A 45-point second half brought the team back from a halftime deficit, and the defense was exceptional as TCJ Eagles Women's Basketball defeated NCAA Division 3 Wesleyan College 80-57 Friday night at home. The Eagles outscored Wesleyan 45-16 in the combined third and fourtrh quarters and got double-digit scoring from four players on the night and 9 from a fifth in the win.

After trailing 31-18 with 7:05 left in the second quarter, the Eagles finished the period on a 17-10 run to make the score 41-35 Wesleyan at the half. Emma Parrish, Travesha Giddens, M'lani Vitela, Kirsten Joseph, and Laila Harvey all contributed points in the run to pull the Eagles to within 6. 

Then came the second half.

The teams traded baskets for the first 4:27 of the third quarter, and Wesleyan still led by 6 at 50-44. Caroline Smith and Alexandra Perez made three consecutive free throws, and Perez hit a jumper to pull TCJ to within 1. Perez then gave the Eagles a 51-50 lead with a layup, and the Eagles scored the last 9 points from there to close out the third. They got another layup from Perez and two free throws and a three-pointer from Parrish during that span and led 60-50 at quarter's end.

The run ended early in the fourth, but the Eagles finished the game by outscoring Wesleyan 18-7 in the final 8:25.

Wesleyan won the first quarter 26-18, but Trinity took the second by 2 before putting up their big second half, during which they shot over 56% from the field with 4 three-pointers. Overall, the Eagles shot 44% on the night with 6 threes and 12 free throws. Defensively, TCJ held Wesleyan to 35% shooting overall and only 1 basket in the fourth quarter.

Trinity forced 19 turnovers and pulled in 46 rebounds.

Parrish led all scorers with 18 points. Vitela scored 13, Smith totaled 12, and Perez finished with 10. Giddens tallied 9, Jaedin Houston hit a pair of threes and a foul shot to amass 7, Jospeh contributed 5, Harvey scored 4, and Victoria Broadway added 2. Broadway's layup to start the third quarter sparked the Eagles' rally.

Wesleyan got double figures from three players: Anderia Jackson (13), Alissa Sandifer (13), and Briscia Tejada (10). All players contributed points.

The Eagles will visit Savannah State University for a NCAA Division 2 exhibition at 6:00 p.m. on Monday, November 17. Next up is a home game with the University of Fort Lauderdale at 6:00 p.m. on Thursday, November 20. The Eagles will then pause for Thanksgiving break and return to the home court on December 2.