UTICA, N.Y. – The Elmira College women's basketball team concluded its regular season on Saturday afternoon against Utica University. The Soaring Eagles could not find their offensive footing in the game, dropping the contest by a final score of 45-36.

Nevaeh Winston '25 recorded a double-double, scoring a team-leading 17 points with ten rebounds during the game.

JUST THE BASICS:
SCORE: Elmira 36, Utica 45
LOCATION: Utica, New York | Clark Athletic Center
TEAM RECORDS: Elmira (11-12, 6-10 E8), Utica (10-15, 7-9 E8)

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• The Pioneers started the game by scoring four unanswered points before Winston gave Elmira the lead with six straight points. The two teams traded leads after EC's 6-0 run, with Winston scoring again for the Soaring Eagles. A D'Asia Jones '25 jump shot gave Elmira a 10-8 lead with 1:14 left in the opening quarter. Mia Welty '26 and Taylor Jung '25 joined the scoring for the Purple & Gold to end the quarter, with Jung hitting a buzzer-beating three-pointer to give Elmira a 15-12 lead.
• Winston started the scoring in the second, knocking down a layup, which brought Elmira's lead to five. After the Pioneers responded with a basket, Anna Ward '25 sank a layup for the Soaring Eagles 1:39 into the quarter. That would be the last points Elmira scored until 1:20 left in the half when Winston converted a three-point play, putting EC up 22-15. The Pioneers got two more points before the break, and Elmira took a five-point advantage into the third quarter.
• Utica scored the first four points of the third, bringing Elmira's lead down to one. The Soaring Eagles got a response from Laura Bogota '25 at 3:32 into the quarter, hitting a jump shot. However, the Pioneers put together a 7-1 run to take a 28-25 lead with 3:26 left in the third. Bogota and Winston scored for the Soaring Eagles to end the quarter but entered the final ten minutes of action trailing 33-29. 
• A Winston layup brought EC to within two points of the Pioneers, but Utica scored the following seven points without an Elmira response, taking a 39-31 lead with 3:34 remaining. Jones broke the streak with a jump shot, but Utica responded by scoring six more unanswered points. Kelsey Stewart '26 knocked down a shot from distance '26 with 15 seconds left in the game, but it was too little too late for Elmira, who fell by a final of 45-36.
• Elmira made the most of its second chances, scoring 11 second-chance points to just two for Utica.

UP NEXT:
As the sixth seed in the Empire 8 Tournament, the Soaring Eagles will travel to Houghton University on Tuesday, February 20, where they will face off against the Highlanders in the Empire 8 Tournament quarterfinals.