Abi Haynes Drops 40 - Eagles Advance!

David Finney

Waleska, GA - The Eagles opened up the first round of the AAC Tournament with a home game against Brenau University, which they have played three times in the last six days. Often, it is hard to beat an opponent multiple times during the season - but the Eagles made it three straight against the Golden Tigers running away with it early.

Reinhardt would not waste any time in showing they were ready to move onto the quarter-finals of the AAC Tournament.  Abi Haynes would have the hot hand on the night knocking out 40 points. Ashley Woodroffe would have an outstanding night shooting as well scoring a solid 18 points coming off the bench. The team finished the season winning five straight and this first postseason win puts the streak at six. They are playing good basketball right now and hopefully, this is something that can keep going. It will take players like Haynes, Woodroffe, Catherine Shope, and others to play at their best to keep the games going.

In the game, the Eagles would take an early 4-2 lead in the first quarter and never relinquish that lead for the remainder of the game. Brylee Puckett scored on a short jump shot to give the Eagles that early lead and the floodgates of scoring quickly emerged.  At the end of the first quarter, the Eagles' lead was 27-10.

In the second quarter, the lead would continue to grow and Haynes would rack up a lot of her scoring while helping the Eagles get this lead. Symone Williams would be the floor general for the Eagles guiding Reinhardt up and down the floor.  The full-court press was working for the Eagles and they picked off multiple passes leading to transition baskets. The Eagles would take a 46-23 lead to the half.

The second half would see the lead cut somewhat, but as soon as it would get below a fifteen-point lead - the Eagles would turn up the pressure again and quickly get the lead up again. Catherine Shope had a solid game as usual scoring 8 points and grabbing 7 rebounds. It was slightly down from her scoring average, but she was feeding the ball to Woodroffe and Haynes and making things happen.

The game was basically over by the first part of the second half, but the Eagles did have to keep working and creating turnovers to keep the game in hand. Reinhardt would get the lead back up to seventeen points in the fourth quarter and eventually winning the game 88-71. The Eagles need to keep playing with this energy and intensity througout the tournament. If they do, then they will be able to make some noise as this conference tournament continues.

It is an exciting time for this team as they keep the wins coming and their hopes for getting the AAC Conference Title alive. The Eagles will pack up and head up to Kingsport, TN to take on Tennessee Wesleyan on Thursday, 1:45 pm.  The Eagles lost twice to the Bulldogs during the regular season, however, both games were within two points. This is very much a winnable game for the Eagles if they play their game. All game stats and video links will be provided by the AAC. - AAC Digital Network