Jan. 27, 2010

BEAUMONT, Texas - Trashanna Smith and Kalis Loyd each had double-doubles to lead the Lamar University women's basketball team to an 86-68 win over Sam Houston State in a Southland Conference women's basketball game at the Montagne Center Wednesday night.

Smith had a season-high 19 points to go along with 11 rebounds and a career-high six assists, while Loyd finished with 12 points and a career-high 14 rebounds as Lamar improved to 16-4 overall and 6-0 in the conference. It's Lamar's best-ever start in the SLC.

Darika Hill (16 points), Jenna Plumley (14 points) and Ashley Crawford (11 points) also scored in double figures for the Lady Cardinals, who remain the only undefeated team in SLC play.

"This team can score," Lamar coach Larry Tidwell said. "We shot 47.6 percent from the field. That's pretty good."

Lamar committed a season-high 24 turnovers, but made up for it by outrebounding the Bearkats 53-30.

Whitney Smith led Sam Houston State (5-12, 2-3) with 17 points. Brittany Brooks had 13 points and Khamra Echols added 10 for the Bearkats.

Lamar returns to action at 2:05 p.m. Saturday when it hosts UTSA in a Southland Conference game. For ticket information, call (409) 880-1715 or visit lamarcardinals.com.

LAMAR