Missouri Western women defeated Livin’ the Dream in its opening game at MWSU Fieldhouse 98-77. The Griffons open up their first regular season contest this Saturday against Chadron State with a 1 p.m. tip-off.

If they can shoot the ball like they did Tuesday night, they should continue to make progress.

Coming off a 16-win season that produced 10 more wins than the season prior, the Griffons shot nearly 47 percent on the night. Tiara Hall had a double-double in her first action as a Griffon, gong 7-for-8 with 15 points and 10 rebounds. Countering her efforts was Quenisha Lockett, who was 5 of 8 with 12 points and six boards.

Missouri Western collected 54 rebounds total compared to the Dream’s 33. The Dream were led by Ashley Birch and Cassondra Boston. Birch shot 63 percent and scored 19 points. Cassondra Boston had a team-high 24 points going 9-for-20.

For the Griffons, coach Rob Edmisson’s second season starts as he used 16 players in his rotation. JaQuitta Dever produced a team-high 10 assists. Ariana Novak started her first game in a Missouri Western uniform and led the team with 16 points and four steals. A transfer from Malcolm X College, Novak was 4 of 7 from the 3-point line.

The game broke open midway through the first half. Alex Saxen nailed a 3 to move the Griffons to a double-digit lead 26-14 with 8 minutes, 7 seconds left in the frame. From there, the Griffons didn’t let it go back to singles, and led 45-32 at the break.

In the second half, the Griffons took their biggest lead of the game with 7:19 to play. Lcokett put in a layup to go up 88-59. The Dream brought the game a little closer later on, but never threatened the Griffons. Dever’s two free throws followed three points by their opponents to mark the score 98-77.

— MWSU Sports Information —