DURHAM, N.C. – Freshman Jerni Kiaku and senior Kira Lowery both bucketed season-high point totals for host North Carolina Central University in a 77-68 non-conference loss to Elon University on Sunday afternoon inside McDougald-McLendon Arena.
 
Kiaku led the Eagles with 21 points while Lowery followed with 17 points. They both converted on eight of their 13 shot attempts from the field and they each had four steals. Lowery also had three assists.
 
The Phoenix shot a season-best 58.2 percent from the floor on the way to winning their fourth consecutive game. Elon (4-2) also controlled the glass with a 40-25 rebounding advantage.
 
NCCU scored the first four points of the contest on hoops by junior Blessing Okoh and Lowery before Elon rattled off the next 12 points to take the lead for good. The Phoenix had the Eagles doubled up, 28-14, after one quarter of play by making 13 of their 17 field goal attempts for a sizzling 76.5 percent accuracy.
 
The Eagles closed the halftime deficit to 42-34 after they heated up to 64.3 percent precision (9 of 14) in the second quarter, but an icy 14.3 percent (2 of 14) third quarter allowed Elon to pull away. The Phoenix started the second half on an 8-0 run and led by as many as 20 points on three occasions in the third quarter before settling for the nine-point triumph.
 
Kiaku scored 15 of her 21 points in the second half, including 10 points in the fourth quarter to help NCCU close the final margin of defeat to single digits. Lowery scored all 17 of her points in the first half.
 
Freshman Raven Preston, who was coming off a breakout 22-point performance in Elon's win over Old Dominion on Tuesday, scored a game- and career-high 26 points for the victors. Fifth-year senior Evonna McGill followed with a season-high 17 while classmate Lenaejha Evans swished 16 points and pulled down a game-high seven rebounds.
 
Sophomore Morgan Callahan was NCCU's third player to reach double figures in the scoring column with 11 points. Junior Kimeira Burks added eight points, five steals and three assists before fouling out. Okoh added five points and a team-best six rebounds.
 
The Eagles kept the score manageable with their best shooting performance from the field (44.3%), but NCCU converted on less than half of its free throw attempts. The Eagles made just nine of their 19 tries (47.4%), missing 10 freebees in the nine-point loss.
 
NC Central will next play at West Virginia University (Morgantown, W.Va.) on Wednesday at 7 p.m.
 
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