DENVER – After all the frustration and uncertainty of the past eight months, a little bit of normalcy returned Friday as the MSU Denver women's basketball team opened the season with a 78-72 win over Regis.
 
"It felt great to come out as a team and be able to play a game," Roadrunners forward Jaela Richardson said. "To get the win, that was a nice little cherry on top."
 
And, after a brief late first quarter funk, MSU Denver looked pretty sweet for most of the game – building a lead of as many as 18 points – before holding off a late Regis charge.
 
"It's awesome to be able to play," Metropolitan State University of Denver coach Tanya Haave said. "I thought we really did some great things. I'm not too pleased with them coming back – I thought there were some mental lapses. But it was good that we were able to weather that storm, because you're going to have to be able to weather some storms during the season. I'm proud of the effort."
 
Richardson had 18 points and a career-high 12 rebounds, and senior transfer Allie Navarette had 17 points and 10 boards, giving the Roadrunners their first double-double duo since Emily Hartegan and Bree Wellington dominated in a Feb. 23, 2019, game against CSU-Pueblo.
 
"It's a great combination," Haave said. "Allie can hit jumpers and is pretty skilled around the basket and rebounds well, then Jaela is really starting to come into her own."
 
But, in the first half at least, it was freshman guard Kendra Parra – making her collegiate debut – who was delivering.
 
"It was so exciting," Parra said. "I was a little nervous at first. But once the game started, my nerves kind of went away."
 
Parra scored 15 first-half points – making all five of her field goal attempts, including both of her 3-point tries – as the Roadrunners used a 30-5 run and took a 47-31 lead at the break.
 
"I didn't really expect that," Haave said of Parra. "She just found openings and made shots. She hadn't been scoring much recently in practice until the last couple of days, but then her shots started falling and she was being more aggressive, and I thought that might bode well for the weekend. And it did."
 
MSU Denver jumped out to a 13-6 lead, then gave up a 17-2 run to fall behind 23-15, but then turned in the 30-5 burst to lead 45-28. The Roadrunners, who shot 58.8 percent from the field (10 of 17) in the second quarter, built the lead to 51-33 early in the second half.
 
Parra, the Class 2A player of the year last season and the No. 13 scorer in Colorado high school history, finished with 20 points. It is the most scored by any Roadrunners player – regardless of class – in a season-opening game since Nov. 19, 2004, when freshman Megan Johnson scored 24 in her collegiate debut, a 76-62 win over Cal State Dominguez Hills.
 
"I'm so proud of Kendra," Navarette said. "She's making a name for herself. She's really helping our team and stepping into such a big role as a freshman. She's a great teammate."
 
Navarette, the senior transfer from Hawaii-Hilo, knows a little bit about scoring. She came into the season ranked seventh in career scoring among players eligible to return to Division II this season. After scoring 17, she now has 1,415.
 
"To see Allie play like we know she can, that was great to see," Richardson said.
 
Navarette had 11 points and seven rebounds in the first half, then Richardson led the way inside in the second half with 14 points.
 
"I have to remember that I have to attack," Richardson said. "That's something that I'm good at. I settle for jump shots sometimes. I just told myself I have a quick first step and I need to drive."
 
MSU Denver is back in action Saturday at 2 p.m., when it plays host to Colorado School of Mines at the Auraria Event Center. No fans are allowed due to COVID-19 precautions, but the game will again be streamed on Roadrunners TV.