SALEM, Ore. – Third-seeded No. 17 LC State Women's Basketball outlasted sixth-seeded (RV) Southern Oregon in the quarterfinal round of the 2026 Cascade Conference Women's Basketball Championship, presented by U.S. Bank. The Warriors fended off a second-half push by the Raiders in the 66-62 victory.
Sitara Byrd led the charge for LC State with an 11-point, 10-rebound double-double as one of five Warriors in double-digit points. LC State held SOU to 35.1% shooting from the field and made nearly 50% of its shots.
"Defensively I thought we were really good today," coach
Caelyn Orlandi said. "We played player personnel well and made great adjustments from the last time we played them. We had some really great individual performances, but we win together and I'm proud of all our players. Everyone contributed even if they didn't get on the court today and everyone is important to what we do at LC."
The Warriors will face the winner of Eastern Oregon/Warner Pacific on Saturday in the CCC semifinal. The time will be determined by the result of the Corban/Northwest contest.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Southern Oregon pulled ahead 12-7 midway through the first frame, but a 10-point run by LC State put the Warriors back in front. Byrd,
Payton Hymas and
Kendall Wallace fueled the run that had the Warriors ahead 17-12 after 10 minutes.
Byrd continued the scoring run in the second quarter and Hymas capped it at 15 straight points for a 22-12 advantage at 8:09. The Warrior defense denied eight straight SOU shots in the span.
Darian Herring scored four straight points before a jumper by Wallace made it 28-13 midway through the quarter.
The Raiders made their first field goal in 12 minutes at 3:55, but tallies by Hymas and Herring kept LC State's foot on the gas and
Grace Beardin added a triple. LC State led 41-25 at the break after a pair of free throws by Hymas.
Lindsey Wilson opened the second half with a basket, but the Raiders nearly erased the LC State lead with a 15-point swing to cut the difference to 43-40 by 5:33. A 3-pointer by Wallace widened the margin to 46-40. SOU kept things close but Wilson helped the Warriors maintain the advantage with a pair of baskets.
Tatum Brager pushed the lead to 53-44 with 1:01 to play in the frame. Wilson knocked down a free throw for a 54-44 margin with 10 minutes to play.
Southern Oregon cut the Warrior lead to six points in the first three minutes of the final frame before baskets by Byrd and Herring pushed the difference back to 10, 60-50, with 5:20 to play. The Raiders capitalized on free throws to make it a two-point game, 64-62, in the final seconds but foul shots by Byrd clinched the victory.
STAT RECAP
Hymas led the Warriors with 15 points and four assists while Wilson added 14 points with five rebounds. Byrd notched her double-double, and both Wallace and Herring scored 10 points. Wallace snagged five steals and Herring totaled five rebounds and two blocked shots.
LC State shot 47.9% from the field and held SOU to 35.1%. The Raiders were held to 25% (6-for-24) from 3-point range.
UP NEXT
The Warriors will face the winner of the contest between second-seeded No. 14 Eastern Oregon and seventh-seeded Warner Pacific (Ore.). The contest will be at 5 p.m. or 7 p.m. based on results from later games.
Stay up to date with all things Warrior Athletics at lcwarriors.com and on social media @LCWarriors.
