The Sacramento State women’s basketball team lost a close one, 66-63 to Eastern Washington at the Hornets’ Nest on Saturday.

In the last home game of the season for the Hornets, Senior Night played host to the 9-18 Eastern Washington Eagles.

The Hornets fell to 3-25 overall, 1-13 in the Big Sky Conference.

Coach Dan Muscatell said his team played a hard game, but in the end it came down to statistics.

The team missed key free throws in the second half, shooting 9-14, and turned the ball over nine times more than their opponents.

“We had nine more turnovers that turned into nine more attempts for our opponents,” Muscatell said.

The Hornets came out shooting in the first half and led 13-4 after the opening five minutes.

The Hornets held onto the lead for the entire first half, but the Eagles kept it close and tied it up with 28 seconds left to go.

Over the past couple of games, guard Stephanie Cherry said the team has been improving and the younger players can carry this type of intensity into next season.

“We played without hearts today,” Cherry said.

Cherry had 12 points on the night, including going three-for-three on the line with three assists.

The second half became a more intense game as the lead changed 13 times. After senior Ashley Storms had a tremendous blocked shot in the second half, it fired up the bench as well as the crowd.

“She got the ball and there was no way I was going to let her score,” Storms said.

But it wasn’t enough as the Eagles hit a three-pointer and made two free throws in the final seconds to move the game out of reach for the Hornets.

But there is still a bright side to this season, as Muscatell said the “young pups” on the team have been improving in all areas.

“I don’t know what caused the light to go on, but (the players) are understanding how hard you have to play to succeed,” Muscatell said.

Matthew Beltran can be reached at [email protected]