RUSTON – The Lady Techsters opened the 50th season with a dominating 93-37 win over LSU-Alexandria inside the Thomas Assembly Center on Monday night.
Louisiana Tech (1-0) came out on fire in the first quarter, connecting on 5-14 from three to jump out to a 28-7 lead and never looked back. The Lady Techsters defense held LSU-Alexandria (1-0) to just 12-48 from the field for the game.
Senior Salma Bates hit four of her career-high six 3s in the first quarter en route to a career-high 18 points. Robyn Lee had a career night as well, with a game-high 21 on 9-12 shooting to go along with six rebounds. Freshman Jianna Morris had an impressive debut in a Techster uniform with six points, six assists, and five rebounds.
“We were excited to be back on the floor tonight in front of our fans,” Lady Techster head coach Brooke Stoehr said. “It was an opportunity for a couple of our players, Jianna Morris and Evie Goetz, to get to put the uniform on for the first time in front of the crowd. Our players were excited, and they were tired of practicing against the same people.
“For the most part, we shared the ball really well and had good energy about us. We knocked down some shots and moved the ball well offensively. We have Some things to clean up defensively. We will get back and watch the film and address those in practice. Twenty-one assists is something to be excited about.”
On the first possession of the season, Anna Larr Roberson made a turnaround at the post, got fouled, and converted the and-one opportunity. LSU-A tied it up with a three, but five straight points from Autumn Smith would highlight a Lady Techster 9-0 run.
Salma Bates started to heat up from behind the arc just before the first media timeout, connecting on back-to-back threes to extend the Lady Techsters lead to double-digits at 18-7.
After the timeout, both teams struggled to score from the floor, only connecting on six free throws, until Bates connected on two straight threes, including a buzzer-beater to give the Techsters a 28-9 lead after one.
The teams traded points to start the second before a layup by Robyn Lee ignited a 21-2 run to close out the half. The Lady Techsters held the Generals to just 5-24 (20.8%) from the floor while connecting on 19-33 (57.6%) and 10-14 (71.4%) in the second quarter.
The second half started the same way the first half ended. The Techsters pushed their lead to 65-17 with an 11-point run to open the quarter. Tech would go cold the remainder of the quarter, being outscored 8-2.
LSU-A opened the fourth, making four of their first five shots and outscored the Lady Techsters 11-6. A 3 from the wing by Lee sparked a 19-1 run by the Techsters to close the game.
Junior Autumn Smith also put up a career night with 13 points on 4-of-7 shooting with three assists and three steals.
“Autumn has an opportunity, and I think she’s taking advantage of that in practice,” Stoehr said. “She’s taking advantage of in the two scrimmages that we’ve had. She’s got a great athleticism and she’s strong. She flies around and I swear she never gets tired.
“I think she gained some confidence tonight. And that’s what we need defensively.”
Tech returns to action Thursday, Nov. 9, at 11:30 a.m. for the Education Day game against Louisiana Christian.
