HUNTSVILLE, Tex. – Bethune-Cookman made some Texas-size strides Friday as the Lady Wildcats downed Texas Southern 3-1(22-25,25-18,25-14,25-14) in their 2018 season opener at the Sam Houston Invitational.

After committing 18 errors in the first two sets, the Lady Wildcats registered just six over the final two as they posted the program's first-season opening win since 2006.

To make it even better, Head Coach Brittany Williams is from nearby Houston, and five players are Lone Star state natives.

"It's a big win for us," Williams said. "It was nice to be at home and playing in front of what felt like a home crowd and a home court. I am definitely excited for what the future holds for this team. [We] saw some great things, some things that we need to work on, but with nine new people and only two returners in the starting lineup, I am excited for what this team has."

Freshman utility player Skyla Whitaker ended the night with nine kills and hit .300 in her college debut to pace a Wildcat offense that settled down after dropping the first set.

"It's pretty crazy how all of this has unfolded," Whitaker said. "Honestly, I've always dreamed of being on the college stage and playing all these girls with so much experience. Playing side by side with them honestly is a great and the feeling I get when playing with them is euphoric."

Sophomore opposite Micaiah Hill, who saw limited playing time last season, finished with seven kills and hit a team-best at .471 percent. Hill also tacked on three blocks.

Hill, whose sister Meraiah celebrated her birthday Friday,  enjoyed the performance from herself and her teammates, but knows there's room for improvement.

"I felt great, honestly," Hill said. "It's a whole new team, it's a whole new year and plus, it's my sister's birthday. So, I think everyone was wanting to play hard and want to play hard for her on her birthday. I just feel like a lot of people have the opportunity to step up and did so."

Sophomore Faith Landreneaux, a preseason All Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference selection, turned in four kills and five blocks, but stood out on the service line with a seven-ace performance that gave her another entry in the Lady Wildcat record book. She tied four others for the fourth-best single-match service ace total.

Still working on coming back from the knee injury and nursing a groin injury from the last practice, Landreneaux wanted to make sure that she met the expectations of her coaching staff coming off these setbacks.

"I wasn't going to let that affect me," Landreneaux said. "I knew that I had to go and ball out and just play my hardest, even if I am 75 percent."

Jordan Jefferson added five kills and 11 digs while J'Nai Higgins posted 21 assists and seven digs

The Wildcats face Drake Saturday at 10:30 a.m. EST (9:30 local) and Sam Houston at 7:30 p.m. (6:30 local).

Jordan Smith is the Sports Editor for The Houstonian, the independent student newspaper of Sam Houston State University.