BUTTE, Mont. – A 23-5 first half run broke open a close game, as Montana Tech rolled to an 86-59 victory over the College of Idaho at Kelvin Sampson Court.
The Orediggers (1-0) got a game-high 20 points from preseason All-Frontier Conference guard Mandy Marchinal, as MT made 50-percent of their field goal attempts, including 11-of-23 shots from outside the arc, and held a sizable 48-28 edge on the glass.
The Lady Yotes (0-1), playing their first game under new head coach Mark Owen, got 11 points from Aleah Lowber and 10 points from junior transfer Alicia Jones, but were limited to 35-percent shooting on the afternoon.
Tech opened the game on a 9-2 run, getting seven quick Kayla DeWitt points in the opening three minutes, before the Yotes caught fire. Brittany Wirth canned a pair of three's and Jones had a lay-up, as C of I took a 14-13 lead with 13 minutes remaining in the half. Back-to-back Hattie Thatcher baskets started the big Digger run, with Machinal and Martha Dembek hitting three's for MT, as the hosts pushed the lead to 44-28 at the half.
MT extended the margin to 58-35 with 13 minutes remaining, but the Coyotes rattled off seven-straight points, capped by a Jones jumper, to get within 16. DeWitt answered with a three-point play, and Tech was never threatened again.
C of I returns to action tomorrow with a 7 p.m. tip at Rocky Mountain.
