WORCESTER, Mass. - The American University women's basketball team put up quite the statement on Wednesday with a 71-44 win over Holy Cross to open the final series of regular-season games.

The Eagles currently lead the Patriot League after the Crusaders upset then-No. 1 Bucknell on Saturday. AU enters the final pair of regular season games at 19-8 overall, 15-1 in the PL, while the Crusaders fall to 16-11 and 8-8 in the league.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Senior Cecily Carl paced the squad for the eighth consecutive game, scoring a game-high 17 points alongside her team-high nine rebounds.
• Freshman Jade Edwards joined her on the glass with nine boards alongside 15 points to tie her career-high.
• Senior Elina Koskimies rounded out the double-figure scoring with 14 points after shooting 50 percent from both the field (5-10) and three-point range (4-8).
• Senior Kaitlyn Lewis pitched in four assists while junior Kaitlyn Marenyi dished out three assists and picked up three steals.
• The Eagles had their highest shooting percentage from the field since the win over Loyola Maryland on February 13, hitting 45.8 percent (27-59) while going 33.3 percent from three-point range. They opened shooting 81.8 percent from the line in the first half (9-11) but went only 2-for-6 in the second to bump down to 64.7 percent overall.
• AU put up one of its top games of the season on the glass, leading Holy Cross in rebounding, 43-33. The 33 defensive rebounds and 10 offensive rebounds are second to only the 45 boards brought down against Colgate on January 6.
• The Crusaders struggled offensively with Oluchi Ezemma leading the team off the bench with nine points. Megan Swords brought down eight rebounds alongside her eight points.
• Holy Cross closed shooting 34.0 percent from the field (18-53), 18.8 percent from three-point range (3-16) and 41.7 percent from the charity stripe (5-12).
• The Crusaders held the advantage early in the game, picking up a 15-10 lead by the end of the first quarter after an 8-0 closing run.
• The Eagles chipped away at that lead in the opening minutes of the second behind baskets from freshman Taylor Brown and Koskimies before a layup from Edwards at the 6:35 mark sent AU on a 17-2 run to take control of the game.
• From there on out, it was all about American, as the Eagles closed with a dominant 29-8 second quarter to enter halftime with a 39-23 lead.
• AU held the Crusaders to single-digits again in the third quarter with a 20-7 run behind a seven-point effort from Carl and another six from Koskimies.
• Head Coach Megan Gebbia emptied the bench in the fourth quarter with all five freshmen taking the court to help maintain the final 27-point advantage.

NEXT UP
The Eagles will return home for their final pair of regular season games, starting with a 2 p.m. tipoff against No. 2 Bucknell on Saturday for senior day. AU will close the regular season at 7 p.m. on Wednesday against Navy.

For the latest on American University Women's Basketball, stay tuned to AUEagles.com and follow the team on Twitter @AU_WBasketball.