COOKEVILLE, Tenn. - Pushed by a career night from senior point guard Lauren Fitch, the ULM women's basketball team built as much as a 12-point second half lead before Tennessee Tech rallied for the 75-68 win Tuesday night at Hooper Eblen Center.

Fitch tallied career highs with 28 points and eight rebounds.

"She really battled," head coach Brooks Donald Williams said. "She led our team and put us in some really good positions offensively and defensively, she really slowed them down. They're a really good transition team. I thought she did a great job and slowed them down at times and took away some of their transition points. I can't say enough about the job she did tonight."

Tennessee Tech made the first move in the game, using a 10-0 run to take a 12-4 lead mid-way through the first quarter. However, that's when ULM went to work. Fitch opened an eventual 17-2 run with a layup, senior Amber Thompson sunk a pair of free throws, and sophomore Maddi Gatte buried a 3-pointer to bring the Warhawks within two after a quarter at 12-10.

In the second quarter, the ULM onslaught continued. A pair of free throws by Fitch gave the Warhawks a 16-14 advantage with 7:07 left before halftime. A basket by junior Diamond Brooks and a trey from freshman Gara Beth Self pushed the ULM lead to seven at 21-14, forcing a TTU timeout with 6:04 left in the quarter. The Warhawks led by eight at 25-17, but TTU cut into the lead, getting within three at halftime, 29-26.

The Warhawks started strong in the third quarter. ULM opened the half on an 8-2 run, capped on a jumper by Brooks to go up nine at 37-28. A bucket by Fitch would push the lead into double digits for the first time at 41-30, and the lead would crest at 12 on a layup by Brooks to lead 51-39 with 2:59 left in the quarter. TTU came to life after that, scoring eight of the final 10 points of the quarter to narrow the gap to 53-49 going to the final quarter.

In the final quarter, Tennessee Tech scored six of the first eight points to tie the game at 55 on a basket by Anacia WIlkinson. Fitch gave the lead right back to ULM with another basket in the paint, but TTU would tie the game again on a basket by Jada Guinn, and take the lead for good on a free throw by Wilkinson with 5:39 left. TTU made it a 9-0 run to take a six-point lead at 63-57. ULM would never get within one possession the rest of the way, falling 72-65.

In addition to Fitch's career night, Self added 13 points and Brooks tallied 10. The Warhawks shot 45.9% from the field in the loss, while making 2-of-6 3-point attempts. TTU shot just 25% in the first half, but warmed up to 41% for the game. The Golden Eagles hit 26% of their 3-point shots, and finished 20-for-27 at the free throw line. Mackenzie Coleman scored 15 of her team-high 24 points for TTU in the second half.

"Mackenzie Coleman is tough," Williams said. "She came right back at Diamond and answered in the fourth. She was really tough to guard. They're a tough match up because they have such great shooters on the outside, so if you double down on Mackenzie, you leave yourself susceptible to the outside threat."

Overall, Williams said there were positives to take away from the game.

"I really am proud of our effort here," Williams said. "This is a tough place to play. It has been for many years, but certainly in the last two its become a lot tougher place to play. They are going to be a postseason team. They will vie for a conference championship. We knew that going in. We knew it would be a really tough battle. Hopefully, it's another great lesson and teaching tool for our kids, and hope that that buy-in starts to really happen."

The Warhawks host Southern Miss for their home opener at noon Saturday. Links to live video, audio and stats are available at ULMWarhawks.com. For tickets, call 318-342-HAWK or visit ULMWarhawks.com.