FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – The Saint Leo women's basketball team fell to Sunshine State Conference opponent Nova Southeastern, Saturday afternoon, 79-68.

With the loss, the Green & Gold fall to 9-8 overall and 2-8 in the Sunshine State Conference.

The Lions got off to a great start with a large part of the first quarter effort coming off Kiki McIntyre who started off with 10 points while shooting 4-4 from the field in the first quarter. With her 10 points also being matched by the Sharks' Madison Frederick, the rest of the Lions team backed up McIntyre to give the Lions the early lead.

A back-and-forth game between the two teams led to a Lions 36-33 lead at half. 26 of the Lions' first half points came inside the paint.

The second half was much of the same from a game standpoint as both teams were back and forth, but the Sharks were able to pull away late in the fourth quarter.

Despite an incredible effort from the Lions, the Sharks proved to be too strong in the clutch.

Amanda Ulrich finished as the team's top scorer with 24 points on 8-20 shooting.

The game finished with Sharks topping the Lions 79-68.

The Lions will be in action again against Rollins on January 18^th back on home court at the Marion Bowman Activities Center scheduled for 5pm.

For the latest news, updates, and information on Saint Leo Women's Basketball, visit SaintLeoLions.com. Fans can also stay up-to-date on the latest Lions news by following Saint Leo Athletics on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube.