Showing no obvious signs of a slump after the long holiday break, the Lady Bears began the 2016 portion of their schedule just as they ended the 2015 portion-with a win. Their 86-57 victory over the Mississippi Delta Lady Trojans, in Moorhead, was the seventh straight for the Lady Bears and moved them to 10-1 on the season.

Behind 17 Gabriella Cortez points, the Lady Bears took a 28-16 lead over the Lady Trojans (1-9) after one quarter. A layup by Lillie Snowden with 6:10 left in the second quarter extended the lead to 35-18 and Teshia Jones’ three pointer made it 46-22 with 2:37 on the clock. A jumper by the Lady Trojans’ Jasmine Jackson late in the quarter left the Lady Bears with a 46-24 advantage at the end of the half.

The Lady Bears kept firm control of the game in the third quarter, going up 61-32 on back-to-back layups from Ke’Asia Gray. Three free throws from Chelsea James then put them on top 66-38 going into the final quarter.

The Lady Trojans outscored the Lady Bears 15-10 to open the fourth quarter as they pulled to within 13, 76-53, with 4:25 left in the game. But, that would be as close as the hosts would come as the Lady Bears closed the game on an 11-4 run to claim the win.

“I thought early we were a little sluggish,” said Lady Bears head coach Brent Harris. “The press helped us get going. If you know our team like we do, I thought we could have done a lot better. But, I’m very proud to go on the road and do what we did tonight.”

Cortez led all scorers in the game with 22 points. She also had eight rebounds and five steals. Jones recorded 14 points while Alissa Adam had 12 points and eight assists. Snowden scored 11. The Lady Bears were nearly perfect from the free throw line, hitting 12 of 15.

McKinnon Skeen topped the home team with 13 points. The Lady Trojans were 4-16 from the free throw line.

The Lady Bears return to the court on January 11 as they resume MACJC South Division play with a 5:30 home contest against Meridian.