The Saints were in battle Thursday night.

Despite an injury to a key post player and a frazzled finish with its point guard on the bench, St. Francis hung on to edge Saint Louis’ Division I squad 55-54 for its first win ever over the Crusaders.

With the win, Division II St. Francis advanced to the semifinal round of the St. Francis Merv Lopes Classic before a crowd of about 400 at Manoa Valley Recreation Center gym.

Austin Ursua led the Saints with 17 points, but committed his fifth foul with about 3 minutes left, opening the door for Saint Louis’ fullcourt press. The Crusaders cut the lead to 53-51 after a layup by Kamalei Correa off a steal and pass by J.V. Caires with a little more than 1 minute remaining. Missed free throws cost the Crusaders, but St. Francis struggled without Ursua on the floor, committing a flurry of turnovers.

In the final 45 seconds, Saint Louis had open 3-point tries by Ricky Ahlo-Pinera, and a low-post shot by Caires (16 points) was rejected by St. Francis freshman Drew Wilson.

After a miss by Ahlo-Pinera, Wilson rebounded and went to the line with his team ahead 53-51 in the closing seconds. His first shot on the 1-and-1 rattled before dropping through the twine. His second shot was all net to give St. Francis a 55-51 lead.

“It’s just like practice. My first shot was a little bit too strong. I got a shooter’s bounce,” he said.

“That’s a lot of pressure for a freshman,” St. Francis coach Sol Batoon said. “He’s not ready to take those free throws.”

Correa banked in a 3-pointer with 1 second left to close the scoring.

Wilson, a 6-foot-2 freshman transfer from University High, had six points and four boards in a reserve role after joining the team just one week ago.

Keoni Tom-Millare tallied 11 points for the Saints, who shot just 36 percent (17-for-47) and were outrebounded 47-35 by the big Crusaders. They also did it without 6-foot-5 sophomore Matthew Nuumanaia, who had six points before leaving in the first half with a bruised knee.

“It’s preseason, so I’d rather just rest him. He wanted to come back in,” Batoon said. “With him out, we lost 18 points.”

Correa, one of the state’s top juniors on the football field, led Saint Louis with 21 points. He also hustled for nine rebounds. Caires had 16 points (8-for-16 from the field) and a game-high 10 boards.

The Crusaders shot 36 percent from the field (23-for-64) and 30 percent from the foul line (6-for-20). St. Francis was 14-for-21 at the line.

St. Francis opened a 22-14 lead in the second quarter, but Saint Louis chipped away by pounding the ball inside to Caires and Correa. The Crusaders led 27-24, but the Saints went on a 13-1 run with consecutive 3-point bombs by Shabir Lynton (nine points), Tom-Millare and Ursua.

“Saint Louis is a good team and they will be a threat in the ILH. They’re well-coached,” Batoon said. “Once they understand what coach (Keith) Spencer is trying to do, they’ll do very well.”

The Saints also have room to improve, particularly if Ursua can stay on the floor. He finished 5-for-9 from the field, 4-for-5 from the line, and hit three of his four tries from 3-point range. The junior is arguably one of the top point guards in the state.

“I didn’t want him reaching on that last foul,” Batoon said. “He does such a good job of taking care of the ball. He’s smart and he knows what I want. He’s been playing with us since he was in eighth grade.”

St. Francis will meet Science Hill (Tenn.) today. The Hilltoppers have won their first two games in the tourney by nearly 40 points a game, including a 73-38 win over Farrington on Wednesday.