LOUISVILLE, Ky. — The Bellarmine University women's basketball team's shooting struggles against Eastern Kentucky on Saturday in Freedom Hall caught up to the Knights in the fourth quarter, as the Colonels pulled away in the last period for a 61-47 victory in ASUN play.

The game was much closer than the final score would indicate. It was nip and tuck between Bellarmine (3-10, 0-2 ASUN) and Eastern Kentucky (9-6, 2-0) through three quarters, and the Knights took a 42-40 lead on junior guard Jaela Johnson's 3-pointer inside the first minute of the fourth.

Eastern Kentucky tied it up on a pair of free throws and went ahead on a four-point play by Jayla Johnson, who sank a 3-pointer while being fouled and made the ensuing free throw. Johnson scored eight points during a 10-0 run that swung the game in the Colonels' favor.

Bellarmine never got closer than six after that burst and was outscored 21-9 in the fourth quarter. Senior guard Bailee Harney poured in a career- and game-high 20 points, but as a whole, the Knights struggled mightily from both the field and the free-throw line, the latter of which is particularly uncharacteristic. Bellarmine shot 27.3 percent from the floor, including 19 percent from 3-point range, and was only 13-for-24 (54.2 percent) from the charity stripe.

"We had good looks, we had open shots," Knights Coach Chancellor Dugan said. "You've got to convert those, because Eastern did. We had every look we wanted. We just kept saying in the huddle that shots would fall; we just had to keep moving the ball. Sometimes on offense the ball just stuck."

Free throws were a key factor in the win for Eastern Kentucky, which hit 18 of its 24 attempts (75 percent) after not exactly flourishing from the field either (42.6 percent). Rebounds were also crucial, as EKU finished with a 42-33 advantage after taking control late on the glass.

"They just beat us on the boards pretty much all night," Dugan said. "We busted our tails to get within one on the boards (in the third quarter) and that's what's so frustrating, because it was a point of emphasis all week for both teams that we played."

Harney drilled a pair of 3-pointers in scoring 10 of Bellarmine's 13 points in the first quarter, as the Knights trailed by three. The Colonels took a 26-25 advantage into halftime and 40-38 edge after three periods before building a cushion in the decisive fourth.

Senior guard Presley Brown was in the triple-double realm for Bellarmine, collecting 11 points, seven rebounds and six assists. Senior forward Sheniqua Coatney pulled down 11 rebounds. Alice Recanati paced the Colonels with 17 points, Johnson added 16 and I'Liyah Green posted a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds.

Bellarmine will host Central Arkansas in an ASUN contest at 6:30 p.m. (ET) Wednesday in Freedom Hall.

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