The Lewis-Clark State College women’s basketball team received a No. 3 seed and will face Loyola (La.) in the opening round of the 32nd annual NAIA Division I Women’s Basketball National Championship, which will be held March 14-20 at Frankfort, Ky.
The Warriors, 28-4 overall and ranked No. 12 in the latest NAIA poll, will face sixth-seeded Loyola, which is 23-5 and ranked No. 24, on March 15 at 7:45 a.m., PST.
LCSC, which earned an automatic bid to nationals by winning the Frontier Conference Tournament championship on Tuesday, is one of two Frontier teams in the tournament as Westminster College earned one of 15 at-large bids.
The 32-team bracket is divided into four sections with teams seeded 1-8 in each grouping. Westmont (Calif.), which the Warriors defeated last year in the opening round, is the top seed in LCSC’s grouping, while Lubbock Christian (Texas) is seeded second.
Westminster was seeded No. 4 and will play on March 14 at 10:45 a.m. against No. 5 Belhaven (Miss.). Should the Griffins win in the first round they could potentially face No. 1 seed, and No. 1 ranked, Oklahoma City in the second round.
LCSC will be making its 16th appearance at nationals in the last seventeen years. Last season the Warriors were defeated in the second round by Freed-Hardeman (Tenn.).
Loyola, located in New Orleans, is making its fifth appearance at the national tournament thanks to an at-large berth. The Wolfpack’s last appearance came in 2009.
A member of the Southern States Athletic Conference, Loyola is led by standout guard Keiva Council and is known for its shooting ability. Council, a 5-foot-8 senior, ranks No. 2 in the nation with 22.7 points per game and No. 3 in total scoring with 635 points so far this year. Council is not the only member of the Wolfpack who can make shots though as Loyola ranks No. 1 in the NAIA with a field goal percentage of 46.7, and No. 8 in scoring offense with 76.8 points per game.
The Warriors, with four players 6-foot or taller, will have a definite height advantage as Loyola has just one player over 6-foot and that player is a non-starting freshman. LCSC ranks No. 2 in the NAIA in blocks per game and No. 2 in field goal percentage defense, and will look to use its length to shut down Loyola’s shooters.
This will be the first time the two teams have met.
All of LCSC’s tournament games will be broadcasted by KOZE Radio. To listen online go to www.koze-sports.com.
NeuLion is the NAIA's Digital Media Partner and official video-streaming company of 10 select NAIA National Championship events. The first 30 matches from Frankfort, Ky., will be available via live video stream for $29.95 and any single day can be purchased for $9.95. Also, one can purchase the all-tournament package of all four basketball tournaments for $49.95. For more information and to pre-register, click here.
The National Championship final on March 20 will be televised live on CBS Sports Network at 6 p.m. EST.
The National Championship final on March 20 will be televised live on CBS Sports Network at 6 p.m. EST.
2012 Championship Qualifiers
|
School
|
Qualification
|
Record
|
Appearances^
|
Last Time
|
Tour. Record
|
Titles
|
|
Avila (Mo.)
|
Heart of American Athletic Regular-Season Runner-Up
|
21-9
|
2
|
2011
|
0-1
|
0
|
|
Azusa Pacific (Calif.)
|
Golden State Athletic Tournament Runner-Up
|
24-7
|
14
|
2011
|
15-13
|
1
|
|
Belhaven (Miss.)
|
Southern States Athletic Tournament Champion
|
26-6
|
2
|
2011
|
0-1
|
0
|
|
Biola (Calif.)
|
At-Large No. 11
|
21-10
|
7
|
2011
|
1-6
|
0
|
|
Campbellsville (Ky.)
|
At-Large No. 8
|
20-12
|
20
|
2011
|
17-19
|
0
|
|
Columbia (Mo.)
|
At-Large No. 9
|
24-9
|
9
|
2011
|
3-8
|
0
|
|
Cumberlands (Ky.)
|
Mid-South Tournament Champion
|
28-3
|
12
|
2010
|
5-11
|
0
|
|
Freed-Hardeman (Tenn.)
|
At-Large No. 1
|
28-5
|
16
|
2011
|
21-15
|
0
|
|
Georgetown (Ky.)
|
At-Large No. 7
|
21-9
|
8
|
2008
|
5-7
|
0
|
|
Langston (Okla.)
|
Red River Athletic Regular-Season Champion
|
29-3
|
10
|
2011
|
4-9
|
0
|
|
Lee (Tenn.)
|
Southern States Athletic East Division Champion
|
30-3
|
9
|
2011
|
6-8
|
0
|
|
Lewis-Clark State (Idaho)
|
Frontier Tournament Champion
|
28-4
|
16
|
2011
|
16-15
|
0
|
|
Lindsey Wilson (Ky.)
|
At-Large No. 15
|
20-12
|
9
|
2011
|
3-8
|
0
|
|
Loyola (La.)
|
At-Large No. 10
|
23-5
|
5
|
2009
|
2-4
|
0
|
|
LSU Shreveport (La.)
|
At-Large No. 13
|
25-8
|
3
|
2010
|
0-2
|
0
|
|
Lubbock Christian (Texas)
|
At-Large No. 2
|
25-5
|
9
|
2011
|
10-8
|
0
|
|
Lyon (Ark.)
|
At-Large No. 14
|
20-11
|
First
|
N/A
|
0-0
|
0
|
|
MidAmerica Nazarene (Kan.)
|
Heart of America Athletic Tournament Champion
|
25-8
|
First
|
N/A
|
0-0
|
0
|
|
Oklahoma City
|
Sooner Athletic Tournament Champion
|
30-1
|
18
|
2011
|
49-12
|
5
|
|
Olivet Nazarene (Ill.)
|
At-Large No. 4
|
27-4
|
4
|
2011
|
1-3
|
0
|
|
Our Lady of the Lake (Texas)
|
Red River Athletic Tournament Champion
|
26-7
|
First
|
N/A
|
0-0
|
0
|
|
Rogers State (Okla.)
|
At-Large No. 12
|
20-11
|
2
|
2011
|
0-1
|
0
|
|
Saint Xavier (Ill.)
|
Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Tournament Champion
|
23-8
|
10
|
2011
|
5-9
|
0
|
|
Shawnee State (Ohio)
|
At-Large No. 3
|
27-5
|
2
|
2011
|
3-1
|
0
|
|
Shorter (Ga.)
|
Southern States Athletic Tournament Third-Place
|
27-6
|
4
|
2011
|
0-3
|
0
|
|
Southern Nazarene (Okla.)
|
Sooner Athletic Tournament Runner-Up
|
24-9
|
20
|
2011
|
58-12
|
7
|
|
Union (Tenn.)
|
TranSouth Athletic Tournament Champion
|
31-2
|
23
|
2011
|
63-17
|
5
|
|
Vanguard (Calif.)
|
At-Large No. 5
|
23-6
|
14
|
2011
|
23-12
|
1
|
|
Westminster (Utah)
|
At-Large No. 6
|
22-8
|
6
|
2011
|
5-5
|
0
|
|
Westmont (Calif.)
|
Golden State Athletic Regular-Season Champion
|
29-3
|
6
|
2011
|
1-6
|
0
|
|
William Woods (Mo.)
|
American Midwest Tournament Champion
|
23-9
|
4
|
2011
|
1-4
|
0
|
|
Xavier (La.)
|
Gulf Coast Athletic Tournament Champion
|
25-8
|
16
|
2011
|
6-15
|
0
|
|
^Includes the 2012 National Championship
|
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