The Emory University women's basketball team earned its first ranked win of the season on Sunday afternoon defeating the Mary Hardin-Baylor Crusaders 80-59 in Belton, Texas.
 
The Eagles improve to 2-0 on the season and will return to Atlanta this week for the annual Emory Tip Off Classic. The freshman duo of Tatum Olson and Mia Strazza posted a combined 28 points for Emory including 17 from Olson. Teammates Alexandra Loucopoulos and Mary Mullinax also totaled 14 points apiece.
 
UMHB was able to just outshoot the Eagles from beyond the arc but Emory took advantage of a 43.2 field goal percentage compared to the Crusaders' 30.4 percent. Once again, the Emory bench put up 30 points while helping the team earn 40 points in the paint.
 
In the first quarter, UMHB opened with an 11-5 run with just over six minutes but a three pointer from junior Riley Allen helped open the scoring for the Eagles. Both teams went basket-for-basket until a three pointer from Mullinax closed the first 10 minutes with an 18-13 Crusaders lead.
 
UMHB opened the second quarter with a made jump shot but the Eagles were able to outscore the Crusaders 25-6 in the second quarter to reclaim the lead and keep it for the remainder of the game. Strazza exploded in the second quarter scoring 10 points in the first six minutes of the quarter while a number of different Eagles helped  push to a 38-24 lead at the end of the first half.
 
Olson came out swinging after the break scoring the first three out of five points of the third quarter. The Crusaders continued to battle but for every basket they made, Emory was right there scoring again. Back-to-back jump shots from Loucopoulos and Mullinax with just over three minutes remaining gave the Eagles their biggest lead of the day thus far, a 27 point deficit. UMHB finished the third quarter with a 7-4 run.
 
The fourth quarter started similar to the first with Olson scoring the first seven points of the quarter before a three pointer from Loucopoulos gave Emory a 69-45 advantage with 5:46 remaining in the game. The duo continued going back and forth with three pointers before freshman Lauren Walsh entered the battle sinking one of her own. Classmate Savannah Seawell ended the scoring for the Eagles with a jump shot with 32 seconds on the clock to help clinch the first ranked win of the year.
 
The Eagles will return to the WoodPEC on Saturday, November 15 to begin the Emory Tip Off Classic where they will face No. 21 ranked Randolph-Macon at 1:00 PM.