Lisa Strack and Liz Leer combined to score 29 points on 11-of-22 shooting to pace the American University women's basketball team to a 64-60 victory over Maryland-Eastern Shore on Sunday afternoon in Princess Anne, Md.

The win marks the Eagles' eighth consecutive win as they close out non-conference play with a 10-4 record. The 10 non-league wins are tied for the second most all-time, one shy of the 1986-87 squad that finished 11-2 out-of-conference. The Eagles also claimed nine victories against non-Patriot League opponents in the 2008-09 campaign.

American (10-4) held the lead the majority of the game -- including by as many as 13 at one point -- although a second-half rally by Maryland-Eastern Shore (2-8) kept the outcome within question down the stretch.  Holding a 60-56 advantage, the Eagles knocked down 5-of-6 free throws in the final minute to preserve the victory.

The Eagles took the lead with a Leer layup at the 8:09 mark of the first half, and sustained the advantage for the remainder of the contest. American pushed the margin to as many as 10 in the first half at 32-22 following a pair of Dobbs free throws with 2:20 to play.

UMES remained within a single-digit deficit throughout the early part of the second half, although back-to-back threes by Nicole Ryan and Leer extended AU's lead to a game-high 13, 52-39, with 10:30 remaining.

But the Hawks continued to fight and were able to put together a 12-3 run to trim American's advantage to 55-51 at the 3:22 mark. Stephanie Anya, however, responded with a bucket for AU to push the lead back to six, although UMES would score the game's next three points at the free throw line to cut American's lead in half, 59-56, with 1:22 to go.

The teams traded missed jumpers before Dobbs knocked down a key pair of free throws in the final minute to push the game back to a two-possession margin. Edwards followed with two made foul shots and then Geleisa George made one to extend AU's lead back to seven, 63-56. UMES knocked down a late three to set the final margin at four.

Strack registered a team-best 15 points for the Eagles on 6-of-12 shooting. Leer had 14 on 5-of-10 from the field. Dobbs and Tori Halvorsen added eight and seven points, respectively, as American finished the game shooting an even 50 percent from the floor.

UMES was led by Casey Morton's 24-point performance on 8-of-16 from the field. Chena Parker added 13 points and 12 rebounds for the Hawks.

"We had to battle hard for 40 minutes today to come away with a victory," Head Coach Matt Corkery said. "Casey Morton was outstanding for UMES and we really had no answer for her on the defensive end.  We did make some plays down the stretch and knocked down our free throws that helped us seal the win. Now we set our sights on conference play and the record goes to 0-0.  It is a new season."

The Eagles will continue their roadswing when the visit defending conference champion Lehigh in a rematch of last year's Patriot League Championship Game on Saturday, January 8. Tip time in the conference opener from Bethlehem, Pa., is scheduled for 7 p.m.