LEWISTON, Idaho – Thanks to a 21-9 scoring run in the middle of the second half the Lewis-Clark State College women’s basketball team brought down the Skylights of Montana State University-Northern 53-46 on Saturday night. The victory, which came in front of a season-high crowd of 1,306 on Senior Night at the Activity Center, marks the end of another very strong regular season for the Warriors.
Lewis-Clark State, ranked No. 13 in the NAIA, finishes the regular season at 11-3 in the Frontier Conference and 25-4 overall. They stand second in the conference standings and will host Montana Tech in the opening round of the conference tournament on Wednesday at 7 p.m.
The seedings in the conference tournament, which are based on conference records, are as follows: No. 1 Westminster, No. 2 LCSC, No. 3 MSU-Northern, No. 4 Rocky Mountain, No. 5 Carroll, No. 6 Montana Western, No. 7 Montana Tech, and No. 8 Great Falls.
It was a defensive battle in the first half on Saturday as neither team shot the ball particularly well. The Warriors hit just 29.2 percent of their shots in the opening half and trailed MSU-Northern 21-20 at the break.
The second half opened in much the same way with neither team catching fire—that is until the around the 14 minute mark when the Warriors seemed to find a scoring rhythm.
LCSC broke a 28-28 tie—the seventh tie of the game—with a six unanswered points in the paint and Brittaney Niebergall hit a 3-pointer a couple of possessions later to jump to a 39-30 lead. From here the Warriors continued to produce on the offensive end and with a 3-pointer by Annie Kane took their largest lead of 52-39 with 4:13 left on the clock.
The Warriors shot 44.4 percent in the second half and were helped by six steals and 15 points off of turnovers.
Overall, LCSC was outshot 41.3 percent to 37.3 percent, but enjoyed an 11-4 lead in steals and a 23-4 advantage in points off of turnovers. Northern had 18 turnovers to LCSC’s 11.
Senior Jasmine Stohr led the Warriors with 18 points to go with three assists and three steals. Niebergall also had a big night as she turned in 10 points, three rebounds, three assists, and four steals. Tasha Bishop had six points, six rebounds, two assists, and three steals.
Jordan Bruursema led the Skylights with 13 points, nine rebounds, and two blocks, while Laramie Schwenke added 11 points, four rebounds, and four assists.
MSU-Northern, which received votes in the most recent NAIA poll, finishes the regular season at 7-7 in league play and 20-8 overall. Northern will host Montana Western in the opening round.
If the Warriors defeat Montana Tech on Wednesday they will host a semifinals game on Saturday. Because it is the conference tournament, LCSC season passes will not be accepted at either game. Ticket prices are $10 for reserved, $7 for general admission, and $5 for students and senior citizens.
