Elmira College (6-15, 3-9 E8) vs. Houghton College (9-12, 3-9 E8)
Tuesday, February 9, 2016 | 8:00 P.M. | Speidel Gymnasium – Elmira, NY
Live Coverage | Twitter: @ECSoaringEagles | Game Notes
 
Elmira, NY -- The Elmira College women's basketball team plays in its final home game of the 2015-16 season tonight, as the Soaring Eagles welcomes Houghton College to Speidel Gymnasium for an Empire 8 showdown. Tonight's contest is scheduled for 8:00 p.m.
 
Last Time Out
Elmira suffered a pair of conference losses last weekend at the hands of Utica College and Hartwick College. The Soaring Eagles held a nine-point halftime lead against Utica, which was extended to a 12-point lead in the third quarter, but the Pioneers controlled the third by outscoring EC 23-11. Utica's big third quarter helped the Pioneers push its lead to 11 in the fourth. Elmira made a run in the final minutes of regulation, cutting the Pioneer lead to four points with just about one minute to play. However, Utica's free-throw shooting was good enough to hold onto a six-point win. Saturday's contest against Hartwick was not as close, as the Hawks' stifling defense paved the way for a double-digit win.
 
Loya Moves Up in Record Book
With 13 rebounds over the weekend, fourth-year forward Meghan Loya '16 moved into sixth-all time in program history with 565 career rebounds. Loya surpasses Erin Ruppell '11 (559) for the sixth spot. Loya can move even higher in the record book in EC's final four contests, as the Bethel, CT, native needs just 19 boards to pass Bridget Catanese '08 (583) for fifth place.
 
Defense Key Tonight
Elmira's defense could be the key to victory tonight. Elmira is 6-0 this year when holding opponents to 59 points or less, while on the other hand, EC is 0-15 when teams have scored 60 or more. Of Houghton College's 12 defeats, eight have come when the team has scored fewer than 60 points, including its three most recent losses in which the Highlanders were unable to break the 50-point threshold.
 
Series History
The Soaring Eagles hold a comfortable 6-1 advantage in the series against the Highlanders since Houghton joined the Empire 8. Since dropping the first meeting between the two programs by one point, EC has won six in a row, including a come-from-behind victory in its last meeting earlier this season. Elmira trailed by 10 points in the third quarter but the Soaring Eagles went on to outscore Houghton by 17 points in the fourth to secure a 67-56 victory.
 
Scouting Houghton
The Highlanders are coming off a dominant 21-point victory in their last outing against Utica College. The win ended a three-game losing streak and pushed Houghton's record to 9-12 on the year. Elle Reed led the charge against the Pioneers with a game-high 17 points, which was 2.7 higher than her team-leading season average of 14.3 per game. Maisie Pipher continued to be a force for the Highlanders in the post, as the 6-foot-2 forward produced her ninth double-double of the season with 15 points and a game-high 12 rebounds. Pipher's efforts on the boards have helped Houghton become the Empire 8's second-best rebounding team, averaging 42.6 boards per contest.