BRUNSWICK, Ga. – The Embry-Riddle women's basketball team closed out its two-game road trip with a 70-65 victory over the College of Coastal Georgia on Saturday. The Eagles notched their second straight road win against an NAIA Division I foe, and improved their overall record to 4-3 on the year.
Taylor Cyphers posted her first double-double of the season with 14 points and a game-high 16 rebounds, which also matched her career-high. Merecedes Jorge also had 14 points on the afternoon to go with nine boards and three assists.
Sabrina Whiting added 13 points, four rebounds and four steals, while Ashley McWIlliams contributed 10 points five rebounds and four assists in the win.
Whiting got the Eagles' offense going early in the game as she was responsible for eight of ERAU's first 10 points. The Mariners scored the first bucket of the game, but back-to-back three-pointers by Whiting quickly put the Eagles out in front 6-4.
The Blue and Gold led by six (16-10) with 13:06 left in the first half, but the Mariners connected on three straight shots to pull level with the Eagles at 16-16 with 12:04 left in the half. Both teams traded baskets over the next two minutes to keep the score tied, but a Cyphers layup with 9:53 left in the half keyed a 13-2 run that gave ERAU an 11-point (31-20) lead.
The Mariners struggled shooting from the field in the first half, managing just 27.8 percent (10-of-36) of their attempts. The Eagles, led by Cyphers' 10 first-half rebounds, bested the Mariners 28-23 on the defensive boards, limiting the home team to just two second-chance points. On the other side of the ball, the Eagles connected 40 percent (12-of-30) of their field goal attempts and took a nine-point (33-24) lead into the locker room at the break.
The Eagles continued to have the better of the offense to start the second half and built the lead to 13 points (44-31) with 15:08 remaining in the game, but a pair of Olivia Melvin baskets and two free throws by Katie Harris helped narrow the gap to six points (46-40) with 12:02 left to play. The Eagles were able to halt the Mariner rally and build the lead back up to 10 points, but CCG continued battle and pulled within four points (60-56) at the 6:23 mark.
The Eagles responded to the Coastal Georgia surge with six unanswered points to build the lead back up to 10 and the trend of the Eagles going up by 10 and the Mariners cutting into the lead continued through out the remainder of the game. However, CCG was not able to break the four-point barrier and Whiting, who started off the scoring for the Eagles, capped the win, recording the game's final point from the charity stripe.
The Mariners' (5-6) Olivia Melvin led all scorers with 22 points, while Kiersten Green contributed 18 points and 10 rebounds.
The Eagles will play their final game before the Christmas break at 10:45 a.m. on Monday when they host Sterling at the ICI Center. Monday's contest has been designated Education Day and the ERAU Athletics Department will welcome approximately 1,000 fifth graders to campus for the game.
