The American University women's basketball team held as much as a 20-point second half advantage, but High Point closed with a 27-6 run to come away with a 60-59 victory over the Eagles on Sunday afternoon at Millis Center in High Point, N.C.

American (1-1) jumped out to a quick start, running off 10 unanswered points to take a 14-6 lead at the 13:03 mark. Tori Halvorsen began the run with a three from straightaway, and it was followed by a Stephanie Anya layup, a pair of buckets by Liz Leer and a Michelle Kirk free throw.

Midway through the half holding an 18-13 advantage, the Eagles went on another 9-0 spurt. The run consisted of an Ashley Yencho trey, a Kirk rebound putback, an Ebony Edwards jumper and a Leer bucket from the baseline. Leer's basket gave AU a 29-15 lead with 6:20 to play in the half.

The Eagles regained a 14-point margin late in the half on a pair of Kirk free throws. Moments later, a Kirk jumper from just inside the three-point line off a Lisa Strack screen gave American a 36-20 advantage, which remained the score until halftime.

AU extended its lead to 20 on three different occasions in the second half, the last time coming at 53-33 with 10:08 to play after an Anya three-point play.

But from that point on, it was all High Point (1-1), as the Panthers began with an 8-0 spurt to cut AU's lead to 12, 53-41, at the under-eight media timeout. Halvorsen silenced the run with a turnaround jumper, but the Panthers' pressure continued down the stretch. A 9-2 spurt cut the Eagles' advantage to five, 57-52, at the 3:56 mark.

Kirk responded for American with a pair of free throws to extend the lead back to 59-52, but High Point closed with the game's final eight points over the remaining 2:33 to come away with the win. Facing a two-point deficit in the final seconds, High Point's Shamia Brown converted the devistating blow to the Eagles -- a three-point play -- to give the Panthers a one-point lead. AU had a last-second effort for the win, but Kirk's 18-foot jumper was blocked by Amy Dodd.

"Turnovers and defensive breakdowns really hurt us down the stretch," Head Coach Matt Corkery said. "When High Point picked up the intensity, we just didn't match it. We will learn a good lesson in that the game is 40 minutes, and we have to play all 40 to be successful."

Kirk led the Eagles with a game-high 20 points, which included a 9-12 mark from the free-throw line. Halvorsen added 11 on 5-9 from the field, and grabbed a team-high seven rebounds.

High Point was paced by Jurica Hargraves' 17-point effort. Brown chipped in 16 points and seven rebounds.

Both teams shot nearly identical clips from the floor, as High Point held a slight advantage (40.7 percent) compared to 40.0 for the Eagles. The Panthers were 6-14 from beyond-the-arc for 42.9 percent, while AU shot only 3-11 from deep (27.3 percent).

The Eagles will continue their season-opening road swing when the visit Mount St. Mary's on Wednesday, November 17. Tip-off from Emmitsburg, Md., is slated for 7 p.m.