Concord Falls to LMU in Season Opener, 79-65

Box Score
It was the first regular season game of the year for the Mountain Lions, who were picked to finish seventh in the Mountain East Conference preseason coaches' poll earlier in the month.

CU got behind early to the Railsplitters leading to a 45-29 halftime deficit. CU trimmed the LMU lead to as little as 14 points at the 13:30 mark of the second half, but were never able to cut into the Lincoln Memorial advantage any further en route to 14-point defeat.

Junior forward Andrea Bertrand made her return to the Concord lineup after missing all but four games last year due to injury. She scored 15 points and grabbed five rebounds. Junior guard Sissy Wagner matched Bertrand's total of 15 points on 5-of-10 shooting from the field and dished out a team-high five assists while only committing one turnover to go with a pair of steals.

Senior center Sammi Webster fell one point shy of matching her career-high with 13 points while also pulling down a team-high eight rebounds and making two blocks. Webster was 4-for-6 from the field and a perfect 5-for-5 from the foul line.

The fourth CU player to register double figures in scoring was junior forward Jacqueline Kestner, who is a Tennessee native. She scored 11 points and five boards and three steals while playing a team-high 30 minutes before fouling out.

Concord outrebounded Lincoln Memorial 41-38 including 20 offensive rebounds. The Mountain Lions were able to force 28 turnovers, scoring 29 points on the miscues.

CU shot 23-for-68 (33.8 percent) compared to the Railsplitters who shot 25-for-51 (49.0 percent). The Mountain Lions outperformed LMU from the foul line going 18-for-24 (75 percent) as opposed to 20-for-29 (69.0 percent) for Lincoln Memorial.

Concord will open up its home slate Tuesday, Nov, 19, when they host Mercer County rival Bluefield State. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. at the Carter Center.