CONWAY, Ark. (January 3, 2022) - After nearly a month off, the Rhodes women;s basketball team didn't show any signs of rust as they started SAA play with a road win at Hendrix College on Monday afternoon. With the win, Rhodes moves to 9-2 (1-0 SAA) on the year, while Hendrix drops to 6-6 (0-1 SAA). 

It was a tight match for all four quarters, with neither team exceeding a lead of more than 10 points. Rhodes got things started with a Catherine Althoff bucket on their first possession, followed by a layup from A'niya Lagarde to stake an early lead. A pair of baskets from Madi Pierce put the Warriors ahead for the first time at 7-4, but the Lynx were quick to answer. Libby Long was good from her last nae to tie it up at seven, followed by another Lagarde bucket to make it 9-7. The two teams swapped makes until the 2:36 mark, and then went cold for the remainder of the quarter. At the end of one, Rhodes led 16-13. 

The second quarter saw the Lynx score the first six points of the period with makes from Lagarde, Althoff, and Taya Lee. Lagarde would end up scoring three more shot from the restricted area, giving her 14 points at the half. The Lynx effort on the defensive end was particularly impressive in the second, as they held the Warriors to 4-15 shooting (26.7%). At halftime, Rhodes held a 30-26 advantage. 

Following the theme of the game, Rhodes got two lay-ins in the first minute of the third quarter from Long and Althoff. Following two Hendrix makes, the game was close at 35-30, but a big three from Alli Mayeux and a layup from Lee made it 40-30. Hendrix stuck around by knocking down nine of thirteen free throw attempts in the quarter. However, another triple from Mayeux with under a minute to go helped the Lynx maintain a 45-40 lead heading into the final frame. Again, the Rhodes defense was superb as they limited the Warriors to 2-13 (15.3%) shooting.

Hendrix came out hot in the fourth, scoring six points and pulling within one at 47-46. Hallie Schiff hit two free throws to extend the Lynx lead, but Kelsey Korb hit a three to tie things up, followed by a Jala Henderson jumper that gave Hendrix their first lead of the game with 6:45 to go. Mayeux and Lagarde were able to onvert down low to retake the lead, followed by two clutch threes from Long moments later to make the score 59-52. At that point, Rhodes was able to slow the pace of the game and work for easy buckets around the rim for the rest of the game. They were also clutch at the free throw line, hitting their final four attempts with under a minute to go to cement the final of 71-64.

The story of the game was Rhodes' offense down low. The Lynx were able to use their size and touch around the rim to drop 36 points in the paint compared to 16 for Hendrix. Rhodes also forced 16 turnovers on defense. Lagarde was the leading scorer for Rhodes, with 22 points on 9-16 from the field. She also added eleven rebounds and four assists. Two other Lynx recorded double-doubles in the game. Alli Mayeux went for 15 points and 15 rebounds while Catherine Althoff carded 15 points and 16 boards. 

Next up for the Lynx is the conference home opener against Berry on Friday, January 7 at Mallory Gym. Due to newly formed health protocols, fans WILL NOT be allowed to attend the game in person. However, you can catch all the action live on the using this link