ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – The Embry-Riddle women's basketball team mounted a fierce rally late in the game, but in the end, the Eagles were unable to overtake Eckerd who improved to 11-9 with a 61-50 win.
 
The Tritons controlled the offense for the majority of the game, leading by as many as 19 points, but the Eagles outscored the home team 27-16 in the last 14:30 minutes of play before falling to 6-15 on the year with the loss.

"Consistency is still a challenge for us unfortunately," ERAU Head Coach Lisa Nuxol-Wilson commented after the game. "We did so many good things tonight and defensively, we really did a great job overall. Our bench came in tonight and really stepped up, and that was good to see. I'm proud of how hard the girls played and fought to make it a game. We just  have to a better job of executing down the stretch."
 
Eckerd took an early 9-0 lead to start the contest thanks, in part, to the Eagles' difficulty taking care of the ball. Mercedes Jorge got ERAU's first points of the game at the 5:09 mark, but the Eagles managed only five made baskets in the frame as Eckerd extended its advantage to 21-10.
 
The Eagles managed to limit the Tritons to just 25 percent shooting from the field in the second quarter, but eight Eagle miscues helped Eckerd maintain the 11-point (31-20) lead at the half.
 
The Tritons appeared poised to run away with the game as they increased their lead to 43-24 at the 5:11 mark in the third quarter. With 4:44 left, Tara Fields finished a pass from Lauren Ellenberger and that sparked a 12-6 Eagle run that made it a 49-36 game heading into the fourth.
 
Both teams were scoreless through the first two minutes of the final frame until Jorge made a layup followed by a Rachel Briere jumper that cut the Triton lead to the nine (49-40) points.
 
The Tritons managed to build the lead back up to 14 on a pair of free throws and a three-pointer with 6:39 left to play, but the Blue and Gold went on a 9-0 run over the next three minutes to pull within five (54-49) with 3:24 left to play.
 
After an Eckerd score, Taylor Cyphers scored on a layup to make it a five-point game again. Those would be the Eagles' final points of the evening as the Tritons, who were 17-21 from the charity stripe, compared to just 4-for-5 by the Eagles, connected on four of their last six free throws to take the win.
 
Jorge was the game's high scorer, recording her team-high fourth double-double of the season with 14 points and 13 rebounds. Cyphers added eight point, three boards and a season-high five blocks in the Eagle effort.
 
The Tritons had three players scoring in double digits, led by 11 points from Miriam Hannoun, and 10 points each from Anna Deegan and Kacie Juday.
 
The Eagles will be back in the ICI Center at 5 p.m. on Saturday when they host Saint Leo.