DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - The Embry-Riddle women's basketball team lost a heartbreaker on Saturday afternoon, falling to Texas Woman's University 59-58 in the final game of the Bahama House Classic. The Eagles led for the entire first half and nearly all of the third quarter, and ERAU had a one-point lead with just over a minute to play, but the Pioneers pulled out the victory late.
With the win, TWU improves to 9-3 on the season, while ERAU drops to 8-3.
"I'm very, very proud of our team and the progress we have made this year," Head Coach Lisa Nuxol-Wilson said. "We competed today which shows our growth from our two games against strong out-of-state opponents earlier this season. We played great defense and rebounded the ball well, we just needed a few more shots to fall for us. I'm proud of some of the players who stepped up coming off the bench to make some big plays. We just have to keep improving and getting better at making baskets consistently."
Mercedes Jorge and Lauren Ellenberger each scored a game-high 17 points for the Blue and Gold. Jorge also tallied a game-high 12 rebounds while Ellenberger pulled down seven boards and registered a game-high five assists. Tara Fields scored nine points and added six rebounds in 18 minutes of action.
Laniere Coleman scored a bucket on the Eagles' first possession of the contest and Embry-Riddle maintained a lead throughout the rest of the first quarter, pulling out to a 10-point lead (19-9) in the final minute of the period.
The Pioneers came back in the second quarter to trim the deficit to three (24-21), but ERAU quickly regained the momentum and reestablished a 10-point lead (32-22) less than three minutes later. The Blue and Gold took a comfortable 36-28 lead into the locker room at halftime.
TWU grabbed the momentum near the halfway point of the third quarter, going on a 10-0 run to take a 46-44 lead with just under a minute to play in the period. The Pioneers would end the frame with a one-point advantage, 47-46.
Fields scored on a layup in the first minute of the fourth quarter to push ERAU ahead, 48-47, but TWU scored the next nine points to pull out to a 56-48 lead with 4:24 to play. From that point, the Blue and Gold picked it up defensively, keeping the Pioneers off the scoreboard over the next 3:21. During that stretch, ERAU scored nine points to eek out a one-point lead, 57-56, with less than two minutes to play. Kenesha Saygo made a free throw with 1:03 left to tie things up at 57, but missed her second attempt from the charity stripe. The Eagles couldn't find an open shot on the ensuing possession, turning the ball over on a shot clock violation. Texas Woman's University held for a shot late in the clock and Kara Mitchell was fouled in the act of shooting by Coleman with eight seconds to play. Mitchell made both free throws, putting TWU ahead 59-57. On the next possession, Ellenberger drove hard to the basket and was fouled with less than a second on the clock. She then missed the first of two free throws, which essentially sealed the victory for the Pioneers. After Ellenberger made the second, TWU successfully inbounded the ball, allowing the final eight-tenths of a second to tick off the clock.
The Eagles return to the court on Friday, Dec. 30, when they travel to Fort Lauderdale to face Nova Southeastern at 5:30 p.m. as part of a Sunshine State Conference doubleheader with the men's team.
