The women's basketball team played two strong games this past weekend at the University of Rhode Island Tournament, falling just short of a win against West Virginia Friday and defeating Brown University Saturday.
The Eagles played strong against the No. 16 West Virginia Mountaineers. Senior guard Liz Hayes led all scorers with a season-high 29 points for the Eagles, while junior guard Talicia Jackson added 13 points. The Eagles hung with the Mountaineers for most of the first half, keeping the score fairly close. It wasn't until a 15-1 run in the last 9 minutes of the first half that AU endured a 10-point halftime deficit.
Nevertheless, the Eagles came out strong in the second half, pulling to within two points with just under 6 minutes remaining. Throughout the game, AU relied on outside shooting, making nine three-point shots. Six of these three-pointers came from Hayes.
Unfortunately, West Virginia never relinquished the lead. The Eagles missed their final four shots from the court, allowing the Mountaineers to prevail 65-61.
The Eagles bounced back Saturday afternoon in the consolation game of the tournament, beating the Brown University Bears 57-46. The Eagles led almost the entire game and continued their hot shooting, making six of 13 three-point-shots.
The Eagles dominated the boards, out-rebounding the Bears 54-34, including 18 offensive rebounds. Senior forward Maggie Smith-Davidson had a game high of 10 rebounds, while senior forward Stephanie N'Garsanet and junior guard Pam Stanfield each contributed nine rebounds. The Eagles also had 15 assists to Brown's six. Hayes had a game-high six assists while committing only one turnover.
After going into halftime with a modest 30-22 lead, the Eagles blew the game open in the beginning of the second half with a 14-2 run. Jackson led all scorers with 13 points while Hayes contributed 12.
The win over Brown improved the Eagles' record to 3-3. Their next game is Saturday at home against Western Michigan at 7 p.m.
