The University of Mary Washington men's basketball team dropped a 69-61 decision at Shenandoah University on Friday night in Winchester, Va. The Eagles fall to 0-3 on the season.

The Eagles started slowly on Friday, falling behind, 11-4, in the opening minutes before closing the gap to two at 11-9 with 12:39 left on a pair of Emerson Burk free throws. Eight straight points - including six from senior Taylor Johnson - gave UMW its first lead at 17-14 with 10:11 on the clock.

An 8-0 run from Shenandoah gave the Hornets a 22-17 lead with 7:59 remaining. SU upped the lead to as many as nine before the Eagles chipped away to take a two-point deficit to halftime, 29-27.

In the second, the teams traded shots early, as the score was tied three times, with UMW assuming a narrow lead. The Eagles reeled off seven straight points to take a 42-35 lead with 11:11 remaining, with Johnson hitting a three pointer in the run.

The Hornets then went on a 17-4 run over the next seven minutes to take a 52-46 lead with 4:47 to go. Sophomore Brent Mahoney completed a three-point play and John Lutkenhaus hit a jumper to keep the Eagles within one possession in the final minutes, but the Hornets hit several jumpers and made 5-6 free throws in the final minute for the victory.

The Eagles were led by Johnson's 18 points and 14 rebounds, while Mahoney scored 11 and Lutkenhaus 10. Jared Carrithers led all scorers with 23 points for SU.

UMW shot 35.7% from the field 20-56, struggling from distance by going 3-24 on three point attempts. Shenandoah shot 41% (25-61), making 5-21 three point attempts. The Hornets edged UMW in rebounding 43-40, and created 20 points off Eagle turnovers.

The Eagles will face Hampden-Sydney on Saturday in Winchester at 2:00 p.m.