ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – The Embry-Riddle women's basketball team mounted a strong second-half rally, but the Eagles were unable to overcome a tough first quarter against Eckerd, falling to the Tritons 64-54 on the road on Wednesday. The 24^th-ranked Tritons improved to 10-1 overall and 6-3 in the Sunshine State Conference, while the Eagles fall to 5-8 overall and 3-5 in league play.
 
In a tale of two halves, the Eagles were 38.5 percent (20-of-52) from the field for the game, with just one field goal in the first quarter and a 50 percent (8-of-16) shooting clip in the fourth. The Eagles also had an uncharacteristic night at the free throw line, making just 50 percent (9-of-18) of their free throw opportunities, compared to a 70.5 percent average on the year.
 
The Eagles were back on their heels early on in Wednesday's game as a 15-0 Eckerd run helped the Tritons open a 23-7 advantage at the end of the first quarter. The lead swelled to 23 points (30-7) early in the second quarter, but the Eagles began to settle into a rhythm offensively and outscored the Tritons 13-7 in the last 6:46 of the frame to make it a 17-point game (37-20) at the half.
 
The Eagle defense smothered the Eckerd offense in the second half, forcing 11 Triton turnovers and holding the home team to just eight made field goals in the last 20 minutes of play.
 
On the other side of the ball, the Eagles steadily chipped away at the lead, beginning with Eva Zaragoza's layup at the 6:16 minute mark in the third. That basket keyed a 15-5 Eagle run and at the end of a third quarter that saw the Eagles outscore the Tritons 17-13, the Triton lead was trimmed to 13 (50-37).
 
The Eagle defense continued to disrupt the Eckerd offense at the start of the fourth period. ERAU forced two turnovers and a miss from long range in the first 1:30, and a three-pointer by Shelby Bischoff, along with baskets from Madyson Jean-Louis and Keturah Balabyekkkubo made it a six-point game (50-44) with 8:31 remaining.
 
The offense went quiet for both teams over the next minute and a half of play. Nikki Tucker broke the scoring drought to cut the lead to four (50-46) and it was still a four-point (52-48) game with 3:40 left to play.
 
Another Eckerd miscue led to a Liz Behan layup at the 3:08 that pulled ERAU within two (50-48). The Tritons had just three made field goals in the final period, but two of those were clutch baskets in the form of three pointers in the last 2:46. The Eagles got a pair of scores late, but Eckerd made all six of their fourth-quarter free throws in the last 17 seconds to pull away at the end.
 
Nikki Tucker had solid all-around game with a team-high 16 points to go with six boards, three assists and three steals. Bischoff came off the bench to match Balabyekkubo's 10-point output, while Behan added nine points.
 
Sofia Persson paced the Tritons with 19 points and 10 rebounds.
 
The Eagles will be at the ICI Center on Saturday to host Palm Beach Atlantic in a 4 p.m. contest.
 
The 2022 Embry-Riddle women's basketball season is presented by Daytona Mitsubishi.