Feb. 7, 2010

Box Score

DAYTON, Ohio - Lauren Woods tallied a game-high 17 points, but Dayton used a balanced attack to post a 73-54 victory over Saint Louis in an Atlantic 10 Conference contest Sunday afternoon at UD Arena.

Katie Paganelli was 4-of-6 from 3-point range and scored 14 points for the Billikens (7-16, 1-7 A-10). Janisha Gearlds scored eight points and grabbed a season-high eight rebounds, including a career-best five offensive boards, while Amanda Kemezys led all players with 10 rebounds.

Kendel Ross led Dayton (18-5, 6-2 A-10) with 14 points, followed by Kristin Daugherty and De'Sarae Chambers with 10 apiece. All 13 Flyers who played scored at least one point, and all but two had at least one rebound. Dayton attempted 35 free throws (21-of-35), tying their season high, while Saint Louis was 13-of-23. The Flyers earned a 46-38 edge on the boards and outshot the Billikens 39.7 percent to 34 percent from the floor.

Dayton scored on 10 of its first 14 possessions to pull out to a 22-9 lead. Later, with the Flyers in front 27-15, the Billikens began to inch their way back into the game. Gearlds hit a runner in the lane, Paganelli drained her third 3-pointer of the half and Nicole Johnson turned an offensive rebound into a layup on three successive possessions, and suddenly SLU was within five at 27-22 with 5:53 remaining.

Johnson's bucket was the last field goal the Billikens would tally in the first half, however, as Dayton finished the period on a 13-1 spurt to take a 40-23 cushion to the locker room. SLU suffered 10 consecutive empty possessions, including missing the front end of a 1-and-1 three straight times. Meanwhile, Dayton hit 5-of-6 free throws in the final 2:08 to finish the half 12-of-20 from the stripe.

The Flyers continued to own the momentum after the break, pulling out to a 58-31 advantage by outscoring the Billikens 18-8 in the first eight minutes of the half. Saint Louis used a 16-7 spurt, during which six Billikens scored, to whittle the deficit to 65-47, but SLU could draw no closer than 18 points the rest of the way.

The Billikens host La Salle Wednesday, Feb. 10. Game time at Chaifetz Arena is 7 p.m.

Saint Louis Billikens Women's Basketball