HONOLULU, Hawaii — Eastern Washington women's basketball played its final game of the Bank of Hawaii Classic on Sunday afternoon, facing the host school, Hawaii. The Eagles lost the matchup against the Rainbow Wahine, 67-55. EWU's record now drops to 1-5 this season, while Hawaii improves to 3-1.
The Rainbow Wahine led for the majority of the game, taking control in the second quarter. Hawaii went into the half on a 13-3 run and they maintained that separation throughout the second half.
"Hawaii is another NCAA tournament team on our schedule that is well coached and prepared. It's a disappointing loss, but it will help us in the long run," head coach Joddie Gleason said. "We responded in the second half and played them even, but the first half deficit was too much to overcome."
Peyton Howard had a game-high 14 points on 5-of-12(41.7%) shooting. She added six assists and four rebounds, with two steals. Jaecy Eggers and Alexis Pettis had nine points each in support of the scoring effort.
Eastern shot 36.2 percent overall in the game and was 35.0 percent from three-point range. Hawaii had a 36-to-24 advantage in the paint over EWU.
"Peyton had a great tournament and earned a much deserved All-Tournament team honor," Gleason added. "Our freshmen are gaining valuable experience and are getting better with every outing. I'm looking forward to their continued progress! It will be good to be back home at Reese Court for two of the next three games."
The Eagles' offense was slow to begin the game, scoring three points through eight minutes and trailing the Rainbow Wahine, 12-3. Bella Hays broke the scoring drought with a layup and Ella Gallatin followed up with a three. After the first quarter, EWU trailed 15-10, with Eastern struggling shooting at 18.2 percent.
Hawaii extended its lead to 19-10 less than a minute into the second quarter. The Eagles were again slow to score, but Howard found space for a three at 6:51 to bring the lead down to 19-13. EWU found a burst of offense and reduced the Rainbow Wahine lead to 23-21 and 3:50 left in the half. Despite Eastern staying close, Hawaii closed the half on a 13-3 run and built a double-digit lead to 38-26. The Eagles shot 25.8 percent in the second quarter.
In the third quarter, Hawaii maintained its double-digit lead over Eastern. Howard was the source of offense for EWU, scoring seven points in the quarter. The Eagles had its best shooting quarter of the game at 53.3 percent, while the Rainbow Wahine shot 41.2 percent. Eastern outscored Hawaii by one in the quarter, but trailed 55-44 going to the fourth.
The team traded scores in the fourth quarter, with EWU getting the lead down to nine several on occasions. They could not reduce the lead anymore as Hawaii produced enough scoring to stay in front. The Rainbow Wahine out-scored the Eagles, 12 to 11, in the fourth, shooting 38.5 percent from the floor. Eastern shot 41.7 percent in the quarter, but was 0-of-4 from three. Hawaii closed out EWU for the 67-55 home win.
Eag Notes
- Peyton Howard averaged 14.5 points, with 4.5 assists, 3.5 steals and 3.0 rebounds per game in two games at the Bank of Hawaii Classic. Howard earned All-Tournament team for the three-day tournament. She has scored in double figures in 5-of-6 games this season. Her six assists today matched a career-best.
- Eastern forced 11 turnovers from Hawaii and scored 14 points. The Rainbow Wahine forced 16 turnovers from the Eagles for 11 points.
- EWU recorded 14 assists on 21 made field goals in the game.
- The Rainbow Wahine earned a 37 to 33 rebounding advantage over Eastern. Jaecy Eggers and Ella Gallatin each had 6 rebounds for the Eagles.
- Hawaii recorded 7 blocks against EWU.
Up Next
Eastern Washington will be back in Cheney on Wednesday (Nov. 27) to play CSU Bakersfield at 6 p.m.
Season tickets for women's basketball are now on sale. Reserve your seats at Reese Court for the 2024-25 seasons by clicking on the link here, emailing tickets@ewu.edu or calling the ticket office at 509-359-6059.
Join the Eagle Athletic Fund for as low as $50 per year! Support Eagle student-athletes on and off the field while enjoying exclusive EAF perks such as season ticket and tailgating priority, invitations to special events, exclusive access and more. Visit goeags.com/eaf for more information.
ABOUT EASTERN WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY ATHLETICS
Eastern Washington University Athletics sponsors 14 intercollegiate sports, six for men and eight for women, both as learning opportunities for its most athletically talented students and as an enhancement to student and community life. Eastern is affiliated with Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and is a member of the Big Sky Conference, an association of 10 regional schools with comparable enrollments and academic goals.
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