Box Score
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – Senior forward
Krystal Charles scored 17 points with nine rebounds while freshman guard
Annie Armstrong added 13, but the Eckerd College women's basketball program fell victim to the regular-season sweep against Florida Tech on Saturday, 63-52.
The Panthers (16-4, 8-2 SSC) grabbed a two-game lead at the top of the Sunshine State Conference standings following an overtime loss for No. 20 Nova Southeastern University today against Florida Southern College.
Florida Tech was led by four players finishing in double figures, including 13 from Ida Gustafsson, 12 from Jami Chappell and Peggy Smith, and 11 more from Rosie Hynes.
After trailing by 11 points midway through the second half, the Tritons (9-10, 5-6 SSC) battled back in contention down by just three with six minutes left to play.
With FIT holding a 48-45 lead at that juncture, the Panthers went on a 15-3 run to go by up by 15 with a minute and change left to play.
After shooting a crisp 50 percent from the field in the first half, the Tritons hit just 8-of-24 attempts in the final period. EC still managed to outshoot the Panthers percentage wise, but were on the wrong end of a 16-to-8 turnover differential.
EC was able to avoid a slow start that plagued the squad in the previous meeting in Melbourne.
The Tritons caught the Panthers off guard to begin the game, opening on a 7-0 run and took a 28-28 tie into halftime.
Charles made a layup just one minute into the second half for the game's fourth tie, but FIT gained separation and built its first double-digit lead with 12:01 remaining.
Charles crossed over the 750-point plateau in her career with an 8-for-13 effort from the field. After shooting a blistering 9-of-10 at Nova Southeastern on Wednesday, she just one rebound shy of another double-double.
Florida Tech outscored Eckerd in the second half, 63-52.
With the defeat, EC also fell back into a tie for fifth in the conference standings with Saint Leo University.
The Tritons will look to get back on the winning track next Wednesday heading to the Martinez Center to face the University of Tampa at 5:30 p.m.
