ST. DAVIDS, Pa.– Solid second-half shooting was not enough as Eastern University Women's Basketball was unable to close the gap on the visiting York College Spartans in a 70-49 MAC Commonwealth loss. The Spartans (12-7, 5-3) shot 45 percent from the floor in the first half to grab a 34-14 lead that proved too much for the Eagles to overcome. After making only 2-of-16 from deep in the first half, the Eagles found their range and made 7-of-12 in front of their own bench. Jeriyah Johnson finished with a game-high 19 points.

The Eagles (2-17, 1-7) went toe-to-toe with the Spartans in a free-flowing and entertaining third quarter. Jeriayah Johnson and Damiyae Moyet each hit two 3-pointers and Trinity Upton dropped in a rain-making step-back from deep as the gap shrunk to 14 with three and a half minutes left. The Spartans, however, made good use of their size advantage and closed the third on a 9-to-3 run with Morgan Adams scoring six inside points in a two-minute stretch. With the undersized Eagles trying to defend her with a variety of double-teams, Adams finished with 14 points, 13 rebounds, and five assists.

In the fourth quarter, the smaller Eagles battled for five offensive rebounds and took seven more shots, but the Spartans were efficient enough on their 12 shots to keep the Eagles from drawing closer. Both teams scored 16 fourth-quarter points. Breana Grim hit for a pair of long-range efforts in the frame and finished with a team-best 17 points.

The Eagles were only 2-of-18 from the floor in the opening quarter and shot only 3-of-19 in the second.

In addition to her scoring, Johnson had five rebounds, four assists, and four steals. Upton finished with 11 points and five rebounds, and Moyet scored nine.

The Eagles are at Widener on Wednesday. The Pride kept pace with York with home win over Stevenson this afternoon. With Albright's win at Alvernia this afternoon, four teams are tied for second in the league at 5-3.