In front of a crowd of over 1,200 fans, a lack luster first half did the Lady Lions (5-11, 0-3) in against the McNeese State Cowgirls (14-4, 4-0) losing 36-60.  

“They had 21 offensive rebounds,” said head coach Lori Davis Jones. “They shot 37 percent from the field and we only shot 25 percent. We only shot 12 percent in the first half. I think the things that happened in the first half, we could not overcome.”

The first five minutes of the game saw the two teams evenly matched until the 15:49 mark. From there, Cowgirl guard Caitlyn Baggett hit a three pointer to put them ahead 4-7. The lead would not change hands again. The Lady Lions would score four more points before a six-minute scoring drought that put the Cowgirls ahead 8-29. The Cowgirls would win the first half handily, 14-33.

During the half, Davis Jones tried to emphasize the magnitude of the game to her team.

“We just talked about being tough,” said Davis Jones. “That’s all we did at half time. We talked about being tough and being embarrassed, getting the ball taken out of our hands and giving up offensive rebounds. The sad thing is that we dug ourselves such a deep hole. We keep it a pretty even game in the first half and anything can happen in the second half.”

The Lady Lions spent much of the first four minutes fighting their way back into the game. By the 16:31 mark, a three pointer by senior guard Amber Crenshaw pulled the Lady Lions to within 14 points of the lead, before an 11-point scoring run by the Cowgirls put the score at 25-50. The Lady Lions spent the rest of the game trying to catch up, but to no avail, losing their third straight contest.

Senior guard Latoria Holder led the Lady Lions in scoring with nine, while redshirt sophomore Aja Gibson contributed seven points and eight rebounds. Freshman guard Elizabeth Styles added two points, two steals, and two assists.

For the Cowgirls, Baggett twins combined for 33 of the Cowgirls’ 60 points.  Senior forward Kendra Wells contributed three blocks to the game. Afterwards, Davis Jones noted the opposing team’s toughness.

“I just think we weren’t tough enough,” said Davis Jones. “I think we missed a couple shots early, they got some and ones early. I just don’t think we were tough enough.”