Flyers women’s basketball cruises past FAMU

Graduate guard Jenna Giacone (No. 12), who led the team with 19 points, fires a shot from the top of the key during the Flyers’ 64-44 win over Florida A&M Tuesday night at UD Arena. Photo courtesy of Keegan Gupta, Flyer News.

Peter Burtnett | Sports Editor

The Dayton Flyers women’s basketball team ran out to a nine-point lead after the first quarter and never looked back Tuesday night, cruising past Florida A&M 64-44 at UD Arena.

In the first quarter, graduate guard Jenna Giacone led with six points on 3-6 shooting, and five other Flyers scored to give the hosts a 17-8 lead through the first ten minutes.

Scoring in the second quarter was led by Giacone and graduate guard Erin Whalen, who finished with a double-double. 13 points combined between the two of them was enough to outpace the Rattlers as the Flyers led 34-22 at halftime.

In the second half, Giacone and Whalen continued to lead the way, finishing with 19 and 18 points, respectively, and 18 rebounds combined. The Flyers cruised the rest of the way, shooting 72 field goals and taking advantage of second chance opportunities with 21 offensive rebounds for 15 second-chance points. Senior forward Kyla Whitehead (six points, 12 rebounds, 7 offensive) was also important to the Flyers success on the way to a 20-point win to improve to 4-2 this season.

The home game is the Flyers’ only game at UD Arena between Nov. 17 and Dec. 29, as the team now prepares for road games against Illinois State (Dec. 5) and Florida (Dec. 8), and neutral site games in the West Palm Beach Tournament against High Point (Dec. 20) and Clemson (Dec. 21). Howard on Dec. 29 will be the next home game for the Flyers, and is also the non-conference finale.

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