BUTTE, Mont. – A scoring drought in the second half doomed the Lewis-Clark State College women’s basketball team to its first conference loss of the season and its first loss in its last 11 games on Saturday. Shooting only 31.1 percent in the game, the Warriors fell to Montana Tech 69-61.
For the Warriors, who are currently ranked No. 11 in the NAIA, the loss not only snapped their 10 game win streak, but it also marked the first time they have fallen to Montana Tech since joining the Frontier Conference in 1999. Lewis-Clark State is now 23-1 against the Orediggers since joining the league.
The Warriors used Tech turnovers to build a 34-28 lead by the half, but their low shooting percentage eventually caught up with them. LCSC made only 29 percent of its shots from the field in the second half and was outscored by the Orediggers 38-22 over the final 15 minutes.
LCSC is now 17-3 overall and 3-1 in conference play. The win lifts the Orediggers to 12-4 and 2-2.
Behind the 15 points of Jasmine Stohr the Warriors pulled to within five on three occasions in the final three minutes, but the Orediggers went 12-for-15 at the foul line during this stretch to secure the win.
Jenessa Todd was one of three Orediggers to score in double-digits as she finished with game-highs of 16 points and eight rebounds. Teammates Jessie Depell and Taesha Higbee added 14 points apiece. Depell was 8-of-9 at the free throw line.
To help overcome 20 turnovers, Montana Tech shot 39.6 percent from the field and was also benefited by a 44-36 rebounding advantage.
Kenna Reiter and Alyssa Fierro were the only other Warriors to reach double digits in scoring as they dropped in 12 and 11 points, respectively. Fierro and Kirsi Voshell led the team with six rebounds apiece, while Reiter led with three steals.
LCSC was in need of big shots down the stretch but ended up making only 3-of-21 3-point attempts. Tech was 7-of-16 from behind the arc.
The Warriors will look to put this loss behind them and start a new win streak when they host two teams this coming week. LCSC will take on Rocky Mountain on Thursday and Carroll College on Saturday. Both games will tipoff at 6 p.m.
