HIGH POINT, N.C. – High Point University women's basketball tipped off the 2026-27 season with an 88-39 victory over Lees-McRae College on Monday night at the Qubein Center, giving Wyatt Foust his first career win as a head coach.
Site: Qubein Center
Score: High Point 88, Lees-McRae 39
Record: High Point (1-0), Lees-McRae (0-1)
Head Coach Wyatt Foust: "Obviously, our first time together here, we've got some returners who are impact players and have been through these wars and know what a game day here is like. You've got an entirely new staff, a lot of newcomers, that we rely on, and this was our first taste of it. It was really important for us to establish what we want to be about. From a basketball standpoint, we want people to be excited about the brand of basketball we play, and also about our culture bleeding into our style of play. If you have 18 assists in a game, that tells you you're probably headed in the direction you want to head in. We talk a lot about giving up the good for the great, and that's a direct sign your culture and buy-in are where they need to be. I feel like this group has worked so hard, and we've asked and demanded so much of them, because they've got big goals. I felt like the team needed this; we all needed this, a night where you just have a lot of good things happen for you. They deserve that, so we're really excited for this team that they got that today in their home opener."
High Point reserve Khloe Lemon scored a game-high 16 points, hitting 6-of-9 from the floor, including four 3-pointers along the way, leading six Panthers in double figures. She was joined in double-digit scoring by Peyton Gerdes, who closed with 14 points and eight rebounds (five offensive), helping the Panthers convert 31 field goals on the evening.
Meredith Tippner contributed 13 points, finishing a perfect 5-of-5 from the free-throw line, while teammates
Rylee Bess and
Brecken Snotherly closed with 12 points a piece. Snotherly scored the Panthers' first points of the season on a layup 40 seconds into the game.
High Point took advantage of 18 assists and forced 18 steals defensively, converting five blocks, which limited the Lees-McRae offense to 17-of-53 (32.1%) shooting from the floor. The Panther defense also limited the Lees-McRae offense from beyond the arc, where the Bobcats managed just two 3-pointers.
Leading by two points, 10-8, at just over the midway point of the first quarter, High Point used a 23-2 run highlighted by eight points from Lemon and four from Gerdes. As a unit, the Panthers knocked down three 3-pointers in that span.
The hot shooting continued for the Panthers in the second quarter, when they knocked down 7-of-19 (36.8%) from the floor, including a pair of 3-pointers, to build a 50-19 advantage at the intermission.
High Point emerged from halftime and put 25 points on the board in the third period by virtue of hitting 7-of-11 (63.8%) from the field, including four 3-pointers. The tandem of Lemon and
Juliann Woodard, who tallied six points apiece, led the way for the Panthers' offense. Tippner was also a key offensive contributor with five points, finishing 3-of-3 at the free-throw line as High Point went 7-for-7 as a team.
Leading by a 75-28 margin heading into the final frame, Gerdes scored seven of her 14 points to reach double figures for the game, six points shy of her career high. Tippner was also active on the offensive end for the Panthers with four points, as High Point secured the first career Division I win for Foust.
Up Next: The Panthers will host Wingate University for Education Day on Wednesday, Nov. 4, at 12 p.m. at the Qubein Center in High Point, N.C.
#GoHPU
