No. 9 Tritons Outlast Eagles

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Three Tritons notched double-digit figures as the No. 9 Eckerd women's basketball team outlasted Embry-Riddle in a tight 66-62 victory at the McArthur Center Wednesday night.

A back-and-forth start to the game saw the Tritons and Eagles tied twice before Eckerd began to pull away. Cirkeline Rimdal, Hannah Wentworth, Nicole Scales, and Ragnheidur Einarsdottir gave the Tritons an eight-point lead with under two minutes to go in the first quarter. A layup in the last minute of the first frame by Sydney Jones ended the low-scoring period with Eckerd leading 12-6. After a quick layup by Keturah Balabyekkubo, Lauryn Vieira answered with a bucket of her own, keeping the six-point favor. The ball was back-and-forth up the court for nearly two minutes, with neither team being able to find the basket. A timeout called by Eckerd sparked the offense, as Rimdal hit a 3-point jumper after 2:10 minutes of scoreless action. The Eagles clawed back at the Triton lead, with Madyson Jean-Louis knotting the score at 18. Embry-Riddle was able to take a brief one-point favor before Maya Price knocked in a pair of free throws, taking back the only lead of the night from the Eagles. The Tritons led at the intermission 24-23. 

Eckerd came out of the locker room to a hot start, with 3-pointers from Wentworth and Sofia Persson. Another three by Wentworth gave the Tritons a 12-point lead before Embry-Riddle clawed back once again to bring the game within four. EC finished the quarter up 44-38. Wentworth knocked down another pair of 3-pointers in the final frame, shooting 4-for-12 beyond the arc on the night. The Eagles scratched back from yet another double-digit deficit in the fourth quarter, but the effort was not enough as Eckerd outlasted Embry-Riddle 66-62.

HOW IT ENDED
FINAL: No. 9 Eckerd 66, Embry-Riddle 62
RECORDS: Eckerd 12-2 (6-0 SSC); Embry-Riddle 7-5 (2-4 SSC)

NOTES AND NUMBERS

• Three Tritons tallied double-digit points: Wentworth (16), Persson (14), Vieira (11)
• Price collected 10 boards, only one point shy of a double-double.
• EC outscored ERAU on fastbreaks 10-4. 
• As of games through January 3, Vieira sits second in the nation in assists (98), adding another five tonight. 
• Maya Price is tied for third in the nation in blocks before tonight's game at 33 on the season. Price added two tonight to bring her season total up to 35. 

UP NEXT
Eckerd remains at home next week as they take on Barry Wednesday night at 5:30 PM at the McArthur Center ahead of a two-game road trip to face Tampa and Florida Tech.