Case Western Reserve University senior guard Sarah Mitchell scored a career-high 24 points, senior forward Kayla Characklis added 18 points, and first-year guard Mya Hartjes notched her the first double-double of her career, but it was not enough for the Spartans, who fell to 22nd-ranked Emory 83-71 on Friday night at Horsburgh Gymnasium in Cleveland.

The Spartans fell to 9-14 overall with the loss, including a 2-10 mark in the University Athletic Association. Emory raised its record to 18-5 with an 8-4 UAA mark.

Mitchell recorded her fourth 20-point effort in the last seven games after not having one over her career before that point. She finished the game shooting nine-of-19 overall and two-of-four from behind the three-point line while adding five rebounds and a pair of steals.

Characklis added a seven-of-13 effort from the floor with six rebounds and two steals, and Hartjes finished with 10 points, a career-high 10 rebounds, and three assists. Senior guard Margaret Terry chipped in seven points and a team-high five assists off the bench.

Emory took an early lead in the game, but the Spartans tied the game at 9-9 on a three-pointer by Terry with 3:09 left in the quarter and took their first lead on a layup by graduate student forward Kate Montgomery on the next possession after an Emory miss from the floor. However, the Eagles answered with back-to-back threes to take the lead back and ended the first quarter with a 19-13 lead. Emory increased its lead to eight, 29-21, with 6:41 to play in the half, but the Spartans trimmed the lead back to three points, 34-31, with 3:02 left in the frame on two free throws from Montgomery. Emory once again had a response, pulling away with a 7-0 run to end the half and take a 41-31 lead into the break.

The Eagles' run extended into the third quarter as Emory opened the frame with a three to go ahead by 13 and took a 49-35 lead with 5:49 left in the third. The Spartans began to chip away at the lead, cutting it down to five points on a three from Mitchell with 1:08 left in the period and cutting the Eagles' lead to five, 58-53, by the end of the quarter with a three from Hartjes.

CWRU stayed close early in the fourth, getting within four points, 62-58, after a pair of free throws from Hartjes with 6:35 remaining in the game. However, Emory was able to pull away from there, getting the lead back to double digits with 4:29 to play and taking a 12-point lead in the closing seconds for the 83-71 win.

Despite taking the loss, the Spartans finished the game with a 32-16 edge in points in the paint and a 15-5 edge in second-chance points. CWRU finished the game shooting 39.7% overall and 31.8% from long range, but did not have an answer for Emory's three-point shooting, as the Eagles finished the game shooting 61.9% from behind the three-point line, including a seven-of-12 three-point effort from Daniella Aronsky who finished with a game-high 26 points.

CWRU will continue its season-ending three-game home stand on Sunday, hosting the University of Rochester at 2:00 p.m.