ST. LOUIS, Mo. - In a highly contested University Athletic Association battle between the No. 25 Washington University in St. Louis women's basketball team and the No. 6 Emory University Eagles, Emory eked out a three-point, 76-73, victory, Friday, January 12. The Bears got within one late in the fourth quarter, but a missed WashU shot and two free throws by Emory sealed the contest.
With the loss, WashU's five-game winning streak was snapped and the Bears now own a record of 8-5 (1-1 UAA). With the win, Emory pushed its win streak to a dozen and sits at an impressive 12-1 (2-0 UAA) clip.
Three Bears reached double-digit point totals. Senior
Jessica Brooks led WashU with a near double-double performance. Brooks finished the game with 18-points and nine rebounds. Brooks shot 7-for-16 from the field, which included a 2-for-4 effort from long range.
Junior
Brenna Loftus turned in a career-high 15 points. Loftus added seven boards and went 6-for-7 from the field.
First-year
Catherine Goodwin secured 14-points and seven rebounds. Goodwin added a team-high five helpers.
The Bears converted on 27-of-67 shots attempts (40.3%), 15-of-20 on free throws (75%), and 4-of-19 from beyond the arc (21.1%).
WashU held the 12-point, 46-32, points in the paint advantage. Emory edged the Bears in points off turnovers, 15-12. The Eagles drilled seven threes, compared to WashU's four.
In the opening quarter, Emory recorded the first four points to take the early 4-0 lead with 8:07 remaining. Goodwin got the Bears on the board with a jumper in the paint to trim the deficit to a pair, 4-2. WashU took its first lead of the contest, 11-10, on a first-year
Sidney Rogers jumper with 5:41 left in the first.
However, Emory went on a 12-point run late in the first to grab the nine point, 22-13, advantage. A Harris layup ended the run with 1:45 left in the opening period. Brooks, with 49 seconds left, connected on a three to trim WashU's deficit to six, 26-20, after the first 10 minutes of action.
After the pause in action, the Eagles opened up a 13-point, 35-22, cushion with 7:10 left until half. The Bears then went on a five-point run to trim the deficit to eight, 35-27.
Emory held at least a six-point lead for the duration of the quarter. The Eagles sunk a free throw with three seconds left to take the 45-37 lead into halftime.
With 5:10 left in the third, Emory drilled a three to widen its advantage to 16, 57-41. After a three-minute scoring drought from either side, Goodwin drained a pair of free throws with two ticks on the clock to trim EU's lead to 12, 61-49, with 10 minutes of play remaining.
Head coach
Randi Henderson dialed up a six-point run to begin the fourth quarter. The run saw Loftus grab four points and Goodwin adding two. After the run, WashU trimmed the deficit to six, 61-55.
After a Brooks defensive rebound, Harris, drawing two Emory defenders, found Loftus open on the block for an easy layup to put the score at 64-59, in favor of EU, with 7:21 left. With back-and-forth play ensuing for the middle portion of the fourth, Rogers converted two free throws as WashU trailed by four, 73-69, with 2:24 remaining.
Brooks welcomed four straight points, on a layup and two free throws, as the scoreboard stood at 74-73, Emory, with 48 ticks left.
After an Emory turnover, WashU had an opportunity to grab the lead with just 23 seconds left. Goodwin attempted a highly contested layup and the Eagles secured the ensuing rebound.
Emory then drilled two pressure packed three throws to seal the three-point, 76-73, victory.
The Bears will remain at home for the program's next contest. WashU will host University of Rochester on Sunday, January 14. Tip-off from the Field House is slated for 2 p.m. and will serve as the backend of a doubleheader with the men's basketball program.
