Elmira, NY -- The Elmira College women's basketball team (5-7, 2-3 E8) defeated Empire 8 Conference foe Houghton College (3-10, 0-5 E8) 59-44 today.
Danielle Cleary '18 led the Purple and Gold with 15 points, four steals, two rebounds, two assists, and two blocks in today's win.
Jessica Brooks '16 scored 10 points, pulled down two rebounds, and dished out an assist while
Meghan Loya '16 tallied nine points, eight rebounds, an assist, a steal, and a block in today's action.
Alex Balara '15 also had a solid performance with eight rebounds, seven points, three assists, and three steals in the game.
The Soaring Eagles showed no ill-effect from last night's heartbreaking loss to Utica College, coming out with an aggressive mindset on both ends of the floor. The attacking nature of EC's game proved effective in the early goings as Elmira scored 12 of the game's first 15 points, leading 12-3 with 12:54 left in the first half. Houghton began to close the gap and made it a 19-16 game with 4:54 to play in the opening half, but five straight points from
Makinsey Carolus '18 pushed EC's advantage up to eight points and halted the Highlanders' momentum. The Soaring Eagles added to their lead in the final three-plus minutes of the half, holding an 11-point advantage at intermission.
With EC's top two scorers, Balara and Cleary, struggling from the field, Brooks stepped up with eight points, including two big three-pointers. Overall, Elmira shot just 25.7 percent from the field in the opening half, but their 11-point halftime lead was aided by 28.0 percent shooting and 13 forced Highlander turnovers.
Elmira continued to build upon their 11 point lead in the second half and after a Cleary three-pointer took a lead of 19, 54-35 with just less than five minutes of play left in regulation time. The Highlanders would finish the game with a 9-5 run, but it would not be enough as the Soaring Eagles finished the game with a score of 59-44.
The EC women will compete next on January 16th when the Purple and Gold travel to Empire 8 Conference opponent Hartwick College. The tip-off is set to begin at 6:00 p.m.
