Junior forward Carolyn Riley (Warrenton, Va./Liberty-Bealeton) led all scorers with a season high 25 points as the Eastern Mennonite University women's basketball team collected its third conference win with a 77-74 decision over Roanoke College.

The Lady Royals stand at 7-2 on the year and 3-1 in the Old Dominion Athletic Conference while the loss drops the Maroons to 4-5 overall and 2-3 in the ODAC. The win is also the sixth straight for EMU which has not lost since a November 27th game against Randolph-Macon.

"Our tempo and overall play wasn't where it should be," explained EMU head coach Kevin Griffin, "but we didn't panic and the effort was there throughout the game."

EMU entered halftime with a 37-34 lead following a jumper by Jolene Kratz (Telford, Pa./Christopher Dock) with less than a minute remaining. The bucket by Kratz was her only tally of the first half but the senior center registered another 12 points in the second half to finish with 15 for the game.

Roanoke College shot 47 percent from the floor in the first half with Caitlyn Long and Torri Bridge each reaching double figures. Long had a team high 11 points and finished with 19 overall while Bridge had another 10 for RC in the half. Erin Jenkins chipped in nine points and pulled down a team high four boards.

Riley helped keep the Lady Royals ahead in the second half with a basket at the 15:28 mark to give EMU a modest five point cushion. The lead slowly began to deteriorate as several missed shots by EMU and key points coming off the Roanoke bench tied the game at 54 with 10:30 on the clock. Roanoke stayed close to EMU and then took a three-point lead with 4:19 left to play on a layup by Jaleesa Osborne. Free throws by Riley and an eventual layup by senior guard Tara Jones (Richmond, Va./Meadowbrook) shifted the lead back to EMU at 70-69.

Neither team gave in with each squad able to only gain a one-point margin over the other. EMU held a 75-74 lead with just over a minute remaining with posession to the Maroons. Two missed Roanoke layups gave the ball back to the home team on a rebound by sophomore guard Ebony Dennis (Baltimore, Md./Western) with 35 seconds left. Riley reached the free throw line after a foul by Roanoke and dropped in both shots to give EMU a 77-74 lead. The Maroons got the ball back with only two ticks left on the clock but a last ditch attempt by Roanoke fell just short to give the Lady Royals the win.

Jenkins ended the day with 11 points and fell just one rebound short of the double-double with nine rebounds. Virginia Ann Hagood had eight points and four boards off the bench for Roanoke College which got 17 points overall from their reserves.

Jones had 18 points for EMU and was 6-of-9 from the field. Dennis scored nine points and had seven rebounds, three steals, and three assists in the win.

"Their guards (Roanoke) played exceptionally well tonight and they even played without the ODAC Player of the Year or another one of their starters. Riley, Jones, and Dana Powell (Roanoke, Va./Northside) were huge for us and stepped up when we needed it most."

Lynchburg College comes to town next for EMU on Friday, January 11, as the two teams will tip-off at 7 p.m. in Yoder Arena.