NORFOLK, Va. -- Jennie Simms and Destinee Young each notched double-doubles to lead Old Dominion over Norfolk State, 65-54, in the season opener on Friday night at the Ted Constant Center.
"It was a great game tonight," said head coach Karen Barefoot. "Norfolk State challenged us. They had great energy and I think Coach Larry [Vickers] is doing a great job with them. We were able to really respond positively after halftime and we had great leadership from our seniors, especially Jennie [Simms] and Destinee [Young]. We got ourselves back and were able to get into a groove. We just executed in the second half to pull it out."
Leading 26-25 at halftime, Old Dominion (1-0) used a 16-0 run to open the second half to mount a 17-point lead midway through the third quarter over Norfolk State (1-2). The Lady Monarchs would lead by double digits for the remainder of the game, as Simms and Young scored 27 of their 39 combined points in the second half.
Individually, Young scored a game-high 20 points and hauled in 10 rebounds for her 12th career double-double, while Simms added 19 points and 14 rebounds for her 14th career double-double. Simms' 14 boards also tied her career high.
Overall, ODU outrebounded the Spartans, 54-39, and held Norfolk State to just 30.9 percent shooting from the field and 21.4 percent from three. The Lady Monarchs shot 39.7 percent from the field.
Ashley Jackson added seven points and five rebounds, while Gianna Smith tallied seven points, three rebounds and two blocks. The freshman trio of Jessica Munoz, Manaya Jones and Taylor Edwards all saw their first action in an ODU uniform, with Munoz leading the freshman with three points, four rebounds and three assists.
Kayla Roberts and Gabrielle Swinson led the Spartans with 13 points apiece.
UP NEXT
Old Dominion hosts William & Mary (1-1, 0-0 CAA) on Sunday, Nov. 20, at 2 p.m. at the The Ted. For tickets, visit YNotTix.com. The game will be streamed online on CUSA.tv and aired on ESPN Radio 94.1.