{"id":504385,"date":"2026-02-26T02:54:08","date_gmt":"2026-02-26T02:54:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/504385\/"},"modified":"2026-02-26T02:54:08","modified_gmt":"2026-02-26T02:54:08","slug":"womens-basketball-defeated-by-miami","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/504385\/","title":{"rendered":"Women\u2019s Basketball Defeated by Miami"},"content":{"rendered":"

YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) \u2013 The Eastern Michigan women’s basketball team fell to Miami University in a Mid-American Conference contest, 73-60, Wednesday, Feb. 25, inside the George Gervin GameAbove Center.
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\nFernanda Ovalle<\/a> (Santiago, Chile\/Montverde Academy\/Xavier) led the Eagles with 21 points off 50.0% (7-of-14) shooting with five rebounds, four assists, two blocks, and one steal.\u00a0
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\nAfter Bowling Green’s victory over Ohio, the Eagles will need to go 3-0 down the stretch to have a chance to qualify for the MAC Tournament.\u00a0
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\nHow it Happened
\nEastern struggled against conference-leading Miami, whose defense also ranks first in the MAC, not making a field goal until the 4:19 mark of the first quarter. The RedHawks’ five-of-nine (55.6%) three-point attack also posed an issue for the Eagles, leading to a 24-12 Eastern deficit entering the second quarter. Ovalle scored eight of the Eagles’ first-quarter points, shooting four-of-six from the floor.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Eagles’ inefficiency and defensive struggles continued, scoring just two points on 1-of-9 (11%) shooting compared to the RedHawks’ 12 points on 5-of-7 (71%) shooting by the 5:33 mark in the second quarter. Freshman Alli Zajac<\/a> (Tecumseh, Mich.\/Tecumseh) set a career high in first-half scoring total with eight points off the bench, leading the team alongside Ovalle’s eight points. Eastern was not able to close the gap, as it trailed 48-25 at the halftime break.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Eagles came out of the break with new intensity, forcing a scoring drought from the 9:42 mark till 5:59, highlighted by 0-for-3 field goal shooting and three Miami forced turnovers. Despite this effort, they were only able to slightly cut into the deficit, still trailing 56-36 at the 3:58 mark in the third quarter. Despite trailing the entire game, the Eagles kept clawing, outscoring the RedHawks 22-15 in the third quarter, trailing 63-49 entering the final quarter. Ovalle totaled 10 more points in the third quarter.\u00a0

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\nEastern and Miami remained in a tight physical contest, both going scoreless for over three minutes after their first scores in the fourth quarter. Despite the continuous physicality on defense, the Green and White couldn’t capture the lead and lost the contest, 78-60.<\/p>\n

Game Notes

\n\u00bb Eastern’s record went to 12-14 (5-10 MAC), and Miami’s shifted to 23-5 (14-1 MAC).

\n\u00bb The Eagles had 23 points off the bench, their most since they had 50 bench points against Defiance College, Dec. 5th, 2025. EMU’s 23 bench points are the second-highest total.

\n\u00bb Eastern turned the ball over 12 times, tying its season low for a fifth time and a third consecutive game. They fell to 3-2 when doing so.\u00a0

\n\u00bb Fernanda Ovalle<\/a> scored 21 points, including eight first-half points. It was her 15th game this season in double figures and her sixth time scoring 20 points or more. Her four assists marked her sixth time with at least three this season, while her two blocks marked her fourth time with multiple rejections in 2026.\u00a0

\n\u00bb Alli Zajac<\/a> (Tecumseh, Mich.\/Tecumseh) scored a career high eight first-half points as she ended the contest with 10, her second double-digit scoring game this season. She also swiped a career-best two steals.\u00a0

\n\u00bb Believe Tshibangu<\/a> (Courtice, Ontario\/Royal Crown School) recorded 11 points, her third time eclipsing double digits and her first time since her 11-point performance against Defiance College, Dec. 5th, 2025.

\n\u00bb Sisi Eleko<\/a> (Montreal, Quebec\/New Hope Academy\/Canisius) scored 10 points for the 25th time this season as she has done so in every game she has played in. Eleko has 92 double-digit performances in her career.<\/p>\n

Historical Notes

\n\u00bb Eastern and Miami met for the 72nd time. Eastern is now 25-47 all-time against Miami and 13-23 when facing it at home.\u00a0

\n\u00bb Ainhoa Cea<\/a> (Irun, Spain\/IES Pio Baroja Bhi\/Lipscomb) dished four assists, bringing her season total to 150, the seventh most in a single season in program history.

\n\u00bb Sisi Eleko<\/a> needs 53 points to reach 1,000 as an Eagle. She would be the 25th player in program history to meet the milestone.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Up Next

\nEastern will face Northern Illinois University on the road Saturday, Feb. 28, at 1 p.m., in DeKalb inside the NIU Convocation Center.\u00a0

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\nFollow Us

\nStay connected with the Eagles all season long by following @EMUWBB<\/a> and @EMUAthletics<\/a> on X for all the latest EMU women’s basketball updates. Be sure to also follow the Eagles on Instagram @emuwbb<\/a> and @emuathletics<\/a>.

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