(RMC release)
BUTTE – The No. 18 Rocky Mountain College women’s basketball team raced out to an early lead and then cruised to a 68-52 win over Montana Tech on Friday night in Frontier Conference play.
Rocky (16-3, 6-3 Frontier) scored the first eight points of the game on their way to a 27-6 lead after one quarter. They shot 43.9 percent from the field and hit on 9 of 21 attempts from beyond the arc.
Hailee Farstveet had her best outing of the season with 20 points on 7 of 12 shooting. Her season-high point total was her third straight game in double figures after just four such outings in the season’s first 16 games.
The Battlin’ Bears held Montana Tech (13-9, 3-7) to 29.2 percent shooting and they forced the home side into 15 turnovers. Rocky finished with a 43-41 edge in rebounds and they had 26 points in the paint.
Markaela Francis scored 13 points and grabbed six rebounds. Justyn Juhl added 11 points and eight rebounds off the Rocky bench. She tied Farstveet for the team lead in rebounds. Brooke Jones led the team with five assists.
Sammy McGree led the Orediggers with nine points off the bench.
Friday’s win keeps the Battlin’ Bears one-game behind 10th-ranked Carroll for first in the Frontier. The two teams will play on Saturday at 5:30 p.m. on Saturday.
