Your future, our focus
Fall To Williston State, Lake Region State
The opening month of the 2018-19 season has been a brutal one for the Northwest College women’s basketball team, with eight of the first nine games played away from the friendly confines of Cabre Gym.
The Lady Trappers traveled to Sheridan over the weekend for the Lions Club Classic, where the team’s road woes continued with losses against Williston State (46-35) and Lake Region State (75-58). Northwest is now 1-8 on the season, but will have the luxury of staying put for a couple of weeks, beginning this weekend with the First Bank of Wyoming Shootout.
Despite last weekend’s losses, first-year head coach Camden Levett said the Lady Trappers continue to show improvement.
“It was a good little tournament for us. It was only four hours’ worth, so it felt like a home game,” Levett joked. “We’re looking forward to being home this weekend.”
WILLISTON STATE 46, LADY TRAPPERS 35
The Lady Trappers gave Williston State all it could handle Friday, but were unable to overcome a slow first quarter, losing to the Lady Tetons for the second time this season, 46-35.
“We came out slow. We only scored five points in the first quarter, and that put us in a hole we weren’t able to climb out of,” Levett said. “We just didn’t shoot the ball very well; I think we finished at 19 percent on the game. We just didn’t make enough shots.”
Defensively, the Lady Trappers were solid, according to Levett. Northwest out-rebounded the Lady Tetons 48-38, and finished with three blocks and seven steals as a team.
“Our defense and our rebounding were great,” he said, noting that NWC held Williston to 46 points. “You would think in college basketball, that would be enough to get a win. We just gotta make shots. Defensively, I was pleased with what we did — we made some adjustments from when we played them the first time. We did a lot better.”
Melissa Martinez led the Lady Trappers in scoring with eight points off the bench, to go along with five rebounds. Kaylee Brown and Tess Henry followed with six points apiece, while Berkley Larsen added five points and Shelby Wardell netted four.
Sophomore Tayla Sayer once again ran the point for Northwest, scoring two points and leading the team in rebounds with nine. The coach said Sayer is settling nicely into her new role at the one.
“Tayla Sayer running the point for us now has been doing a good job — she’s really helped our team cut down on turnovers and is taking care of the ball,” Levett said. “And playing out of the point guard spot, I think she’s our leading rebounder. I think it’s been paying off for us.”
LAKE REGION STATE 75, LADY TRAPPERS 58
Wardell, a Lady Trapper sophomore and Lovell native, had the hot hand on Saturday against Lake Region State College. She led all scorers with 21 points, including hitting 7 of 9 shots from behind the arc.
Starting at shooting guard, Wardell “more than stepped up to the challenge,” Levett said. “It was really good to see her get going and play with some confidence.”
But Wardell’s performance notwithstanding, the Lady Royals proved why they’ve advanced to the national tournament three of the last six seasons, pulling away from Northwest for a 75-58 win.
“Lake Region is a very well-coached team, very disciplined,” Levett said. “We played much better against them, we were up for the challenge, but still came up short at the end.”
Injuries played a factor in the contest, as Henry’s recurring foot injury kept her sidelined and Martinez injured her knee during the game.
“That kind of limited some of the things we could do, especially in the second half,” Levett said.
Kaylee Brown was the only other Lady Trapper to finish in double digits, netting 10 points to go along with two steals. Sayer was a 3-pointer shy of a double-double, finishing with seven points and a team-leading 10 boards, while dishing off five assists.
Selena Cudney chipped in seven points, while Martinez finished with six. The Lady Trappers face a couple of familiar foes this weekend, as they host Miles Community College Friday and Dawson Community College Saturday, teams they’ve lost to earlier this season. Excited for the opportunity to play in front of their home crowd, Levett said his team will be ready.
“A point of emphasis all week will be ball security,” he said. “With Tayler [Sayer] running the point, I think we’ll be more prepared this time. We’re just excited to play at home, we really are. Both these games are ones we’re looking forward to see how far we’ve come. I think we’re ready to get over that hump, start winning some games.”