| LEWISTON, Idaho – The veteran-led 2024-25 LC State Women’s Basketball team is ready to start the new campaign with a roster loaded with returning talent and laced with exciting newcomers on Sunday under second-year head coach Caelyn Orlandi. The Warrior women kick off the year with a pair of exhibition contests on the road against NCAA Division I programs before opening the season at home on Nov. 2, and for the first time in quite some time, LC State will do so with minimal turnover on the roster.
Orlandi wrapped up her first season leading her alma mater with a 26-6 record and a trip to the NAIA Women’s Basketball National Championship Second Round. Though no stranger to the program she has been part of for more than a decade, each year brings something new. Cali Moore returns to the bench for her second season as the team’s assistant coach.
“I know that being called coach is one of my favorite titles and that being able to lead such a remarkable group of young ladies is so special,” Orlandi said. “I look forward to all the assists we are going to have this season and the genuine togetherness this group exhibits is going to win them a lot of games. The team and coaches have big aspirations for the season, and I look forward to the journey it takes to get there.”
THE ROSTER
The Warriors lost just two players from the previous season but added four to the roster for one of the deepest benches the program has seen in recent years. The return of 10 letterwinners from a year ago gives the team a sense of continuity and fosters an already strong team chemistry. The 2024-25 roster is made up of three seniors, four juniors, four sophomores and three freshmen.
“Having the majority of your roster return is always a huge advantage to every season, but each season and each team brings something new,” Orlandi explained. “The culture and expectations stay the same, but every season new leaders emerge, our players get better and we have to learn as coaches and teammates how to capitalize on everyone’s strengths.”
Despite losing talented seniors Maddie Holm and Callie Stevens, LC State returns a strong senior, junior and sophomore class that all made huge contributions in 2023-24. Senior Ellie Sander highlights the group as the lone All-Cascade Conference selection to return. The Spokane native earned first-team honors as a junior after leading the Warriors in free throw percentage (.895) and assists (118). The do-it-all guard averaged 12.7 points and 3.6 rebounds per game to go with 69 steals and 17 blocked shots.
“Ellie Sander has come into this season with a confidence factor that is going to be tough to beat,” Orlandi said. “She is letting the game come to her, scoring when she needs to, creating when she needs to, defending at a high level and coming to compete every step of the season. Her mental toughness is going to be unmatched and nothing about her game is forced. She leads by example every day and I look forward to her excelling during her senior season.”
Sander is joined be fellow fourth-year player Mataya Green who stepped up last season after an injury took Holm out for the season. She finished the season second on the team with 18 blocks. Transfer Tessa Karlberg joins the senior class in her last season on the court. The Anchorage, Alaska, native brings a level of maturity to the team thanks to her incoming experience.
“Get ready for Tessa Karlberg. Tessa is a natural leader who competes fiercely every day,” Orlandi said. “She has an extremely fast release and is a very strong driver and has fit in seamlessly with our program.”
One of the most exciting pieces of the roster is the junior class, led by 2023 Cascade Conference Freshman of Year Sitara Byrd, and the return of Payton Hymas. Byrd led the Warriors in rebounding last year with 7.0 per game and also shot .451 from behind the 3-point line to put herself in the LC State record book. Hymas was off to a strong start before an injury ended her season early, but the guard will play a key role on both ends of the court this season. Lindsey Wilson started nearly every game last season and Ella Nelson proved to be a sharpshooter off the bench and both add depth to the lineup. Camden Barger, a redshirt sophomore, also played key minutes as a skilled ball handler for the Warriors.
“Having a strong group of junior leadership is so remarkable and they have done an excellent job at practice transitioning to drills, communicating with their teammates and helping establish the culture that is LC State Women’s Basketball,” Orlandi added.
With one year under their belt, the LC State sophomore class is poised to make noise in 2024-25. Darian Herring, a contender for CCC Freshman of the Year, was one of the top shot-blockers in the conference with 54. She averaged 7.5 points and 5.1 assists per game and, as a forward, was third on the team in assists (68). Tatum Brager became one of the most feared shooters in the conference in a short period of time. The legacy athlete hit seven triples in one game to tie for third-most in a single game, and 37 of her 45 made field goals over the season were from behind the 3-point line. Orofino native Grace Beardin gets better every time she steps on the court and will be key to the Warrior defense this season.
“I can’t quit talking about how excited I am about our sophomore class,” Orlandi said. “The hard work those three put in during the offseason has shown during practice. Darian is leading our team in nearly every statistical category at practice and has stepped up in big ways. Grace crashes the glass relentlessly and has been shooting the 3-ball so well. Tatum has turned into a multi-level scorer and radiates confidence. I have already seen every player step up and the depth that this roster holds is going to be very special.”
Three freshmen join the Warrior family this season in Keira O’Neill, Bella Firnkoess and Clarkston native Kendall Wallace. All three bring stellar resumes, including Wallace who was named the Greater Spokane League MVP. She follows in the footsteps of cousin Natahnee Reynolds who also played for the Warriors.
“The special thing is that each player brings something different that we are going to be able to capitalize on,” Orlandi said of the group. “Each player is here for a reason and I am so excited to see how this season develops.”
THE SCHEDULE
The Warriors will gain experience with exhibitions at Washington State on Oct. 20 and Idaho on Oct. 25. WSU will be the first action against an outside opponent for this year’s team, and playing at Idaho will pit the Wallace sisters against each other as Kendall’s sister Ashlyn is a senior on the Vandal team.
LC State opens the regular season on Nov. 2 against Haskell Indian Nations University as part of Tribal Nations Weekend, presented by the Clearwater River Casino & Lodge. The tournament kicks off when HINU takes on Northwest Indian College in the P1FCU Activity Center on Nov. 1.
The Warriors will travel to Arizona to take on Embry-Riddle (Ariz.) and Park-Gilbert (Ariz.) Nov. 6-7 before returning home to host rival Carroll College (Mont.) and NCAA Division III Puget Sound. LC State will also travel to Walla Walla to face DIII Whitman during the season.
“Our non-conference schedule is great. We kick things off with our Tribal Nations Weekend which is going to be fantastic. The Wallace family has provided such wonderful help to make that weekend great,” Orlandi explained. “We travel to Arizona to play back-to-back games to simulate the very tough back-to-back scheduling of the Cascade Conference. Carroll College is always a battle and Coach Sayers always brings very well coached teams to compete.”
Cascade Conference play kicks off when LC State hosts Walla Walla (Wash.) on Nov. 26. The Warriors hit the road for three CCC contests, as well as the non-conference tilt with Whitman, before returning home to host Eastern Oregon on Dec. 20 and in-state rival College of Idaho on Dec. 21.
“The CCC gets better every season, and this season is going to be a battle for the championship,” Orlandi explained. “Every single conference game hold extreme importance and finding ways to win is going to be the upmost priority. Winning is hard and forming winning habits early on has been a moto for us this season.”
The CCC title game rematch with Southern Oregon will take place on Jan. 17 in Ashland and the Warriors will face Oregon Tech the following day. SOU was picked to finish at the top of the CCC with OIT in second and LC State in third. The Warriors host the two national-tournament teams Feb. 14-15 with Senior Night on Feb. 15.
The Cascade Conference Tournament starts on Feb. 25 with the title game set for March 3. The national tournament will start with the NAIA First and Second Rounds March 14-15 and action at the final site in Sioux City, Iowa will run March 20-25.
Stay up to date with all things Warrior Athletics at lcwarriors.com and on social media @LCWarriors. |
