The University of Redlands women's basketball team kicked off the 2010 Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) season with a 62-54 victory over the University of La Verne on Thursday night. With sophomore forward Courtney Carroll (Rancho Palos Verdes, CA) leading the charge with a career-high 31 points, the Bulldogs held onto a five-point first-half lead and made their shots from the free-throw line to secure the important road-win over the Leopards.

With 12:16 on the clock in the opening period, the Bulldogs held a slight 13-11 advantage, but then exploded with an 11-0 run, which included three-pointers by junior Mariah Barbetti-Cort (Ventura, CA) and freshman guard Allison Wong (Redding, CA). However, the Leopards cut the deficit to three with just over a minute to play. Carroll stretched the Bulldogs' lead to five by hitting her final two free-throws of the first half.

Midway through the second period, the Maroon and Gray earned a 13-point lead when senior guard Ali Bueno (San Jose, CA) knocked down her only three-pointer of the game. La Verne moved within six points in the final 1:27 but the Bulldogs remained in control through the final whistle, resulting in the 62-54 victory to open conference competition.

Carroll led all scorers with 31 points to go along with 10 rebounds for her seventh double-double of the season. She connected on 9-for-16 shooting and went 12-for-13 form the line. She also contributed a game-high four assists along with three blocks.

Barbetti-Cort was the only other Bulldog in double figures with 11 points. She also tallied 10 rebounds for her first double-double of the season.

For La Verne, Mayra Duenas contributed 17 points, while Amanda Copas added 12 and Clarissa Holz chipped in 10 points and 10 boards.

Overall, the Bulldogs shot 46.5% from the field, compared to La Verne's mark of 31.7%. Redlands also took care of the ball at the charity stripe, going 18-for-23 for 78.3%. The Leopards only converted 14 of their 23 opportunities for 60.9%.

Redlands edged La Verne in the rebounding battle, 39-37, but the Leopards came up with nine more offensive boards with 15.

The Bulldogs (8-3, 1-0 SCIAC) head to Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges on Saturday for a 5 p.m. conference showdown with the Athenas.