The American University women’s basketball team (11-5) avoided what would have been a disastrous home loss, thanks to the heroics of senior Jade Edwards that gave AU the win Jan. 22 over Loyola University Maryland (3-14) 53-49.
The Eagles sealed their victory with a frantic final minute that featured two fouls from the Eagles and a key Greyhound miss that would have sent the game to overtime.
AU entered the game 3-2 in Patriot League play while Loyola Maryland came into the game sitting at 3-13 without winning a Patriot League game as of yet, looking to upset AU at home.
AU led from start to finish in the first quarter, but the next three quarters featured a whopping 10 lead changes. The last one of those came with 1:39 to play in the third quarter when sophomore Riley DeRubbo made a three to put AU ahead, 34-31.
AU then got some timely defense from sophomore Emily Johns, a dagger jumper from senior Emily Fisher and some clutch free-throws from senior Taylor Brown to seemingly put the game out of reach. Then, with 13 seconds to play, Greyhound senior Lex Therien — who had already tallied 15 points — made a basket and was fouled by junior Lauren Stack on the play, converting the three-point play.
It seemed like AU was facing disaster, but the Eagles caught a break when Edwards was fouled. With two made free-throws, the Eagles found themselves with a chance to end the game, and Therien’s jumper sailed just long, and the Eagles walked off the floor with a 53-49 victory.
Edwards was again at the center of nearly everything good for AU, finishing with 9 points, 7 rebounds, 3 steals and 2 assists.
Johns, who notched several key buckets in the game’s most critical moments, scored 12 points. She and Edwards were joined in over eight-point-scoring efforts by Brown — 9 points, 4 rebounds.
AU survived despite 31 combined points from Loyola Maryland’s two-headed monster of Therien and junior Bri Rozzi.
Like they have all season, AU needed to find a way down the stretch of a game it desperately needed to win, and the Eagles found it.
AU travels to Worcester on Wednesday for a rematch against Holy Cross. The game tips off at 5 p.m. EST from the Hart Center and airs on ESPN+.
