Lee Lady Flames Cruise to Easy Win in Season Opener Against West Florida

(leeuflames.com)After being off the playing floor for over nine months, the Lee University women showed little sign of rust by outscoring visiting West Florida, 23-10 in the first quarter and then holding a commanding 52-24 halftime lead in a convincing 80-58 victory on Monday afternoon inside Walker Arena.

Sophomore Haley Schubert made 9-of-11 shots from the field and one 3-pointer in leading the Lady Flames with 22 points. She also displayed her quickness and came away with six steals, plus going to the boards for a team-leading five rebounds.

Maddie Long, who has worked her way back from a pair of knee surgeries, hit 5-of-7 shots inside the arc and made 3-4 from beyond the circle in finishing with 13 points. “I was so happy to see Maddie playing well again. It has been a long, hard road for her to return from the knee surgeries. We have to be careful not to extend her minutes,” praised Coach Marty Rowe after the victory.

Freshman Julia Duncan was also impressive in her debut. She finished with 12 points, five assists and a couple of steals. Hannah Garrett, a junior transfer from Tennessee Tech, had nine points and three assists. “Hannah is a great 3-point shooter, and we will see more of that as the season progresses,” said Rowe.

Junior Micah Black came off the bench to can a pair of 3-pointers and tallied eight markers. Sophomore Morgan Carbaugh had seven points and four rebounds. All totaled, 11 Lady Flames saw action and nine scored.

Lee shot 49% from the field (30-61). They made 11-24 triples (46%) and converted 9-13 free throws. West Florida won the rebounding battle 44-37 but managed to shoot just 31% from the field and converted only 15-27 charity attempts (56%).

Charlotte Ellmore was the only Argonaut player with double-figure scoring (13). Aline Fevier and Danielle Norquest pitched in with nine points each. The visitors got a lift from Gabby Brown who pulled down 11 rebounds.

The Lady Flames had 17 total assists to 12 turnovers. On the other hand, the Argonauts had just seven assists and a total of 19 floor mistakes.

“Overall, I was pleased with the effort of the entire team today,” pointed out Coach Rowe. “We have waited a long time for this day and our girls were excited about the opportunity to play. We will watch the film tonight and then go back to work tomorrow as we get ready for a game at Shorter on Wednesday (6 PM). Shorter is much improved and is coming off an impressive road win at Auburn Montgomery. We will wrap up our pre-Christmas schedule at Valdosta State on Saturday at 2 PM.”