CULLOWHEE, N.C. – The North Carolina Central University women's basketball program opened its season 1-0 for the second-straight year as the Lady Eagles (1-0) defeated the Western Carolina Catamounts (0-1) during opening night, (Nov. 14) in Cullowhee, N.C.

Senior Khyra Conerly (Oakland, California) led all-scorers during the triumph with 20 points, as the 5-8 guard shot 10-for-14 from the field.

The Catamounts scored first during the contest, after a foul from NCCU's Nikki Works (Syracuse, New York) sent WCU's Sherae Bonner to the line in the opening seconds of the game.

A 1-0 lead was the largest the Catamounts would witness, has senior Rachel Williams (Rancho Cucamonga) connected with sophomore Morgan Jones (Stockbride, Georgia) downtown, pushing the Lady Eagles on top 3-1, 41 seconds into competition.

With 2:39 left on the first half clock, rookie Kierona Morton (Paterson, New Jersey) collected her third and fourth points of her collegiate career after a put-back layup gave NCCU its largest lead of the first half, 33-24.

The Lady Eagles took a 33-26 advantage into the half, shooting 14-for-35 (40%) from the field and 4-for-8 (50%) from behind the arc, as Jones' sharp shooting lead the Lady Eagles with 14 first-half points.

Midway through the second half, WCU used a 7-1 run to bring the score within one, but after a 30 second timeout NCCU answered scoring six consecutive points.

Although the Lady Eagles were outscored 33-31 during the second half, a shot from the foul line from Williams, with 16 seconds left in the contest, set the final score at 64-59.  

Three Lady Eagles finished in double-figure scoring during the season-opening victory. In addition to Conerly's 20, Jones added 14 and senior Racquel Davis (Brooklyn, New York) earned 12.

Works finished with a team-best 10 boards during her NCCU debut, while Conerly and Davis pulled down nine and eight off the glass respectively.

The Lady Eagles return to action on Monday, Nov. 17 as NCCU travels to Buies Creek, North Carolina to take on the Campbell University Fightin Camels at 7 p.m.