WNCC women earn 1-point at Casper

Submitted By JEREMY WOZNICK, Star-Herald Sports Reporter

CASPER, Wyo. - In a place that's annually one of the toughest places in Region IX to get a road win, the Western Nebraska Community College women's basketball team escaped with a 68-67 victory over Casper College on Tuesday night in Casper, Wyo.

It certainly wasn't easy as the Cougars went up 68-65 when sophomore SeLina Ysac scored on an offensive-rebound putback with 22 seconds left in the second half. WNCC had a chance to ice the game just seconds later, but a missed free throw allowed the Thunderbirds one last opportunity with six seconds remaining. Casper's last-second shot rained in at the buzzer, but it came from just inside the 3-point line.

"This has always been a tough place to get a win and tonight was no different," WNCC assistant coach Jennifer Pedersen said. "It was a tight game all the way and we're fortunate to get out of here with a win."

WNCC trailed Casper by a score of 38-35 at the half before outscoring the T-Birds 33-29 in the second half.

Sophomore Shaquilah Davis poured in 21 points to lead WNCC in scoring. Davis was a sizzling 4-for-6 from 3-point range, and connected on a key trey late in the game to keep the Cougars in front. Davis was joined in double figures by Amber Kistler with 13 points and Janae Willis with 10.

Kistler also proved lethal from behind the 3-point line as she finished the game connecting on 3 of her 5 triple tries. Also for the Cougars, Caley Fisher drained a pair of treys to finish with eight points. WNCC finished the contest shooting 42 percent (9 of 21) from behind the 3-point arc while Casper shot 26 percent (5 of 19).

Overall, WNCC shot 40 percent from the field and was 7 of 13 from the foul line.

Tawny Drexler and Kistler paced the Cougars on the glass with seven rebounds each. Ysac totaled five boards, while Davis and Willis each collected four.

WNCC finished the game with 11 steals defensively and forced Casper into 19 turnovers.
The Cougars also benefited from a strong bench effort in the game as WNCC's bench outscored Casper's 28-8.

Samira Van Grinsven paced Casper in scoring with 23 points. Josie Stewart tallied 16 and Dana Seth added 15.

The victory improved WNCC to 19-6 on the season, while the loss dropped Casper to 20-6. The Cougars have won three straight games after dropping two in a row to open the second semester.

WNCC will be back in action on Saturday at home against Eastern Wyoming College.

WNCC (19-6) 35 33 - 68
Casper (20-6) 38 29 - 67
WNCC
Amber Kistler 13, Lorena Medairos 5, SeLina Ysac 4, Shaquilah Davis 21, Stormye Everett 3, Janae Willis 10, Tawny Drexler 3, Caley Fisher 8.
CASPER COLLEGE
Emily Elliot 3, Samira Van Grinsven 23, Dana Seth 15, Wendy Walker 4, Kerstin Minchow 2, Josie Stewart 16, Ewa Urbanowska 4.