DALLAS – LeTourneau University women's basketball team opened the season with a 74-60 win over the University of North Texas at Dallas Tuesday at Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship.
 
LETU will meet the same Trailblazers team a week from Thursday in Longview to complete the home-and-home series.
 
LeTourneau outrebounded UNT Dallas, 64-36, in a dominant display of board work in which three YellowJackets grabbed double digit rebounds. Flora Akingbade had 15 boards, including seven on the offensive end, while Scruffy Hopkins had 11 and Malacia Guy 10, each pulling down five on the offensive glass.
 
The Jackets overcame a 5-for-23 field goal shooting performance in the first quarter, marred by a 1-for-11 effort from three-point range, that left them behind by three entering the second period. That's when the YellowJackets kicked their offense up a notch, shooting 42 percent from the field and beyond the arc. LETU outscored UNTD, 23-12, in the second quarter to take an eight-point lead into the break.
 
Keauna Whitfield's layup at the 7:09 mark of the second quarter started a 14-0 run. Briona Andrews hit a 3-pointer, and Guy buried another 4:45 before halftime to give LeTourneau an 11-point lead. The Trailblazers cut it to nine twice, the second time on a pair of Shandrea Yeldell free throws. Whitfield scored in the paint, and then split a pair from the free throw line with a minute remaining to extend the lead back to 12, but UNT Dallas pulled within eight when DI' Ambria Whyte hit the front of a pair herself as the Trailblazers cut it to 36-28 five seconds before the break.
 
Whitfield finished with 27 points, seven rebounds, three assists and three steals.
 
The Jackets outscored the Blazers, 17-5, in points off turnovers in the opening half, and 9-2 in second chance points.
 
The Trailblazers drew within two on Brooke Lopez's layup at the 6:46 mark of the third quarter. Kyndall Hardeman scored in the paint 2:25 later to pad the YellowJackets' lead back to six, and Whitfield knocked down a jumper in the paint to make it 48-40, but Mykayla Dumas canned a triple on UNTD's next possession. Guy scored at the 1:48 mark to make it a nine-point lead before Whyte's basket 44 seconds later.
 
Lopez hit a 3 with 5:59 remaining as the Blazers closed within 59-54, but Akingbade and Ty Moon each scored within less than a minute as the YellowJackets padded the cushion back to nine. Hopkins' jumper in the paint at the 3:30 mark made it an 11-point game, and Guy drained one of her three triples on the next possession to put the game away.
 
Guy had a double-double with 13 points to couple her 10 boards. Hopkins recorded another with 10 points to bookend her 11 rebounds, six assists and three steals. Akingbade was the third YellowJacket to notch a double-double after complementing her career-high 15 rebounds with 10 points, three steals and a block.
 
LeTourneau outscored UNT Dallas, 22-2, in second chance points. The Jackets' bench outscored the Trailblazers', 18-2.
 
LeTourneau's home opener is set for 6:30 p.m. Dec. 3 against UNT Dallas. Crowd capacity is limited to 100 spectators.