Women's Basketball | 1/19/2024 10:21:00 PM
ELMIRA, NY – The Soaring Eagles returned to Speidel Gymnasium on Friday afternoon as it kicked off the weekend with a clash against the Pioneers of Utica University. After trailing 23-16 at the end of the first quarter, Elmira outscored Utica 33-21 in the middle two quarters, which proved to be enough to claim the 66-65 victory.
Nevaeh Winston '25 finished with a double-double, totaling 14 points and 12 rebounds during the game. Three other Soaring Eagles had double-digit scoring evenings, with Laura Bogota '25, Alleney Klunk '24 and D'Asia Jones '25 scoring 13, 12, and 11, respectively.
JUST THE BASICS:
SCORE: Elmira 66, Utica 65
LOCATION: Elmira, New York | Speidel Gymnasium
TEAM RECORDS: Elmira (7-7, 2-5 E8), Utica (4-10, 1-4 E8)
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- The game started with Utica scoring the opening five points in the game's first minute and 18 seconds. Elmira got on the board with just under two minutes played in the first thanks to a Klunk jump shot. The Pioneers went on another five-point unanswered run to bring the score to 10-2 with 5:56 remaining before a Klunk bucket from behind the arc reduced the deficit to five. The two teams traded points after that, with Bogota and Jones scoring for Elmira, making the score 15-10 with 3:48 remaining in the opening quarter. Field goals by Klunk and Victoria Rought '25 gave the Soaring Eagles momentum entering the second, but they still had work to do as they trailed 23-16.
- EC began the second quarter on a 6-2 run, with Winston, Taylor Jung '25, and Mallory Welty '26 contributing to the scoresheet, reducing the deficit to three with 3:15 played in the frame. Later in the quarter, a Bogota three-pointer tied the game at 28. After a Pioneer's three-pointer in response, Jung closed out the half with two free-throws, sending Elmira into the half trailing 31-30.
- Like it did in the first, Utica scored the first five points of the third quarter to take a 36-30 lead in the first minute of the second half. However, the Purple & Gold responded by going on an 11-2 run, with Jones scoring six points in that timeframe while going 3-3 from the floor. This run gave Elmira its first lead of the game at 41-38 with 4:17 left to play in the third. The Soaring Eagles did not relinquish the lead for the remainder of the quarter, with Welty scoring four points in the final four minutes, and EC entering the final ten minutes of action leading 49-44.
- The final quarter saw two lead changes in the final 3:12 of play. Trailing 62-58 with 2:24 left on the clock, Elmira found its stroke from the free-throw line, scoring five straight points from the line to retake the lead at 63-62. Bogota followed this run with a layup to give EC a three-point advantage in the game's final minute. A Pioneer three-pointer tied the game with ten seconds left before a foul on Klunk sent her to the line with three seconds to go. After missing her first, Klunk buried the second free throw and sealed the victory for the Purple & Gold.
UP NEXT:
The Soaring Eagles continue their weekend home stand on Saturday, January 20, at 2:00 p.m. with a contest against the Wolves of Keuka College.
ABOUT THE EMPIRE 8 CONFERENCE
The members of the Empire 8 Conference are committed first and foremost to the pursuit of academic excellence and the league is regarded as an outstanding NCAA Division III conference. The membership has distinguished itself among its peer group for its quality institutions, spirited and sportsmanlike competition, outstanding services and highly ethical policies and practices. Its commitment to serve the educational needs of its student-athletes is the hallmark of the E8. For more on the Empire 8 visit www.empire8.com.
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