BALTIMORE - American University converted free throws down the stretch to hold off the Loyola University Maryland women's basketball team and escape Reitz Arena with a 67-56 win Wednesday night.
 
Freshman Taleah Dixon had a personal-best and game-high 25 points for the Greyhounds, while senior Bri Betz-White chipped in 12 points. Junior Stephanie Karcz nearly had a double-double in rebounds and assists, as she finished with game-high honors in rebounds (11), assists (9) and steals (5).
 
Four Eagles reached double figures in scoring, led by Cecily Carl's 16.
 
Junior Hannah Niles' triple and Dixon's pair of free throws gave the Greyhounds their first lead of the contest, at 5-4. The Eagles answered with a 5-0 run, but Betz-White connected from downtown to spark an 11-3 run that flipped the four-point deficit into a 16-12 advantage. Eight of those points came from Dixon, including the 3-pointer at the 2:03 mark to give the Greyhounds the four-point lead.
 
American scored the final five points of the stanza though, jumping back in front, 17-16.
 
The Eagles stretched their lead to 10 in the second quarter, at 28-18, before Karcz's jumper broke their streak. Dixon then went on a personal 6-0 run that cut Loyola's deficit to two, 28-26, with 1:26 to play in the half. American halted her streak, but Dixon ended the quarter with a layup to send the Greyhounds into the locker room down two, 30-28.
 
Although the Eagles started the second half on a 9-2 run, giving them a 39-30 advantage less than five minutes into play, the Greyhounds answered with 10-unanswered points to regain the lead, 40-39. The Eagles then used a pair of free throws to reverse it again and close out the quarter with a one-point advantage, 41-40.
 
Betz-White answered American's 3-pointer to start the fourth quarter with an and-1 conversion, keeping the game tied at 43-43, but a 9-2 run pushed the Eagles ahead 52-45. Loyola worked to cut its deficit to four, 60-54, with just under one minute to play, but the Eagles closed out the game seven free throws to seal the victory.
 
Loyola will return to action on Saturday as it travels to Lafayette for a 2 p.m. contest.