HARRISONBURG, VA - Outscoring their opponent 40-36 in the second half, the Gaels were unable to recover from a 12-point halftime defecit as the Iona College women's basketball team lost to Saint Francis (PA) in the Preseason WNIT by a score of 77-69.

Senior Anda Ivkovic, who led all players with 22 points, scored the first basket off the tipoff to put Iona in front 2-0 with five seconds expired.  After the next four points had the Red Flash up 6-2, Marissa Flagg knocked down a three-point field goal and Kristina Ford followed with a jumper to give Iona a one-point edge at the 16:55 mark.  It would be the last time the Gaels led in the contest, as Saint Francis followed with a 6-0 run and led by as much as 15 in the period.

Iona battled back immediately to start the second half, opening with a trifecta by Milica Paligoric and an Ivkovic layup to climb to within seven at 19:26.  Once again down by 12 midway through the half, the Maroon & Gold picked up the next four points to cut the Saint Francis lead down to eight at 60-52.  Iona had whittled the difference down to six, 67-61, with 3:39 to go in the game, but would not get any closer.

Flagg had a career-high 16 points while Tomica Bacic added 12 to round out the players in double figures.  Ivkovic also led the squad in rebounding with eight.  Ford contributed nine points, seven boards, and matched her personal best with three blocks in the contest.  The Gaels' 40.0 shooting percentage was a 12% improvement over their previous outing.

Iona hosts the Thanksgiving Classic next weekend, with matchups against Brown (Nov. 26) and Toledo (Nov. 27) at the Hynes Athletics Center.