Lady Tigers drop season opener

CARL JUNCTION, Mo. -- The Nevada Lady Tigers basketball season got the 2009-'10 season under way Monday night, playing in the second game of the Carl Junction Classic tournament against the host, the Carl Junction Lady Bulldogs.

The game looked as though it would be a blowout through the early minutes as Carl Junction senior Lauren McRae scored 16 of her 28 points in the game's first 8 minutes, allowing the Lady Bulldogs to work their way to an 18-6 lead at the end of the opening period. That lead stayed nearly stable through the second quarter and the Lady Tigers eventually found themselves in a 29-18 hole at halftime.

The Lady Bulldogs eventually extended that lead to as much as 14 points in the third quarter before the Lady Tigers mounted a strong comeback. In the closing minutes, the Lady Tigers were able to cut that margin to just four points, but were unable to close the deal as Carl Junction took the victory by a final score of 50-46.

Nevada didn't have any players in double figures on the night, but Tiffani Long and Olivia Culbertson each finished with nine to tie for the team lead. Both players eventually fouled out of the game in the fourth quarter.

With that loss, head coach Brent Bartlett's squad fell to 0-1 on the year and will be back in action in the tournament's consolation bracket tomorrow as they take on the Lamar Lady Tigers -- who lost their opening round game to Webb City by a final score of 65-11 -- at 6 p.m., at Carl Junction High School.