GREAT FALLS, Mont. – Lewis-Clark State College's women's basketball team needed almost every point of the mid-fourth quarter, 14-point advantage it had to subdue Providence, 74-69, in a Frontier Conference quarterfinal game Wednesday night on the Argos homecourt.
When their lead had been trimmed to three, four and five points in the waning seconds of the game, the Warriors showed the moxie they developed over the last couple of weeks and warded off every challenge.
"Tonight we beat a really good team," coach
Brian Orr said. "I was really proud of our focus and effort on defense. But, this was a game of makes and we shot it well all night."
The Warriors hit an even 50 percent from the field with
Peyton Souvenir leading the way with 19 points and
Jossilyn Blackman adding 17.
Delaney Henery had 11 and
Hailey Turner finished with 10. Blackman also had nine rebounds and Henery had eight. Turner led the Warriors with five assists.
Key in that late-game stretch were four free throws by Souvenir. With the LC lead down to four, 69-65, Souvenir was fouled with 18 seconds to play. She sank both free throw for a 71-65 lead only to have the Argos cut it to four again on Stephanie McDonough's shot from 10 feet.
This time, it was
Abbie Johnson at the line. With 15 seconds remaining, she made one of two free throws for the 72-67 lead. McDonough struck again with :08 showing on the clock to bring Providence to within 72-69. Souvenir was fouled on the inbounds play and, with seven seconds to go, sank both free throws to provide the final score.
"We had so many people step up," Orr said. "Jossilyn was really tough. She was determined to score when she got inside and she had some key offensive rebounds. Hailey hit some key baskets and Peyton played maybe her best game as a Warrior."
The Warriors, seeded fifth, head to top-seeded Carroll College for their semifinal game Saturday. In the other first-round games, No. 2 Montana-Western eliminated No. 7 Montana State-Northern and No. 3 Rocky Mountain bounced No. 6 Montana Tech. Rocky Mountain and Montana-Western play in the other Saturday semifinal.
"We can enjoy this win tonight," Orr said, "but we know the only way to extend our season is to put together a repeat performance on Saturday night."
