Biola women’s basketball dropped two in a row over the past week as they suffered a loss against the No. 5 Vanguard Lions over the weekend and then another loss to rivals Azusa Pacific.

The Eagles (13-9) led throughout the first half against the Cougars who are at the top of GSAC and No. 9 in the NAIA. Eagles Junior forward, Jennifer French opened the game by hitting three of her three pointers in the first six minutes to stake to an early 18-6 lead. However, the Cougars used a 16-3 run to take back the lead with 7:24 in the half. The Eagles used a couple of later treys to lead 40-36 going into the half.

However, the Eagles went from hitting 48.4 percent of their shots to a mere 32.4 percent in the second half. The game was back and forth until the final minutes when Azusa pulled ahead with a decisive victory.

Junior forward, Jessilyn Conicelli had an excellent night, posting 22 points with eight rebound, three steals, two blocks and an assist. Despite a strong performance from both her and French, the Cougars countered with 22 points from both Alex Moore-Porter and Briana Hall. In the end, the Cougars won the game by maintaining control inside the paint. They outscored the Eagles 30-22 from the inside.

Biola was coming off a home loss against the Vanguard Lions. Conicelli posted a game high 23 points, but the Eagles found themselves playing comeback for most of the game as they found themselves down by as much as 46-23 in the first half. The Eagles came as close as six points when they trailed 81-75 with a minute to go. However, the Lions nailed seven of eight free throws down the stretch to seal the victory. In this game, the Lions hit 48.3 percent from three-point range, while the Eagles managed to only hit 20 percent from long range.

Biola looks to get back toward its winning ways on the road as they take on Chapman University on Thursday and San Diego Christian College on Saturday.