percent from the field (21-of-59) and 30 percent from behind the arc (6-of-20).

Brooklynn Johnson poured in a team-high 17 points for Saint Xavier, which fell to 8-4 overall and 5-1 in CCAC action on the season.  The Cougars committed 10 turnovers compared to USF's seven and shot 37.1 percent from the field (23-of-62) and 4-for-4 from the charity stripe.

Up Next
The Saints, who are currently ranked No. 17 in the latest NAIA Coaches' Poll, are back in action on Wednesday, Dec. 17 when they stay in town to host Clarke University (Iowa) in a non-conference matchup at 5 pm.

You can keep up with everything happening around USF Athletics on X @USFSaints.