WILKES BARRE, Pa. (February 17, 2018) – The FDU women's basketball team wrapped up the No. 1 seed in next week's Middle Atlantic Conference Freedom Championship with a 75-62 win over King's Saturday.

The Devils will host No. 4 seed Misericordia with a date and time to be determined. The Cougars earned the No. 4 seed with a win over Manhattanville Saturday.

"Champions win on the road, and we did that today," said Head Coach Marc Mitchell.

With the team trailing 4-2, sophomore Taiah Thornton started an 8-0 run with a trey. The following possession,
Thornton intercepted a pass and went coast-to-coast for the layup. The Monarchs countered with five straight of their own, cutting the Devils lead down to just one. The teams traded layups under the final minute to give the hosts a one-point lead going into the second quarter.

The Devils stormed out of the gates in the second quarter, using an 8-2 spurt to vanquish the first quarter deficit. After King's trimmed the lead to three, sophomore Cayla Staggers tallied four straight markers as FDU closed the half on a 13-2 rally, spanning the final 5:19 of the half. The Devils limited King's to just one field goal over the final 5:42 of the period.

After shooting 36% in the first, the Devils warmed up in the second, shooting 50% (9-of-18). The team also forced 13 first half turnovers, while only committing three of their own.

The Monarchs dug into the Devils lead in the third quarter, using an 11-0 run to get within two. The Devils went over six minutes without scoring, allowing the hosts to rally behind the crowd and claw back in. King's completed the comeback, tying the game at 46. Staggers ended the run with a jumper in the paint and converted the free throw to put the Devils back up three heading into the fourth.

FDU pulled in front by six thanks to a three-point play from sophomore Gabrielle Harris, but the lead was cut in half with a trey from Kings' Mackenzie Yori. Thornton found classmate Kendrea Williams streaking towards the basket for an easy fast break layup to reestablish the six point lead. Thornton nailed a three with 3:56 left, making it an eight-point lead. Key free throws from Harris and junior Raven Dowling hit key free throws down the stretch to put the game away.

Smith notched a double-double of 14 points and 13 rebounds, while Thornton had 15 points and eight boards. Harris, Williams and Dowling posted 10 or more points, with Dowling leading the way with four helpers.