Undefeated and
top-ranked Union ends
LCSC's season
JACKSON, Tenn. - For a
little more than 13
minutes, the Lewis-Clark
State College women's
basketball team had
top-ranked and
undefeated Union
University a bit
flustered.
The Bulldogs entered the
game averaging 91 points
per outing, but was
struggling from the
field and had its
outstanding center
Josephine Owino on the
bench with two fouls.
However, as the Warriors
found out, its hard to
keep a good team down.
Kaitlin Dudley hit a
3-pointer and then
converted a three-point
play to spark a 15-0 run
to help the Bulldogs
pull away and defeat the
Warriors 82-57 Saturday
in the quarterfinals of
the NAIA Division I
Women's National
Basketball
Championships, which are
being held on Union's
home floor at Oman
Arena.
The loss brought an end
to LCSC's remarkable
season at 29-5. LCSC
entered Saturday with an
11-game win streak and
had won 20 of its
previous 21 games.
It's the fourth time
LCSC has made it as far
as the quarterfinal
round, but only in 2001
did the Warriors make
the Final Four.
LCSC led 4-2 early and
had a strong first half
going. LCSC's Lacie
Titmus' basket at the
6:46 mark made it 19-14
for Union, but the
Warriors then went
scoreless for nearly
five minutes as Union
used the 15-0 run to
take a 20-point lead at
34-14.
The Warriors did manage
to finish the first half
with a flurry, scoring
the final seven point to
cut the halftime margin
to 34-21.
Union used a 9-2 run to
start the second half to
put the lead back up to
20. LCSC hit a 3-point
to cut it to 17, but
that would be as close
as the Warriors could
get in the second half
as Union led by as much
as 29.
Union finished the game
hitting 31-of-61 shots
for 50.8 percent, and
was 9-of-21 at the
3-point line for 41.9
percent.
The Warriors never
warmed up. They finished
23-of-73 from the field
for 31.5 percent, and
4-of-19 at the 3-point
line for 21.1 percent.
Senior forward Vanessa
West has a strong game
for the Warriors. She
led the team with 18
points on 8-of-12
shooting, including
1-of-1 at the 3-point
line. Take away her
performance and the
Warriors were just
15-of-61 from the field
for less than 25 percent
accuracy.
Mandy Troutt, a senior
post from Pullman,
recorded her seventh
double-double of the
season with 12 points
and 11 rebounds. It was
the 15th time this
season Troutt had
recorded more than eight
rebounds and her
performance also held
LCSC hold a 45-41
rebounding advantage,
thanks to 19 offensive
rebounds against a
taller Union squad. That
helped LCSC to a 15-7
advantage in second
chance points.
Jade Fulbright finished
with 10 points and added
another steal to finish
her career as LCSC's
all-time career steals
leader with 349.
Katie Hart was credited
with seven assists and
finishes her career with
604 assists, just three
behind the program's
all-time leader Brianne
Kottwitz.
West, Fulbright, and
Hart also finish their
careers with 108
victories over a
four-year span, the most
of any player in either
the LCSC men's or
women's basketball
programs. They were
joined by Troutt as the
four seniors on this
year's squad.
Dudley finished with a
game-high 21 points to
Pace Union, while
Crystal Eason added 15.
Jessica Graves added 12
points, while Zeinab
Chan had a double-double
for Union with 11 points
and a team-high 11
rebounds.
Even though LCSC only
committed four more
turnovers than Union
(16-12), Union converted
the turnovers into 29
points, while LCSC could
only convert Union's
turnovers into eight
points. Union's bench
also outscored LCSC
29-8.
The tournament will take
Sunday off before
semifinal play on
Monday. The first
semifinal as
Freed-Hardeman against
Trevecca Nazarene at 4
p.m., followed by
Vanguard and Union at 6
p.m. Vanguard defeated
Carroll College 71-56 in
the quarterfinals on
Saturday, bringing an
end to the tournament
for the Frontier
Conference.
