SACRAMENTO, Calif. – Junior Marlee Nicolos scored a late basket and added a key pass to help St. Francis to a 74-69 victory over Davis Friday night in a Delta League contest.

“It was a really tough game,” said Nicolos. “We knew it was going to be hard game from the very beginning. We were really psyched but had to keep our adrenaline in check. We were ready for the challenge.”

Nicolos scored two fourth quarter baskets, including a buzzer-beating fall away that kept the Troubadours in the lead during a comeback effort by the Blue Devils.

“The clock was running out and I heard people counting down,” said Nicolos. “Those are the moves I practice. It is just messing around and it actually came in handy in a game so it was not time wasted.”

Nicolos then hit Jackie Koerwitz for a deep pass that ended in an intentional foul, resulting in a free throw and a possession that further thwarted the rally.

“I knew Jackie was taller than her,” said Nicolos. “It was three flags up play with Jackie and hopefully she should her get hands up and touch it.”

Nicolos has been contributing in a variety of ways, playing the point and moving down low when necessary to provide some muscle in the post or hit the boards.

“I don’t really have a set position on the team,” said Nicolos, who finished with 13 points. “Whatever Coach Vic says I will go over there and play. Whether it is point guard or in the post, I am good for whatever.”

Head Coach Vic Pitton credited his junior player with outstanding effort across the court.

“She is the only player I have ever had play in two positions – point guard and post,” said Pitton. “It is highly unusual. She is not 6-2 but she has the ability to run the team as the point guard and the physicality to be able to score in the post and rebound. She is a very versatile player for us.”

St. Francis (7-6, 2-0) looked to run away with the game early, opening the game on a 13-2 advantage only to see the Blue Devils eventually tie the game at 19. Nicolos scored seven points in the second quarter to help SF to a 35-25 half time lead. Davis was within five at 47-42 after three and kept the game close all the way to the end.

“Give them credit for hanging in there and playing all the way down to the final buzzer and they certainly gave us all we could handle,” said Pitton. “I thought our offense was extremely good tonight. Unfortunately, defensively we had some major lapses so we will need to make sure we tidy those up.”

Seniors Julia Razo and Janae Fairbrook combined for 33 points, scoring 17 and 16 points, respectively, and adding big three-pointers in the fourth.

Cristina Oliva scored a game-high 27 points for the Blue Devils and Kelsey Forrester added 16.

“We wanted to keep No. 1 (Forrester) contained,” said Pitton. “We knew we were not going to stop her. I thought we did a great job and Janae played some great defense on her. Oliva played a fantastic game and really showed me a lot. We will have to make some adjustments next time we play them.”

Nika Bagelos added eight points in the win for the Troubadours, while Aly Gage contributed six and Megan Austin chipped in five.

St. Francis plays at Elk Grove on Tuesday.

SF – Razo 17, Fairbrook 16, Nicolos 13, Koerwitz 9, Bagatelos 8, Kelly 6,  Austin 5.  D – Oliva 27, Forrester 16, Agnew 9, Malone 7, Voss 6, Aereola-Bittner 4.