JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - The Jacksonville women's basketball team (4-10) tipped-off conference play against perennial ASUN favorites FGCU (11-4) Thursday night in Swisher Gymnasium. The evening ended in a win for the visiting team 69-47 despite freshman Saniyah Craig recording her third double-double of the year with 11 points and 11 rebounds. 

The Dolphin Defense disrupted the high-shooting Eagles in the initial 20 minutes from beyond the arc. The Eagles managed a meager 4-for-16 performance for the half. Freshman Craig single-handedly took on FGCU in the initial five minutes, scoring the first five points for JU. With four minutes to play in the first, the Eagles were ahead by 10. Returner Jalisa Dunlap eventually joined the party, sinking a long ball to bring JU's score to eight, leaving 3:00 on the clock with a count of 12-8, in favor of the Eagles. The Dolphin leading scoring duo, Craig and Edyn Battle, connected on consecutive plays, narrowing the Eagle lead to three, 15-12, before heading into the second quarter. 

Despite the Eagles starting the second quarter with a 9-3 run in the first three minutes, the Dolphins continued to chip away at their lead. Shooting an impressive 87.5 percent from the free-throw line and displaying energetic defense, the Dolphins kept narrowing the gap. Dunlap and Craig executed a classic pick-n-roll, igniting the Dolphin offense halfway through the second. With five minutes remaining, the score read 30-18 in favor of the Eagles. Four minutes later, the Dolphins reset the count to 33-25, trailing by just eight, thanks to significant offensive plays from Jada Duckett and Battle. 

The Eagles opened the second half with a quick six points, creating a 14-point hole for JU. Battle and Bre'Yanna Frazier responded with four quick points, but the Eagles answered with another 5-0 run, bringing the score to 48-30 with two minutes left in the third. JU continued to play tough on defense, and their offense benefited. Two huge three-pointers from Dunlap and Frazier rewrote the score to 50-36 before the horn. 

To start the 4th quarter, Isamery Telleria found some daylight as she sank a three to help narrow the Eagle lead. FGCU then went on a 16-8 run, with three of the next eight points coming from another Telleria three. Ultimately, after trade-off of buckets, the final score 69-47 settled in for the Dolphins. 

UP NEXT 

The Dolphins are right back in action Saturday, January 6 to take on Stetson in Swisher Gymnasium. The game is set for 2:00 p.m. and will be live streamed on ESPN+. 

NOTEABLE NUMBERS 

• Saniyah Craig finished with 11 points and 11 rebounds 

• Jalisa Dunlap recorded 10 points for the night while shooting 4-for-4 from the free-throw line 

• Dolphins shot 12-16 from the charity strip (75-percent) 

• JU recorded six blocks on the night, a season high for the green and white