ORANGE CITY, Iowa – A hot-shooting first quarter and a quick 24-9 lead propelled the (RV) Northwestern College women’s basketball (24-7, 15-7 GPAC) past the Chargers of Briar Cliff (17-13, 13-9 GPAC) on their home floor 72-60 to advance to the Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC) semifinal round for the second consecutive season.
“It was a great win at home in front of a fantastic crowd,” noted head coach Kristin Rotert. “I’m very proud of the toughness our team played with on both ends of the floor. We got a lot of great looks early from pushing the ball and did an excellent job finding open shooter. Defensively we were very disruptive and did a solid job winning the rebounding battle.”
The Raiders jumped out a quick 10-2 lead behind five quick points from Maddie Jones. An early timeout from Briar Cliff didn’t help stop the Raider run as Northwestern rattled off a 14-5 run to finish up the first quarter. The Raiders shot an impressive 66.7 percent and Emilee Danner provided a huge spark off the bench going three-for-three and scoring seven points in the first frame. Northwestern shot a blistering 66.7% percent from the floor, making more 3-pointers (4) than Briar Cliff attempted (3), to jump out to the early 15-point lead.
With a 24-9 lead, the Raiders kept up the fast pace of play and stretched the lead to 22 points (34-12) with just over six and a half left to play in the half. Northwestern used a balanced attack in the second quarter with six different Raiders scoring to keep the lead hoovering around 20 for most of the quarter. The Raider defense held the Charger offense to 25 percent for the quarter and took a 40-22 lead into the half.
Five straight points from Devyn Kemble gave Northwestern a 47-25 lead, and Jones followed with two made free throws to give the Raiders their biggest lead of the night at 24. The Chargers were able to chip away but the Raiders held on to an 18-point lead (58-40) going into the final frame.
Northwestern was able to keep the Chargers at arm’s length and keep their lead around 20 for most of the final frame. The Raiders shot 50 percent during the final quarter of play and Kemble paced the Raiders with five points. A final push from the Chargers saw them get within 12 but Northwestern was able to wrap up the win and advance.
Kemble (Sr., Panora, Iowa) led the Raiders with 15, nailing three from beyond the arc. Danner (Jr., Westside, Iowa) was very efficient going six for eight and also scoring 15 points, she pulled down six rebounds, and had two steals. Jones (Jr., Twin Lakes, Iowa) finished with 14 and led the Raiders with three steals. She tied with Taylor VanderVelde (Sr., Sioux Falls, S.D.) for the team lead in assists with three. Molly Schany finished in double figures with 11, she pulled down five rebounds as well. Jada Cunningham rounded out the double figure scorers with 10. VanderVelde paced the Raiders on the glass with eight rebounds.
Up Next: The Raiders will travel to Sioux City, Iowa to take on the No. 6 ranked and top-seeded Morningside Mustangs (26-4, 20-2 GPAC) on Saturday, February 26. Tip-off is slated for 3:00 p.m. from Rosen Verdoorn Sports Complex.
