ALEXANDRIA, LA (11.25.14) - The UT Dallas women's basketball team was handed its first loss of the season Tuesday night, falling to Louisiana College, 70-65, in the American Southwest Conference opener for both teams. The game was played on the campus of LSU-Alexandria as LC's floor was not ready for the its home opener.

The Comets (now 3-1, 0-1 ASC) struggled from the field in the second half as they watched a two-point halftime lead turn into a five-point loss. UTD shot just 34.4 percent (11-of-32), hitting just 1-of-10 three-pointers, after the break to allow the Lady Cats to steal the win.

Madi Hess led three UTD players in double digits with 16 points while Nicolette Erkman finished with 12 points and Amber Brown had 11 points. Hess also led the Comets with nine rebounds while Brown and Ashley Shaw each ended with four assists.

After trading leads with LC early in the game, the Comets used a 5-0 run to grab a 13-8 lead on the Lady Cats at the 13:59 mark and never trailed again in the first half, leading by as many as seven points on several occasions. UTD shot 46.7 percent (14-of-30) from the field, hitting 4-of-12 treys, to grab a 40-38 lead at the break.

However, the host Lady Cats (now 2-0, 1-0 ASC) opened the second half on a 11-2 run and extended their lead to double digits, 62-51, with 9:13 left to play. LC extended its lead to as many as 13 points, 70-57 with 3:58 remaining, before the Comets made one final surge. UTD scored the final eight points of the game, however, missed four shots, including two three-pointers, in the final 85 seconds of the contest.

The Comets finished the night 25-of-62 (40.3%) from the field, connecting on just 5-of-22 three-pointers (22.7%), and shot 76.9 percent (10-of-13) from the free-throw line.

UTD returns home Saturday to host Hardin-Simmons in ASC play. Game time is 1 p.m. at the UTD Activity Center.