Slow start, strong second half push Lady Bengals past Southwestern Christian
The LSU Eunice women's basketball team overcame a slow start for the second consecutive day, pulling away from Southwestern Christian College on Saturday afternoon for a 69-48 victory.
A back and forth game in the opening minutes, Southwestern Christian led by three with under eight minutes to play in the first half before the Lady Bengals (8-1) responded before the break and took a 12 point lead into halftime.
In the second half, the lead was cut to as low as six points in the first three minutes before LSU Eunice extended the lead to a comfortable margin for the rest of the game.
"We came out a little sluggish, but we were able to get our composure and come out and play hard and execute some things we've been working on," head coach Yolanda Moore said.
Sophomore Taylor Hurd led the Lady Bengal offense with a 15-point game, adding four assists, two blocks, two steals and a rebound to her final stat line.
Fellow sophomore Meghan Cross was the only other LSUE player in double figures, finishing with 13 points and adding four rebounds and a steal.
Baylie Lee finished with eight points and a pair of rebounds, while three players – Brooke Richard, Misha Mouton and Taylor Holzmeier – each notched six points in the win. Mouton added three rebounds, three steals and three assists, while Holzmeier grabbed four rebounds and had a steal and an assist, and Richard tallied three rebounds and an assist.
Sophomores Tayor Maricle and Victoria Fontenot each added five points, wit hMaricle adding seven assists, four rebounds and a steal. McKayla Willie tallied three points and three rebounds, Meghan Knight and Kelsey Thibodeaux each added two points to round out the scoring, with Thibodeaux filling her stat line with six rebounds, an assist, steal and a blocked shot, and Knight adding three rebounds.
The Lady Bengals are back in action on Tuesday when they travel to take on Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College for the third time this season. LSUE has won both previous meetings, in Eunice on Nov. 6 and in Perkinston on Nov. 13.
"It's hard to beat the same team twice, let alone three times. They are playing with a chip on their shoulder so we have to go in, be focused and be aggressive and play our game," Coach Moore added.
Tipoff is set for 11 a.m. on Tuesday and can be seen on Bengal All-Access.
