Final Stats

CHICAGO - Three players finished in double figures to pace Loyola in a 63-52 victory over Eastern Illinois this afternoon at Gentile Arena. The Ramblers improve to 2-3 overall with the win, while the Panthers slip to 2-4 on the season.

Loyola wasted little time in jumping on top against its in-state rival. Taylor Johnson corralled the opening tip-off and found Destiny Washington streaking towards the basket to put the Maroon & Gold on the board with only seven seconds gone. After a pair of Arnisha Thomas free throws tied the game (2-2), the Ramblers raced off on an 8-1 scoring run, capped off by a Bailey Farley three, that put them up seven (10-3) at the 13:35 mark of the opening stanza.

The visitors from Charleston, Ill. battled their way back to within two (12-10) on a Phylicia Johnson shot from distance but Loyola answered right back with another run, this time a 9-0 spurt, that pushed the Rambler lead into double-digits (21-10) for the first time on the afternoon. Loyola would extend its lead up to 15 on three different occasions in the half but a Thomas layup in the dying seconds trimmed the Ramblers' advantage to 35-22 at halftime.

Johnson scored 10 points to lead Loyola in the first half, while Washington and Becca Smith each chipped in six of their own. The Ramblers held an advantage in nearly all of the specialty categories in the game's opening 20 minutes, highlighted by a 20-6 edge in points in the paint and a 10-0 lead in points off turnovers. Johnson led the way for Eastern Illinois with eight points as Loyola was sound defensively, holding the Panthers to only 27.3% (6-of-22) shooting from the field.

A three from Smith and a Molly Crosby score pushed the Ramblers' lead to 18 (40-22), the team's largest advantage of the afternoon, with just under a minute gone in the second half. The Panthers began to chip away at their deficit, clawing back to within 12 (41-29) on a Johnson jumper with 15 minutes to play, only for Crosby to answer back on the other end with a score of her own.

The lead hovered between 10-14 points during the middle stages of the half before Eastern Illinois made a push, trimming the margin to eight (54-46) with 4:21 to play on two free throws from Erica Brown. Sabina Oroszova, the Panthers' leading scorer coming into the day, had a chance to draw her team even closer but couldn't cash in on her shot from distance at the 3:38 mark. A Washington layup off a great find from Smith shortly after pushed the lead back over 10 points (57-46) as Loyola iced the game from the free throw line.

Johnson finished with a team-best 16 points, the fourth-straight game that she has finished in double figures in scoring. Washington and Smith each contributed 13 points of their own as well. Washington, a freshman out of Indianapolis, Ind., barely missed out on the first double-double of her young career, grabbing nine rebounds. Oroszova, who came down with a game-high 17 rebounds, and Johnson each scored 11 points to lead Eastern Illinois.

Loyola returns to action on Wednesday evening when it hits the road to take on the Missouri Tigers. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. from Columbia, Mo.