LeTourneau University women's basketball opened the season with an exhibition game against NCAA Division I member Northwestern State on Friday afternoon. While the result won't count in the YellowJackets' record; the experience and game repetitions will be valuable as they begin the 2016-17 season.
 
The YellowJackets threatened to cut the Lady Demons' lead to single digits on a couple of occasions in the second half, but NSU responded each time and took the victory 80-68.
 
Seniors Crystal Jones and LaTanya Drakes led the YellowJackets with Jones pouring in 19 points and Drakes adding 17 points and nine big rebounds.
 
Ashley Crockett opened her senior season with a seven point, six rebound effort and also energized the LeTourneau defense taking two charges.
 
"I was happy to see where we are at against a challenging opponent and we got a lot of contributions from several players," said head coach Leslie Reinecker. "We are starting to see more options out of our offense and we were able to work on several defenses. I am excited about where we are and look forward to getting some things cleaned up for our next game."
 
The YellowJackets will back in action for their first regular season game next Wednesday at 6 PM as they take on NCAA DII opponent Texas A&M-Commerce.