RICHMOND, Ky. (Interstat) — Eastern Kentucky made the most of its home floor Saturday, using a strong third quarter and a timely closing stretch to defeat Radford 65-56 in a women’s NCAA Division I basketball game at McBrayer Arena. Attendance was 210. The Lady Colonels improved to 2-1, while the Highlanders dropped to 1-2. Radford entered after a lopsided win over Bluefield and a loss at Clemson, while Eastern Kentucky had split its first two games against Morehead State and Tennessee-Martin.

Eastern Kentucky scored first on layups by Liz Freihofer and Kenleigh Woods, but Radford answered with a Cate Carlson 3-pointer and a Cherish Haywood layup to take a 5-4 lead. The opening quarter featured several lead changes and ties. Kailani Lindsey made a layup for Eastern Kentucky, Angelina Nice answered with a layup for Radford, and Luna Ueda hit a 3-point jump shot. Nice tied the score again with a layup before Ueda made another 3-pointer, a free throw and a layup to help Eastern Kentucky build a 15-9 advantage. Radford responded with an Anaiah Jenkins layup, a Logan Luebbers Palmer 3-pointer and a Carlson layup to move ahead 16-15. Rylee Kalocay closed the first quarter with a layup and a free throw to give the Lady Colonels an 18-16 lead.

Radford took control in the second quarter. After Michelle Ugwah opened the scoring with a layup, Radford used free throws from Georgia Simonsen and baskets from Jordin Richardson, Angelina Nice, Kailyn Fields and Simonsen to move ahead. Fields made a 3-pointer and a free throw, and Anaiah Jenkins added two free throws. Luna Ueda scored inside late in the half for Eastern Kentucky, but Radford held a 30-26 lead at halftime. Nice had a strong first half on the glass for the Highlanders, while Ueda kept Eastern Kentucky within striking distance with her perimeter and interior scoring.

Eastern Kentucky flipped the game in the third quarter. Kenleigh Woods made a free throw, and Kirsten Lewis-Williams helped the Lady Colonels tie the score with consecutive scores. Luna Ueda made layups, Michelle Ugwah converted free throws and a layup, and Brooke Nichelson added two layups as Eastern Kentucky took control. Radford got a 3-pointer from Kailyn Fields and free throws from Angelina Nice and Cherish Haywood, but the Lady Colonels closed the quarter on a run and led 49-41 after three quarters. Ugwah’s work inside and Ueda’s shot-making helped Eastern Kentucky turn a four-point halftime deficit into an eight-point cushion.

Radford tried to rally in the fourth. Logan Luebbers Palmer made a 3-pointer, and Georgia Simonsen converted a layup and free throw before adding another layup to cut the deficit. Kailyn Fields made a 3-pointer, and Simonsen hit a jump shot to bring Radford within 58-54 with 2:56 remaining. Eastern Kentucky answered with a Michelle Ugwah layup and a Kenleigh Woods jump shot to push the lead back to 62-54. Luna Ueda made a free throw, Simonsen scored again for Radford, and Kirsten Lewis-Williams sealed the game with free throws.

Radford shot 19 of 61 from the floor, 6 of 24 from three-point range and 12 of 19 from the free throw line. Eastern Kentucky shot 26 of 67 from the floor, 3 of 15 from three-point range and 10 of 23 from the free throw line. Each team had nine offensive rebounds. Eastern Kentucky finished with 14 assists, six blocks and 16 turnovers, while Radford had eight assists, five blocks and 22 turnovers. The Lady Colonels scored 44 points in the paint and 25 points off turnovers. Radford scored 24 points in the paint and 11 points off turnovers. Radford scored 56 points from 83 possessions, and Eastern Kentucky scored 65 points from 85 possessions. Radford had an offensive rating of 67.4, and Eastern Kentucky had an offensive rating of 76.5.

Angelina Nice led Radford with 10 points, 14 rebounds and four assists in 32 minutes. Michelle Ugwah led Eastern Kentucky with 13 points, seven rebounds and two blocks in 24 minutes. Luna Ueda added 16 points and three rebounds in 37 minutes. Georgia Simonsen scored 13 points and grabbed seven rebounds with three blocks for Radford in 29 minutes. Liz Freihofer had nine points, six rebounds, one assist and two blocks for Eastern Kentucky in 30 minutes. Anaiah Jenkins contributed four points and nine rebounds for Radford. Cate Carlson had five points and six rebounds for Radford. Kenleigh Woods had seven points, six rebounds and three assists for Eastern Kentucky. Brooke Nichelson added four points and five rebounds, and Kailani Lindsey had four points and seven rebounds for Eastern Kentucky.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of Eastern Kentucky 68, Radford 67. Interstat’s ELO system had projected Eastern Kentucky with an 84.3 percent probability to win.