PIERRE - The Pierre Lady Govs made a strong opening bid to return to state prominance as they pounded Mitchell 66-35 in the girls' basketball season opener for both teams at Riggs Gym.

The Lady Govs, who were second in last year's state AA tournament and ranked No. 1 in the preseason sportswriters' poll, scored the first 10 points of the game.

It was the 10th consecutive win by Pierre over Mitchell dating back to 2004. It was also the most points for the team in an opener since it netted 82 in the 1989 opener against Watertown.

"We came out and played well," said coach Lisa Kannegieter. "It will be a learning process for some. We have six new faces that we're trying to mix in there."

Mitchell did not score a basket until Sarah Moody made a three-pointer with 4:23 left in the first quarter. The Kernels did not score in the final five minutes of the game.

Steph Paluch scored 19 points to lead the winners. Katie Lingle, a 6-foot-2 junior, had 10 points, six rebounds and blocked five shots.

Tristan Rogers came off the bench for 12 points. Moody had 14 of Mitchell's 35 points.

"Our kids who came off the bench had a great game (18 points total)," said Kannegieter.

"They had a little bit of the jitters but they did a great job of knowing what they needed to do."

Defensively, Pierre forced 21 Mitchell turnovers, 13 coming in the first half.

"One of our goals was to set the tempo of the game," said Kannegieter. "We were able to get some steals and scored off them."

The Lady Govs will join the boys in playing a doubleheader in Brandon on Saturday.

"It will be a test for endurance but this was another reason why we wanted to get a lot of kids in (the Mitchell game)," Kannegieter said.

"Our starters got some rest and hopefully their legs will be fresh."