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A fast start helped to propel the Lee women's basketball team to its sixth straight victory as the Lady Flames topped Mississippi College, 77-66 from Walker Arena on Thursday evening.

After having nine days off between games due to final exams the Lee ladies showed little rust in scoring the first 15 points of the contest while racing out to 30-10 advantage after one quarter. 

Freshman Abby Bertram had a game-high 20 points to help pace the Lady Flames. The versatile guard grabbed five boards and dished off five assists. Junior Carrie Cheeks continued her stellar start to the 2016 season with 18 points and six rebounds.

The Lady Choctaws placed two players in double-figures as Kelly Allen had 18 points and nine rebounds while Ashley Minor tallied 13 points and six boards.

The Lady Flames defense limited the Lady Choctaws to just 31 percent shooting from the field. Mississippi College made just one 3-point basket. Lee shot 42 percent from the field and hit 21 of 24 from the foul line.

"I thought we got very passive when they got in their zone and didn't shoot the ball very well tonight," said head coach Marty Rowe. "A win is a win and we'll move on but we will need to be much better on Saturday in order to get out of here with another victory."

Freshman point guard Lindsey Roddy had 17 points and grabbed nine rebounds for the Lady Flames while Shelby Brown came off the bench to secure a game-high 10 rebounds.

Lee cleaned up the glass with 46 rebounds compared to 41 for Mississippi College. The Lady Flames held a 36-32 edge on points in the paint.
 
Mississippi College climbed back into the contest thanks in large part to 23 turnovers by Lee. 

"The run by them was self-induced. Give them credit they played hard and didn't lay down but we were atrocious the last quarter and I'm very disappointed in how we finished the game," said Rowe. "We need to understand there is a certain level of play and energy we expect out of our team night in and night out. We were good for a quarter but big deal, that will catch up with us down the road if we aren't more focused the entire game."

The Lady Flames improve to 7-1 and a perfect 2-0 in the GSC. The Lady Choctaws fall to 3-2 overall and 1-1 in league play. 

Lee will finish up the pre-Christmas schedule with a visit from Delta State on Saturday at 2 p.m.