Rebecca Reuter
The Lady Raiders tipped off its 2017–18 season with a bang.
Coach Rick Insell reached his 300th career victory when MT opened with a key road win against Vanderbilt.
“More than anything, in these 300 wins I’ve had some really good players and some good young ladies,” The ever-humble Insell said.
However, the win was somewhat bittersweet as Conference USA Preseason Player of the Year Alex Johnson sprained her ankle five minutes into the game and was unable to return to the game.
Johnson was unable to go for the next two games, and, even though she has returned, she has played in a reserve role with drastically reduced minutes as she continues to recover.
Without Johnson, the Lady Raiders seemed to fare well enough. They notched a 14-point win over Tennessee Tech in a game that was much closer than the score suggests. Middle seemed to struggle to find its offensive identity in the game, however its defense was strong enough to secure the victory.
Kyla Allison
Though the Lady Raiders were able to open on a four-game win streak, they have since dropped their last two. The first of those losses came against Ole Miss, marking the first time Rick Insell has dropped a game to his son, Matt. The second of those came in a tightly contested game against Georgia Tech that came down to a last-second, half-court heave from freshman guard Anna Jones which fell short of the basket.
With Johnson on the mend, the Lady Raiders have had a couple players answer the call to step up.
Rebecca Reuter has increased last season’s scoring production from 7.3 per game to 10.3 per contest. She currently is the second leading scorer on the team.
The biggest leap, however, has been Jess Louro. Louro averaged only 4.7 points and 4.1 rebounds last season. This season she has cranked those numbers up to a team-leading 11.8 points per game and her 6.5 rebounds per game are second best on the team. Gabby Lyons leads the team in rebounding with 6.7 per contest.
Fans will have only two more opportunities to see the Lady Raiders play before C-USA play begins. Middle will play host to Troy on Thursday, Dec. 14, and Kentucky on Thursday, Dec. 28.
Road games for the Lady Raiders include Louisville, Tulane, Southern California and Canisius.
