ST. DAVIDS, Pa. – No. 8 Messiah women's basketball traveled to Eastern University on Tuesday evening and defeated the Eagles 56-46. The Falcons were tested all night, however a huge second quarter outscoring Eastern 19-11, allowed Messiah to secure the ten-point victory. The Falcons remain undefeated on the season (5-0), while Eastern drops to 2-3 overall.

This victory was a complete team effort with four Falcons collecting double-figures on the scoreboard. Leah Springer picked up her fourth double-double of the season with 16 points and 11 rebounds. Jayneisha Davis scored 15 points including three three-point field goals, while Eleana Eckley and Megan Zimmerman added 12 and 11, respectively.

Sluggish Start For Both Teams
It was a slow start to the game for both teams. Messiah didn't find their first bucket until the eight minute mark when Jayneisha Davis cashed in a three-pointer to give the Falcons an early lead. Megan Zimmerman followed Davis' bucket with a layup of her own to put the Falcons up 5-0. The Eagles finally collected their first points of the night at the 7:04 minute mark to end Messiah's scoring spree. Eastern then tied things up at 5-5 after a three-pointer of their own. The two teams traded baskets back-and-forth for the remainder of the quarter and the score was tied at 13-13 going into the second.

Falcons Find Their Rhythm
The Falcons found their rhythm offensively in the second quarter, outscoring the Eagles 19-11. Megan Zimmerman got things going for the Falcons with back-to-back buckets to put Messiah up 17-13. The Falcons' defensive pressure caused two early turnovers by the Eagles, however a trip to the line cut Messiah's lead down to two (17-15). The two squads exchanged points back-and-forth throughout the middle of the quarter and the Eagles tied things up at 20-20 after Jaelyn Harris connected on a three-pointer. Eleana Eckley put Messiah back on top after scoring two free throws, but once again Eastern responded with a layup in the paint (22-22). Late in the quarter, Messiah found some momentum which ignited a 10-to-2 run over the Eagles. Leah Springer got this run started with a fast-break layup, followed by a three-pointer from Eleana Eckley. Springer and Eckley continued to score for the Falcons during this scoring spurt and Messiah went into the halftime break with a 32-24 advantage after an impressive second quarter.

Leah Springer and Eleana Eckley led the Falcons in scoring the first two quarters with 13 and 8 points, respectively. Messiah also shot a game-high of 50% (7-of-14) from the field in second quarter.

Low Scoring Third
The third quarter was a low scoring one for both teams, each tallying only seven points in the ten minutes of play. Eastern showed tenacity on the defensive end, coming out of halftime picking up six of their 16 steals. Jayneisha Davis had an impressive quarter for Messiah, collecting five of the Falcons' seven points. Although it wasn't a great start to the second half, Messiah still held an eight-point lead over the Eagles going into the fourth quarter.

Falcons Tested But Secure Victory
Eastern started the final quarter off with a quick jumper, but Jayneisha Davis didn't cool off and connected on her third triple of the game, followed by a fast-break layup to extend Messiah's lead to 11 (44-33). The two teams battled back and forth, but then Eastern pieced together a 7-to-0 run to chip away at the Falcons' lead (46-42). However, Megan Zimmerman ended the Eagles' run with a layup in the post, followed by free throws from Eleana Eckley, Leah Springer, and Zimmerman to extend Messiah's lead to 10 (52-42). The Falcons went 10-for-12 from the free throw stripe in the fourth quarter and held on for a 56-46 win over the Eastern Eagles.

Up Next
The Falcons will be back in action on Saturday, Nov. 23 when they travel down to Arlington, VA to take on Marymount University. The game is scheduled for a 1:00 p.m. start. The last time these two teams met was on Dec. 9, 2015 and the Saints defeated the Falcons 71-38.