LEWISTON, Idaho – A double-double of 16 points and 20 rebounds from sophomore Kirsi Voshell helped the Lewis-Clark State College women’s basketball team breeze by the University of Montana Western 69-39 in the opening round of the Frontier Conference playoffs on Wednesday night. LCSC forced 22 turnovers in the game.
Pursuing a third straight conference tournament title, the Warriors put themselves in the driver’s seat early on against Western via a 10-0 run. LCSC’s defense, which collected 10 steals and six blocks on the night, held the Bulldogs scoreless until the 14:04 mark.
After leading 41-27 at halftime, the Warriors’ shooting percentage tapered off a little in the second half but their defense helped them push to game-high lead of 33 with about three minutes left in regulation.
Voshell, who has averaged 7.4 rebounds per game, gathered 10 rebounds in both halves to blow away her old career high of 14 rebounds set earlier this year. Her 20 boards stands tied for third for most rebounds in a game in Warrior history. The record of 26 is held by Carol Wilson and Kelly Byrne who both reached the mark during the 1975-76 season.
Besides Voshell, Alyssa Fierro also had a big night for the Warriors and just missed a double-double as she scored 16 points and had nine rebounds. Fierro also had three blocks.
Second-seeded LCSC will now host No. 3 seed Montana Tech in the semifinals on Saturday at 7 p.m. Tech advanced past the first round by defeating Rocky Mountain 68-52 on Wednesday. The Warriors are 0-2 against the Orediggers this season as they fell to them 69-61 on the road and then 70-66 at home. Tickets for the game, as set by the Frontier Conference, are $7 for adults and $5 for students and seniors.
Though the Warriors shot only 37.1 percent against the Bulldogs they were benefited by a season high 70 field goal attempts.
Strong defense caused problems for the visiting Bulldogs up and down the floor and resulted into a lot of opportunities for the Warriors. LCSC scored 22 points off of Western turnovers and also outscored its opponent 16-4 in second chance points. Voshell had eight offensive rebounds.
Lewis-Clark State College, ranked No. 13 in the NAIA and now 26-5, used its size advantage down low to outscore the Bulldogs 34-22 in the paint and outrebound them 47-42.
Tasha Bishop was the only other Warriors to score in double digits as she came off the bench for 10 points on 2-of-6 shooting from 3-point territory. Madison Mendezona led the team with five assists, while Nikki DePeel had an all-around good game with nine points, three rebounds, three assists, and two steals.
Montana Western, which ends its season at 8-20, was led by Dana Stephanie who had nine points and six rebounds. She scored seven of those points at the foul line.
The Bulldogs shot only 24.5 percent in the game.
