Box Score LA MIRADA, Calif. --- The Eagles proved on Wednesday night that excitement is possible when playing to the beat of a monotone drum: scoring exactly 22 points in each of the first three quarters and posting 21 points in the fourth to race past the La Verne Leopards 87-37.

Steadiness and consistency were the name of the game for Biola's stats and its efforts, as the Eagles intensity and commitment to the game plan never wavered until the final buzzer. Even when Biola's lead was approaching 40 points at the beginning of the fourth, the Eagles still put in the effort to score three of their first four fourth quarter of fast breaks and made sure that ball swung with crisp passes around the arc.

"I think the keys to our success tonight was the way the ladies played as a team and the way we maintained a high level of energy for 40 minutes," said Head Coach Alan Nakamura. "I also enjoyed how enthusiastic our players were for each others successes again tonight. The team chemistry is a big factor in the way we stay active on both sides of the floor."

The momentum was evident from the opening minutes, as the Eagles fed Joclyn Kirton the ball early and often to attack the smaller Leopard post players. Kirton took advantage of her early opportunities in a big way, shooting 5-of-8 from the field in the first quarter with three offensive rebounds.

The senior forward would finish as the team leader in points on Wednesday night, wreaking havoc around the key for 22 points and 10 rebounds (five offensive and five defensive). This is the first time Kirton has surpassed the 20 point mark in her basketball career. As a volleyball player at Biola, Kirton had 21 kills in a match just once: Oct. 23, 2014 at home against Texas-Brownsville.

Emma Newman also had a stellar night before having to be removed from play following a post-shot collison. The sophomore posted a near perfect shooting chart, going 5-for-6 and 1-of-1 from three for 12 points, while throwing in six rebounds and three steals to ice the cake. 

The Eagles women's basketball team also made use of the NAIA National Tournament bound women's soccer playbook, playing as a true unit defensively to suffocate the opponent's shot opportunities and keep them off the scoreboard. Biola snatched 20 steals against the Leopards and never allowed more than 10 points in a single quarter. Due to the Eagles persistence, La Verne went 12-of-51 from the field and was held to 27 rebounds. 

"Our team really came through on defense tonight because they depended on each other and worked together," said Nakamura.

With the 87 point output, Biola raises its points per game average to 85.6, the second highest mark among Golden State Athletic Conference teams behind No. 6 Vanguard (86.2).

The Eagles hit the road for a matchup against the Point Loma Sea Lions at 6:00 p.m. on Saturday.