Eastern Michigan Athletics
Eastern Michigan University
1-21,0-11MAC
Georgia State
12-12,5-7Sun Belt
Eagles Drop Tough Contest at Georgia State
2/8/2025 4:09:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Eleko (14) and Smith (13) led the way in the MACSBC Challenge contest
ATLANTA, Ga. (EMUEagles.com) – The Eastern Michigan University women's basketball team battled to the end, but came up short as the Eagles dropped a 55-43 decision to Georgia State University, Feb. 8, inside the GSU Convocation Center in Atlanta, Ga. The Eagles (1-21) saw both Sisi Eleko (14) and Olivia Smith (13) reach double figures while Kyndal Lewis tallied a career-high 10 rebounds in the loss to the Panthers (12-12).
How It Happened
The game opened at a fast pace as both teams moved the ball up and down the court with little scoring. Olivia Smith (Fort Wayne, Ind./South Side) broke the scoring seal as she drained a three-pointer from the wing before the Panthers went on an 8-0 run. That run ended when Sisi Eleko (Montreal, Quebec/New Hope Academy/Canisius) hit Kyndal Lewis (Belton, Mo./Belton) on a high-low pass that Lewis scored to make it 8-5 at the first timeout. From there, the hosts went on a 7-0 run before Elena Cabello (Malaga, Spain/IES Mediterraneo) scored off an offensive rebound and then added a three-pointer moments later with the quarter ending with the Eagles trailing, 18-10.
The second quarter saw the Panthers open on a 4-0 run before Eleko ended it with a three-pointer. Olivia Westphal (Bethel Park, Pa./Bethel Park/Duquesne) splashed home a three-pointer before Eleko added her second to keep the Eagles close the gap. A strong defense that held the hosts scoreless for the last two minutes of play and eight points from Eleko helped Eastern pull to within three (31-28) to close out the half.
After GSU opened the third with a three-pointer, the Eagles responded with Smith draining a deep shot before Lewis took a rebound and went coast-to-coast for the layup. The Eagles took their first lead of the game with 8:01 remaining in the third as Smith drilled another three-pointer, making her 4-of-4 from three at that point. A 6-0 run from GSU, spurred on by four EMU turnovers, put the hosts back in front, 40-36, at the media timeout. The Panthers went on a 9-0 run to close out the quarter to take a 43-36 lead.
The fourth quarter opened with little scoring as both teams had scored just six points each with just under four minutes to play and the Eagles trailing by seven despite holding the Panthers to 1-of-9 shooting. From there, the hosts limited the Eagles to just one point to take the 55-43 win.
Game Notes
» Sisi Eleko finished the game with 14 points to bring her season total to 403, making her the first Eagle since Areanna Combs (2021-22) to score 400 points in a season. She also has tallied 225 rebounds this season, making her first the first Eagle since Natachia Watkins (2011-12) to record at least 400 points and 200 rebounds in the same season when Watkins finished with 405 points and 218 rebounds.
» Olivia Smith opened the game 4-of-4 from three-point range before finishing 4-of-7 for 13 points. Her four three-pointers tied a career-high, which she had previously accomplished five times. The last time she drained four triples came Dec. 3, 2023, at North Dakota. Her previous season-high was three at Ball State, Jan. 8.
» Kyndal Lewis finished the game with a team-leading and career-high 10 rebounds, marking the first time in her career she has tallied double-digit boards. Her previous season and career-bests were the six rebounds she recorded against Buffalo (Jan. 15) earlier this season.
» Olivia Westphal connected on one three-pointer to record at least one triple in 20-of-21 games played this year. She has scored 51 the season after making 26 one year prior.
» Both Dara Capaldi (East Detroit, Mich./La Lumiere (Ind.)) and Kyndal Lewis earned their first starts of the season. Capaldi's last start came in the 2023-24 season finale at home against Bowling Green (March 9, 2024) while Lewis last started at Southern Indiana (Dec. 9, 2023).
» As a team, the Eagles scored eight three-pointers, which is just ahead of their season average of 7.2. With 159 three-pointers on the year, Eastern is on pace to reach 200+ three-pointers this season, which would rank among the program's top 10 season ledger.
» The Eagles finished 8-of-19 from behind the arc to extend their current streak to 125 consecutive games with at least one made three-pointer. Olivia Smith connected on her first attempt with 7:50 remaining in the first to extend the streak. The last EMU failed to drain a long-distance shot came Nov. 29, 2020, when Eastern finished 0-of-15 from three-point range at home against UIC.
Historical Notes
» With the loss, the Eagles fell to 1-21 overall while the Panthers improved to 12-12.
» Eastern is now 1-1 all-time against Georgia State and 0-1 when playing in Atlanta.
» The 98 combined points marked the fewest in a game this season, surpassing the 113 combined points scored in the game at Miami (Feb. 5), a 68-45 final. Prior to the past two games, the previous season low was 117 points in the home game with Akron (Jan. 11), a 61-56 decision for the Zips.
Up Next
After playing five of its last seven games on the road, the Eagles will return to the friendly confines of the George Gervin GameAbove Center when they welcome league-leading Ball State University to town for the opening game of an EMU doubleheader. The Eagles and Cardinals are scheduled to tip off at 1 p.m. with the EMU men's game with the University of Toledo slated to start at approximately 3:30 p.m. Both games will be streamed live on ESPN+ along with Tom Helmer calling the action on WEMU (89.1 FM) and the Varsity Network.
