By Loren Miller, USU Eastern Sports Information:

PRICE – Utah State Eastern women’s basketball won three games in three days in the Phoenix area this week.

The Eagles picked up a close win on Wednesday by defeating the Glendale Gauchos 72-69.

It was close one throughout the entire game until the third quarter when the Eagles were up by ten.

The Gauchos would come back and make it close in the final minutes of the game however.

Eagles’ Head Coach Chelsey Warburton said that it was her bench that helped seal the victory.Early in the third we were up ten.

“Entering the fourth we were down two. With Alyssa and Abby in foul trouble our freshman took over the fourth quarter,” said Warburton.

Freshman guard Amiperia Tia led the Eagles on Wednesday with 13 points. Fellow freshmen Lamija Coric and Emmery Wagstaff each put in 11 points against Glendale.

Warburton said that it was a great team win with both starters and bench players making an impact.

“Harley Carlisle and Morgan Toluono took care of the boards while Ami, Lamija and Emmery took care of the ball,” said Warburton.

On Thursday the Eagles defeated the Scottsdale Artichokes 73-61.

After trailing the Artichokes 37-30 halftime, the Eagles would regroup and use a big second half to get the double-digit win.

The Eagles scored 24 points in the fourth quarter while only giving up eight points on defense.

Wagstaff led the team in scoring with 16 points along with three rebounds and two steals.

Sophomore Alyssa Crumley added 15 points and eight rebounds against the Artichokes.

In the paint, Toluono had a double-double of 11 points and 12 rebounds. Carlisle chipped in seven points and seven rebounds off the bench.

As a team, the Eagles shot very well from the free-throw line by making 17 of 20 attempts.

“Our coaches are really big on making our free throws, because free throws can be the deciding factor on whether you win or lose a game, and being able to shoot 85% is a big reason why we won against Scottsdale,” said Carlisle.

To close out their week in Arizona, the Eagles defeated the South Mountain Cougars 77-62 on Friday night.

With Butler out against the Cougars, players like Carlisle and Toluono stepped up once again in the post.

Carlisle had 16 points and five rebounds while Toluono had a team-high 11 rebounds along with eight points on Friday night.

In all three of the Eagles’ wins in Arizona, Toluono was the team’s leading rebounder and averaged 9.6 rebounds per game.

“Morgan is one of the best rebounders on our team. She gets great position to be able to get all the rebounds that she does. She also has a lot of energy, and is will to do what ever it takes to make sure she gets the ball,” said Carlisle.

Wagstaff had another big game for USU Eastern with 23 points, five points and three assists.During the week she averaged 16.6 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 1.3 assists per game.

Friday night’s win against the Cougars gives the Eagles a 6-1 overall record in the early stages of the year.

Warburton said the trip was great for her team especially for the freshmen.

“Our freshmen played well and helped us get the three wins this past week,” said Warburton.

“It was a learning week for the team but I am happy with the progress we made.”

The Eagles will hit the road this weekend to Taylorsville to play in the SLCC Thanksgiving Tournament.

On Friday the Eagles will take on Casper College and then on Saturday go up against Bellevue College.

Each game will be broadcasted on the Scenic West Digital Network with both games scheduled for 1 p.m. tipoffs.