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LORETTO, Pa. (Dec. 1, 2010) – All five Saint Francis starters scored in double figures led by a career-best 29 by senior Samantha Leach (Mount Sterling, Ohio/Miami Trace) (Mount Sterling, Ohio/Miami Trace) to lead the Red Flash women's basketball team past Pittsburgh, 85-71, in front of a raucous crowd of 1,237 at DeGol Arena on Wednesday night.

SFU's 14-point win represented the largest margin of victory by either team in the series since the Red Flash trounced Pitt, 81-51, during the 1995-96 campaign. The Flash improved to 3-4 on the season while Pittsburgh dropped to 3-3.

"I really can't say enough about the kids' performance tonight," said Red Flash coach Susan Robinson Fruchtl, who nailed down one of the signature wins of her four seasons in Loretto. "We did what we had to do to beat a team like Pitt. You've got to shoot really well and we did that."

The Red Flash drew first blood on a three by Allison Daly (Harrisburg, Pa./Trinity) (Harrisburg, Pa./Trinity) and, despite starting out as the back-and-fourth battle many fans expected, it was apparent that Saint Francis' fortunes would be tied to their ability to hit from long-range.

And hit, they did.

Leach and Daly combined to score 18 of Saint Francis' first 20 points – all of which came via the long ball. Pittsburgh hung tough for most of the first half, however, at times leading by as many as seven points. The Flash entered the intermission clinging to a two-point lead.

For the second game in a row, Saint Francis exploded out of the gates in the second half, quickly expanding their advantage to 11 points on a Shené Fleming (Dayton, Ohio/Chaminade-Julienne) layup just over two minutes into the period.

Though the Panthers were able to cut their deficit to three two times during the half, the Flash responded both times with a timely trey by Leach – who scored 24 points in the half – and some tough work underneath by the Red & White.

"I went after them about being tougher," said Robinson Fruchtl. "We just went out and played with no fear."

Pittsburgh held a 16-to-14 edge on the boards in the first half, but the Flash turned the tables in the second, grabbing 20 boards to the Panthers' 15.

"We finally outrebounded a team and that's just a tremendous effort by our kids," said Robinson Fruchtl. "I really just can't say enough about what they did tonight. We've been waiting for four years to beat a team like Pitt."

Saint Francis shot 53.8 percent on the night – by far a season best – and, in addition to Leach's game-high, were led on offense by Daly with 20, Fleming and Brittany Lilley (Severna Park, Md./Severna Park) (Severna Park, Md./Severna Park) with 12 and Allison Smith (Lebanon, Pa./Cedar Crest) (Lebanon, Pa./Cedar Crest) with 10 points.

Leach hit five threes on the night, while Daly converted six.

Shayla Scott and Taneisha Harrison led Pitt with 14 points apiece.

The Red Flash were in a position to knock-off then 24th-ranked Pittsburgh a season ago, before eventually falling, 75-70, giving the win a special meaning for some players.

"Last year we lost to them by five, so this year we kind of pinpointed this game as a big one, especially with it being at home," said Leach. "We were definitely excited and we all came ready to play."

"To beat a Big East team on your home floor – that's a pretty big deal."

For Daly, the waning moments of the game were almost surreal: " I think in the last couple of seconds, when that clock was ticking down... It was kind of a moment that just wasn't setting in yet."

"To beat a program that demands excellence is kind of a feeling you can't describe."

Now the Flash must regroup to take on their next foe this weekend at DeGol Arena.

"I told our team it's early in the season," said Robinson Fruchtl. "We need to celebrate this, enjoy it through tomorrow and then its over. We have Kent State on Saturday and that's our focus."

Tipoff on Saturday is slated for 2 p.m.