Fanny Hakanson’s put-back of November Morton’s last-second shot gave the Florida Tech Panthers a 75-73 win over Spring Hill on Saturday at the Tampa Crossover.
Morton led the Panthers with 20 points, Aniquah Swan had 17 points and eight rebounds, and Hakanson had 12 points and eight assists. She was 5-for-5 from the free-throw line.
The two teams went back-and-forth for much of the first quarter before Spring Hill went on an 8-0 run to lead 19-12. Florida Tech fought back in the last nine seconds, scoring the last five points, including a three by Severine Uggen at the buzzer.
The Badgers (0-2) led for much of the second quarter before Hakanson converted a three-point play with 1:57 to go in the half, tying it at 26. She followed that up with a steal, and hit two more free-throws, giving the Panthers a 28-26 lead. Spring Hill would tie it at 28 as the two teams headed to halftime.
Amanda Allen and Hakanson had three-pointers early in the third, tying the game at 34. The Badgers led 49-41 with 2:27 left before the Panthers battled back to cut the lead to six, 49-43 at the end of the third.
The Badgers jumped out to a 63-49 lead in the first 2 ½ minutes, before Fanny Paulin hit a three. Morton would score eight straight points with back-to-back threes and two free throws, cutting the SHC lead to 66-60 with 4:49 to go.
After a layup by Spring Hill, Morton drilled another triple, making it 68-63 with three minutes left. A layup by Swan and another three by Paulin trimmed the SHC lead with 2:04 left. Hakanson’s free-throws drew the Panthers to within one, 71-70, before Paulin’s three-ball gave Florida Tech a 73-71 lead with 52 seconds left.
The Badgers hit two free throws with 10 seconds left, tying the game at 73 before Florida Tech took a timeout. Morton got inside and laid it up, but the shot was missed and fell into Hakanson’s hands. She got the ball back up before the buzzer and it dropped in, giving the Panthers their first win and evening their record at 1-1.
For more info: Florida Tech @ Spring Hill College Box Score
Florida Tech will open their home season Friday, hosting the Florida Tech Classic. The Panthers will host Puerto Rico – Bayamon on Friday at 2:00 p.m. and Clayton State University out of the Peach Belt Conference on Saturday at noon.