DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (Women's Basketball) - Florida Tech fought hard but in the end could not slow down the juggernaut that was the No. 1 seed, Eckerd. The final score for the Sunshine State Conference Championship game was 77-56.
In their second consecutive appearance in the league championship game, the team came in with a calm demeanor even as the underdog to Eckerd. This role, however, was something FIT had been used to this week as the No. 6 seed Panthers took down the No. 2 and 3 seeds to reach the finals.
Tereza Sedlakova led the Crimson and Gray players with 15 points, while Delise Williams rounded out the double-digit scorers with 14 points.
Markeema Crawford and Sedlakova both fought hard on the block and as a result recorded a team-high eight boards on the game.
Gudlaug Juliusdottir dished out three dimes in the contest to lead the team. Defensively, senior
Julie McCarthy erased two of the Tritons shots, while Williams forced four turnovers throughout the course of the game.
Florida Tech made 38.2 percent from the field and 14.3 percent from long range, while allowing EC to shoot 50.9 percent and 44.8 from beyond the arc. The Tritons outscored FIT 39-3 from three, which ultimately was the team's downfall. Nevertheless, Florida Tech did have a commanding 12 points in the paint advantage and managed to outrebound Eckerd 36-30.
The Panthers started off the game with the hot hand as they led at the end of the first quarter, 18-16, thanks to a
Michaela Gelbaugh buzzer beater. However, the Tritons came out firing in the second quarter outpacing FIT 24-8 to give them a 14-point lead heading into the locker room.
Despite the adversity experienced in the second quarter, it did not seem to faze the team. Coming out to start the second half strong FIT cut the double-digit halftime lead to seven late in the third. In the end, though this was not enough as EC caught fire again from beyond the arc in the fourth quarter and ran away with the SSC crown.
Following the conclusion of the contest, FIT's McCarthy and Williams were named to the SSC All-Tournament Team after their impressive performances over the three games.
The loss most likely puts an end to the Panthers 2016-17 season. They will look to regroup over the offseason and get ready for next year.
