If the first game of the season is any indication of things to come, the Nipissing Lakers women's basketball team might surprise a few teams.

The Lakers battled a strong Ottawa Gee Gees side Friday night and while they fell short in the end, they went basket for basket with the Gee Gees for three quarters.

The Lakers lost 65-46, but trailed by only six heading into the final quarter, however, the Gee Gees ran away with the win thanks to a 21-8 final 10 minutes.

A bit of a slow start put the Lakers on their heels, trailing 17-11 after the first quarter of play.

It was a similar story in the second quarter as they were seven points behind and trailed 36-23 at halftime.

The speech Lakers head coach Marg Jones must have given at the halftime break must have paid off, as Nipissing came out flying.

The Lakers outscored the Gee Gees 15-8 in the third quarter to close the game and put themselves in striking distance heading into the final quarter.

The Gee Gees refused to let the game slip away, however, as they bounced back and put up a game-high 21 points in the quarter, pulling away from Nipissing and claiming the victory.

Claire Abbott had a strong game, scoring a team-high 16 points, while Rachel Jaworowicz added seven points and Alexe Galipeau-Wilson picked up 12 rebounds for Nipissing.

The Lakers have a lot to build on and will look to do so when they hit the court Saturday night against the Carleton Ravens, who opened the season up last night with a win over Laurentian.