Mississippi College survived a late Lynx run, as the Lady Choctaws defeated Rhodes 77-76 in Mallory Gymnasium on November 16th in the season opener for both teams. Rhodes trailed 69-59 with 1:39 remaining, but rallied to cut the margin to 75-72 on a Becky Atnip free throw with 6.6 seconds to play.
    After a timeout the Lynx forced a turnover and LaKeya McGill was fouled with 3.5 seconds to play. McGill hit 1 of 2 free throws to make the score 75-73. Anna Patterson iced the game for Mississippi College with 2 free throws with 2.6 seconds remaining, though Atnip hit a half court three pointer at the buzzer to account for the final score.
    Atnip led all scorers with 24 points, connecting on 5 of 6 three point field goals. McGill added 11 points for Rhodes, and sophomore transfer Sharwil Bell scored 18 points in her Lynx debut. Jalessa Taylor led the Lady Choctaws with 23 points and 11 rebounds.
    Rhodes jumped out to a 33-21 lead with 1:58 to play in the first half, but the Lady Choctaws responded with a 8-1 run to end the first half and cut the Lynx lead to 34-29. "I thought that was one of the keys to the game," said Lynx Head Coach Matt Dean. "We had a chance to extend our lead, but they executed their offense late in the first half and hurt us on two backdoor cuts."
    The Lady Choctaws returned three starters from a 2008-09 team that won 22 games and advanced to the NCAA tournament.   "They are so well coached and just to a great job of executing their high low motion game. Our players and our staff have a great deal of respect for their program, and though this was a tough loss, we will get better from the experience," said Dean.
    The Lynx will return to action this Friday against Greenville (IL) in the opening round game of the Rhodes College Classic.