CALDWELL – After a tight battle in the opening 10 minutes, No. 7 Lewis-Clark State Women’s Basketball took control of the contest in a 61-42 victory over in-state rival College of Idaho on Saturday. LC State dominated with a 24-7 third quarter to improve to 11-2 overall and 7-1 in Cascade Conference play.
“Our defensive rotations this afternoon were some of the best we have had this season,” Head Coach Caelyn Orlandi said. “We communicated, covered for each other and defended very well. We forced 20 turnovers and were able to snag 13 steals. I was very proud of our defensive effort and this is a great step for us as a whole. Winning on the road is very tough and I was so impressed with our poise this weekend and sticking to our system and what we are trying to do as a team.”
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Yotes scored first before Sitara Byrd answered for LC State at 7:48. C of I scored once more before Ellie Sander hit a 3 to put the Warriors up 5-4. A free throw by Maddie Holm and jumper by Lindsey Wilson kept LC ahead by a slim margin before a rally by the Yotes had C of I in front 10-8.
Back-to-back buckets by Darian Herring and Mataya Green gave LC a 12-10 advantage at 2:50 in the first quarter as the back-and-forth continued. Herring and Sander each scored in the final minute to put the Warriors up 16-14 after the first 10 minutes.
Ella Nelson and Green helped LC maintain a small lead, 19-17, before foul shots by Byrd widened the gap to 21-17 with 5:28 to play in the half. A pair of baskets by Callie Stevens and two by Sander pushed the run to 11 straight Warriors points for a 30-17 advantage at 1:36.
C of I rattled off back-to-back 3 pointers to cut into the LC lead, but a free throw by Sander gave the Warriors a 31-23 advantage at the break. LC State outscored the Yotes 15-9 in the second quarter.
Holm tallied the first five Warrior points of the third frame before a steal by Sander led to a layup by Wilson to make it 39-25 two minutes into the half. Two free throws and a 3 by Stevens pushed the scoring run to 10 points, and Wilson and Byrd added buckets to make it a 14-point stretch. The Warriors led 48-25 midway through the frame.
Stevens stayed hot in the third quarter with another triple at 3:09 before dropping in a layup two minutes later. Camden Barger followed with a jumper of her own to close the period with LC up 55-30.
A jumper by Green started the final 10 minutes, and tallies by Wilson and Nelson closed out the scoring for LC State.
Stevens led all scorers with 14 points and Sander added 11 on a 4-for-6 night from the field. Wilson was perfect on the night at 4-for-4 from the field and made her lone free throw for nine points. Holm led the defense with eight rebounds and Byrd had four steals.
The Warriors forced 20 C of I turnovers and capitalized on those for 22 points. LC shot 46.2% from the field and held the Yotes to 28.8% from the field and just 14.3% (3-for-21) from 3-point range.
UP NEXT
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