EDMONTON, Alta. - The NAIT Ooks women's basketball team defeated the Lakeland Rustlers 70-65 in a rare Thursday night matchup. 

The consistently strong Lakeland Rustlers, led by head coach Chris King came out of the gate strong in their season opener, outscoring the Ooks 21-16 in the opening quarter. Third-year Ooks guard Allie Hunder went down awkwardly in the opening quarter, forcing NAIT head coach Todd Warnick to turn to his bench early. Carly McHarg answered the call, posting 15 points off the bench. 

The Ooks dominated the second quarter outscoring the Rustlers 16-6 to give them a 32-27 lead at halftime. From there, the two teams battled until the final buzzer. In the end, NAIT's balanced scoring and solid defense reign supreme handing them their third straight win of the season 70-65. 

Players of the Game

NAIT Ooks - Hallie Watt

Lakeland Rustlers - Jaden Cook

The Big Picture

NAIT Ooks - 3-0-0 1st in the ACAC north division

Lakeland Rustlers - 0-1-0 - 4th in the ACAC north division

What's Next

The two teams will now rematch in Lloydminster at 6:00 pm Friday.