Elmira College (5-11, 2-5 Empire 8) vs. Alfred University (1-14, 0-6 Empire 8)
Thursday, January 21, 2016 | 8:00 P.M. | Speidel Gymnasium – Elmira, NY
Live Coverage | | Twitter: @ECSoaringEagles | Game Notes

Elmira, NY -- The Elmira College women's basketball team returns to Speidel Gymnasium looking to win consecutive games for the first time this season when the Soaring Eagles host Alfred University on Thursday, January 21st, at 8:00 p.m.

Last Time Out
Another outstanding fourth-quarter effort allowed the Soaring Eagles to fly past the Highlanders of Houghton College by a final of 67-56 on Tuesday. Houghton raced out of the locker room after halftime and used an 8-0 run to pull ahead by 10, 36-26. EC began chipping away at the lead in the third and outscored the Highlanders 25-8 in the final period. Emily Green '18 scored 10 of her career-high 18 points and recorded a pair of steals in the fourth quarter. Danielle Cleary '18 scored 16 points and Jessica Brooks '16 added 12 points and seven rebounds. Meghan Loya '16 paced all players with 11 boards.

Attacking the Glass
In the win over the Highlanders, Elmira took control of the boards and finished the game with a plus-14 advantage in rebounds (43-to-29). The margin is the best since the Soaring Eagles out-rebounded Pennsylvania College of Technology 60-to-27 on December 3, 2015. What makes the effort even more impressive is that it came against the conference's leader in rebounds; Houghton entered Tuesday's contest with an E8-leading 43.8 boards per game. In addition, 6-foot-2 senior forward Maisie Pipher – a National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA) All-American with 10.6 rebounds per game a year ago – was the only player in the league averaging a double-double. However, Pipher was held without a board at halftime and had only one through the first three quarters.

Getting Offensive
Elmira's offense was firing on all cylinders in the victory over Houghton. The Soaring Eagles shot a season-high 47.2 (25-for-53) percent and EC's 25 made field goals are the second-most the Purple and Gold have registered in a game this season. From beyond the arc, EC finished 5-for-13 (38.5 percent); the five made treys are the most for Elmira in a game since going 5-for-18 against Clarkson University on December 1, 2015. In the fourth quarter alone, the hot-handed Soaring Eagles shot 8-for-12 (75.0 percent) from the floor to spark the come-from-behind victory against Houghton.

Going Green
Green's performance against the Highlanders was one of the brightest of her young EC career, as she led the Soaring Eagles to victory in the fourth quarter. The sophomore transfer finished Tuesday's game 7-for-11 from the field and 3-for-6 from three-point range. Her 18 points and seven field goals are both career highs, while her trio of treys tied her season best. Elmira will want to keep Green heavily involved in the offense moving forward, as the Soaring Eagles improved to 3-1 in games when she scores double figures.

Series History
Since the start of the 2001-02 season, Elmira is 18-9 versus the Saxons of Alfred University. The Soaring Eagles have swept the two-game series in each of the last three seasons, including wins of 69-62 and 78-59 last season. In the season finale on February 21, 2015, Cleary established a new program record by scoring 37 points against the Saxons. In fact, Cleary and her sister, Harley Cleary, a senior for Alfred last season, combined to score 60 of the game's 137 points.

Scouting Alfred
Alfred finished the 2014-15 season with a 6-19 record, and this year's edition of the Saxons haven't found much success either. Alfred enters Thursday's matchup with a 1-14 record and a 0-6 league mark. The Saxons rank last in the E8 in several categories, including both scoring offense (53.5 points per game) and scoring defense (75.1 points allowed per game). Despite the record, the Saxons have plenty of talent to watch out for. Junior Amanda Off is third in the E8 in scoring with 17.1 points per game, sixth in rebounding with 8.1 boards per contest, and third in field-goal percentage at 46.4 percent. Three-point threat McKaylee Croll, a sophomore, is 31-for-96 from beyond with arc with an average of 13.9 points per game.

Up Next
Elmira College returns home on Wednesday, January 27th, to host Ithaca College at Speidel Gymnasium. The Empire 8 Conference matchup is scheduled to tip off at 8:00 p.m.