MOBILE, Ala. ? The University of South Alabama Lady Jaguar basketball team opened its 2006-07 season with a 56-44 win over Spring Hill College at the Mitchell Center Sunday afternoon.

USA was led on the day offensively by junior guard Monique Jones. Jones led all scorers with 17 points, 12 of which game from behind the three-point arc. Right behind Jones was Whitney Woodard with 10 points and 11 rebounds. For Woodard, it was her third consecutive game with at least 10 points, dating back to last season. Spring Hill was led by Keisha Forbes. Forbes was 6-12 from the floor, with 14 points.

With the win, South Alabama improves to 1-0 while Spring Hill drops to 0-1. The Lady Jags have now won four out of seven season openers under head coach Rick Pietri.

“I have to commend coach Jeffries and Spring Hill,” said Pietri. “Clearly it wasn’t a grade-A performance for us. For us to be competitive in the Sun Belt Conference we have to play better, we have to finish more plays and take better care of the ball, but I am pleased that we won.”

In the first half, South Alabama and Spring Hill both struggled to put points on the board. With South Alabama leading 11-10, both teams went nearly five minutes without scoring before Jones came alive. After leaving the game just minutes earlier to receive medical attention for a cut, Jones came back and immediately drained a three-pointer. She then took the ensuing possession the length of the floor before dishing to a wide open Woodard for an easy lay-up. With the momentum on their side USA was able to extend its lead to 28-18 at the half.

The second half saw the Jags stretch their lead to 14 points on two occasions only to see the Badgers claw their way back into the game. SHC cut the USA lead to five on a free-throw by Ashley Aucoin at the 6:50 mark, but that was as close as the Badgers would get. Jones put the game out of reach with a lay-up at the 3:18 mark to put the Jags up 10. USA never looked back and posted a 12-point win.

Next up for the Lady Lags is a road game against highly touted Tulsa. Game time is set for 7 p.m., Friday Nov. 17. You can keep up with all of the action of Jaguar Athletics by logging onto www.usajaguars.com.