SMITHFIELD, R.I. – A truly balanced effort from the Bryant University women's basketball team held off Saint Francis U., 73-71, Monday night in Loretto, Pa.

A pair of clutch free throws from junior forward Breanna Rucker (Cincinnati, Ohio) sealed the victory for the Bulldogs (15-6, 8-2 Northeast Conference) in a back-and-forth battle with the Red Flash (3-18, 2-8 NEC) that featured 13 ties and 14 lead changes.

Senior point guard Jenniqua Bailey (Bloomfield, Conn.) led the balanced Bulldog attack with 17 points, four rebounds, and three assists, while Rucker posted her 17th double-double of the season with 14 points and 12 boards. Sophomore center Morgan Olander (Mansfield, Conn.) registered a double dip for the second-straight contest for the first time in her career finishing with 11 points and a game-high 13 boards.

Freshman guard Ivory Bailey (Wyomissing, Pa.) rounded out the Bryant double figure scorers with 10 points to go along with four boards and a game-high four steals, and junior guard Tiersa Winder (Baltimore, Md.) chipped in eight points.

The Bryant bench came up huge Monday night led by seniors Leigha Tacey (Foxboro, Mass.) and Melissa Corraro (Shelton, Conn.), who finished with a combined nine points. Tacey also ripped down a career-best eight boards in just 13 minutes of action and junior center Maureen Leahy (Springfield, Pa.) added four points and two boards off the bench.

SFU's Alexa Hayward led all scorers with 30 points on 10-of-26 shooting from the field to go along with five rebounds, four assists and four steals, while Aisha Brock added 14 points in 31 minutes of action.

The highly contested first half that saw the lead see-saw between the two teams resulted in a 30-28 halftime edge for Saint Francis. The back-and-forth play continued through the first 10 minutes of the second half until a 13-6 Bryant run granted the visitors a 61-54 edge with just under five minutes to play.

The lead grew to as large as eight points on two separate occasions through the two and a half minute mark giving the Black and Gold the 67-59 lead with 2:00 minutes to play. However, a 12-4 Red Flash run over the final 1:35, capped off by a Hayward 3-pointer, brought the hosts back even, 71-71, with six seconds remaining on the clock.

Inbounding underneath their own basket, the Bulldogs found Rucker in the middle of the floor, who turned and drove hard to the bucket to draw a foul with 1.6 seconds remaining in the contest. Rucker knocked down a pair from the line and the Red Flash were unable to convert on their subsequent possession, preserving the 73-71 Bryant victory.

With the win, the Black and Gold kept pace in the NEC standings as both Robert Morris and Central Connecticut picked up victories Monday evening. Looking ahead, Bryant will wrap up its three-game road trip at Sacred Heart on Saturday (1 p.m.) before returning to the Chace to host Mount St. Mary's on Monday.