GRANTHAM, PA. - On senior night, Messiah used a strong second half to come away with a 72-38 win over the visiting Eastern University Eagles. Messiah led the Eagles 27-20 after the first half before using an 8-0 flurry out of the break to take a 35-20 lead and never looked back. This lead became 50-33 heading into the final quarter. The Falcons played phenomenal defense in the fourth quarter, allowing just five points to come away with a 72-38 win to end the regular season with a perfect 10-0 record. 

Seniors Jayneisha Davis and Brooke Breinich were honored before the game. Davis filled the stat sheet with 22 points, six rebounds, five steals, and two assists while Breinich finished with four rebounds, one block and one steal in the Falcons victory. Leah Springer also completed her third double-double in a row and sixth of the season, finishing with 22 points and 11 rebounds. Messiah will play in the MAC Commonwealth Championship game next Thursday night and will find out who they play on Monday night.
 
All Square Early On
Both teams struggled out of the gate, with the Falcons holding a slight 7-5 advantage with 4:09 to play in the opening quarter. Messiah picked it up over the final minutes, using a small 7-4 run to head into the second quarter with a 14-9 lead. Six of the Falcons 14 points came from the charity stripe.
 
Eagles Hang Tough
Messiah attempted to widen their lead in the second quarter, leading by as many as 10 late in the stanza after an Eleana Eckley layup made it 27-17. However, a late Naomi Harris three-pointer cut the lead back to seven and sent it to the half at 27-20.
 
Messiah Pulls Away
The Falcons came out firing from downtown in the second half, using threes from Eckley and Davis to fuel an 8-0 run to stretch their lead to 35-20. They pushed this lead to 19 with a Springer jumper making it 41-22 nearly halfway through the third quarter.
 
The Eagles did not back down, as Naomi Harris sparked an 11-0 run with a layup to make it 41-33. Harris scored four points during the run, while Jaelyn Harris scored five. However, the Falcons found their groove over the final minutes of the quarter as Leah Springer scored eight points in a Messiah 9-0 stretch to send the Falcons into the final stanza up 50-33.
 
Messiah continued to play well in the final frame. As mentioned, they only allowed five points in the fourth quarter and would come away with a 72-38 victory on senior night.
 
Inside The Box Score
Suffocating defense continues to be the Falcons calling card this season. Their impressive streak of 10 or more steals a game continued tonight, as they recorded 14 to give them 132 total in just 10 games. As mentioned, Jayneisha Davis picked up five more steals tonight, giving her 41 on the season.
 
The Falcons offense has also been great this season, averaging nearly 70 points a game to just 45 for their opponents. Messiah has scored 65 or more points in every game this season with the exception of one.

What's Up Next
The Falcons will look to cap off a perfect season next Thursday at 7:00 p.m. when they play for the MAC Commonwealth Championship. Their opponent will be determined on Monday night. Messiah will be looking to claim their fifth-straight MAC Commonwealth title.