Frank Speziale Photo

NORWICH – Norwich’s Taylor Hansen finished at the rim to cut the Saints lead to 12 at the end of the third. Hansen’s basket was the end cap to the Purple Tornado 16-6 run in that stanza but Seton started the fourth with four baskets in just as many offensive possessions to put the game out of reach, downing Norwich 67-44 Wednesday night.

On the scoreboard, the Saints looked to be in complete control of the game. But watching the actual play, the Purple hung tight with Seton, containing their opponent defensively and limiting them to one-and-done trips.

But Norwich’s shots couldn’t find the bottom of the net to put points on the board. Had the shots fallen, the Tornado would have been in a back-and-forth game.

Hansen scored the first basket of the game for the Purple, finishing at the rim after splitting three defenders. Halea Eaton followed with a pull-up jumper from 14-feet and Abby Flynn rounded out the first quarter scoring with a strong finish to cut the Seton lead to eight early in the game.

Seton has four heavy-producing players on the their roster, girls that average 15-plus points per game. Norwich did an excellent job forcing others to shoot, allowing the Tornado to grab the defensive rebound to keep the game close.

In the second quarter, the Saints edged out the Purple by two-points to take the 28-16 lead into the halftime break.

Following the intermission, Seton started the quarter with a 13-2 run, extending their lead to 20 points. But a pair of made free-throws by Norwich’s Saige Benedict started the 16-6 run to answer. In that stretch, the Tornado’s Triniti Myers scored 12 of her team-high 16 points, half coming from beyond the three-point arc.

Nicole Jeffrey and Emerson Burton scored at the rim while Destiny Gladney knocked down a foul shot as all three got on the scoreboard in the fourth.

Flynn finished with 12 points, including one three in the second quarter. Hansen ended the night with six points and seven assists.