MADISON, Wis. (SabreAthletics.com)  --  The Marian University women's basketball  team was in a fight for sixth place in the conference tonight, Jan. 28, in a road match-up against the Edgewood Eagles. It was a two-point difference at halftime, but shooting struggles for the Sabres proved to be the difference as the Eagles ran away with a 68-54 victory.

The Sabres (11-8, 7-7 NACC) have relied on sharp shooting from beyond the arc throughout the season, but were unable to rely on it tonight, going 7-28 from downtown. Sarah Olewinski was the game's leading scorer with 15 points, thanks in part to 9-of-10 shooting from the free throw line.

It was a struggle from the field early on for the Sabres as they shot just under 18 percent as a team in the first half. Foul troubles by the Eagles (9-10, 8-6 NACC) helped keep the Sabres in the game as they committed 12 in the half, leading to 13 made free throws by the Sabres  to put the half-time deficit at two.

The Eagles were able to shoot slightly under 35 percent in the first half, but thanks to 1-of-5 shooting from beyond the arc, and only eight attempted free throws, they were unable to take advantage of the Sabres' shooting issues early on.

Shooting picked up for the Sabres in the second half as they went 6-of 13 from beyond the arc, but they were still unable to earn points inside, making only 4-of-16. Brandi Bender was a bright spot for the Sabres off the bench, scoring 10 points in 14 minutes on 4-of-6 shooting, including eight points in the second half.

A 10-point run for the Eagles to start the second half quickly put the Sabres in a hole. FreshmanHannah Menzia led the second-half surge for the Eagles, scoring 11 of her team-high 14 points. The Eagles shot just under 47 percent in the final 20 minutes to outscore the Sabres, 42-30.

The Sabres shot 26.3 percent as a team, led by a bench that shot 8-of-21. They also went 17-of-24 on the night from the free throw line, but only 4-of-7 from the line in the second half.

The setback puts the Sabres in seventh place in the NACC, but with six games (all conference games) remaining on the schedule they are still in position to make a run. The Sabres pick up action on Saturday, Jan. 31, when they face last-place Dominican. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m.