WNCC men top NJC 86-85 in final home game of season, will face EWC Monday in final regular season game

The Western Nebraska Community College men's basketball team converted on 27 free throws, including 18 in the final three minutes of the game to register an exciting 86-85 win over Northeastern Junior College Sunday at Cougar Palace.

" O'Rion Hughes was 10 of 10 from the free throw line, which was huge and overall we were 27 of 35 and 77 percent from the free throw line, which we made more free throws then they attempted," WNCC coach Russ Beck said. "That is an old coaching adage that when you make more free throws then they attempt, you typically win 80 to 90 percent of the time."

WNCC will try to continue its winning ways Monday when they travel to Eastern Wyoming College in the team's final regular season game. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. in Torrington, Wyo. The contest will also be the Lancer's final game of the year since EWC did not make the regional tournament, while the Cougars will open the regional tournament on Saturday against Lamar Community College.

"All the win Sunday does is gives us a little bit momentum for Monday night's game," Hopefully tomorrow's [Monday] game will give us a little more momentum for the regional tournament. Right now I don't want to worry about Lamar or think how they are doing. I haven't watched film on them since we played them. As soon as tomorrow night's game is over i will be up until the wee hours in the morning trying to prepare for Lamar. All I am focused on right know is going over to Eastern Wyoming and playing the best that we possibly can play and get out of there with a win.

Beck said he wants his team to play well against Eastern and if they can do the things that got them the win Sunday against NJC, they should be O.K.

"This is a very important game for us because this will be Eastern's last game, so it is like the championship game for them," Beck said. "It would be nothing better for them to take a win away from us. Anything, they are going to be prepared for Francisco Cruz. They played a lot of zone against us last game and I am not sure if they want to do that again. We have a lot of guys that are playing with a lot of confidence. We were 7 of 15 from the 3-point are and 46 percent. If they do zone us, we will be prepared to knock down some shots."
WNCC blistered the nets for 44 percent shooting, including going 46 percent from the 3-point area. The Cougars were 7 of 15 from beyond the arc as Joe Stock and Francisco Cruz each made three treys. The other 3-pointer came from Mateus Chavez as the redshirt freshman nailed an NBA 3-pointer as the shot clock was running down to end the first half. WNCC held a slim 34-30 lead at intermission.

After the break, Cruz and Stock each tallied 3-pointers to give the Cougars a 42-38 lead. NJC came back as Jerrell Washington followed Stock's trey with a long-range bomb of his own to give the Plainsmen their first lead of the game since the opening bucket of the game.

WNCC came right back as Cruz buried his second trey of the game, which started a 12-0 run for the Cougars that was capped by Stock's third 3-pointer to put WNCC up 54-43. Cruz's second trey with 15 minutes to play gave the 6-foot-4 sophomore his 1,000 career point. He is one of only 12 players to score 1,000 points in their career at WNCC.

NJC didn't quit as they came back behind the shooting of Widgett Washington, who scored eight points to bring the Plainsmen back to 63-60 with just over 7 minutes to play. WNCC scored the next seven points with strong inside play from Geddes Robinson and Ritchie Mundende to go up 70-63.

The Plainsmen stormed back to get to within a single point, 83-82 on a Jerrell Washington bucket with under 30 seconds to play. Saul Torres put the Cougars up by two with 16.3 seconds with a free throw. NJC then missed a lay-up and Cruz was fouled with 5.8 seconds left. Cruz calmly hit both shots to go up 86-82. Widgett Washington then drained a 3-pointer and then WNCC turned the ball with under a second to play and a last ditch shot just fell short to preserve the win.

"I think overall we played pretty well," Beck said. "I would like us not to turn over the ball so much, but at the same time when a team pressures you for 40 minutes, there will be some inherited turnovers. We just don't like the turnovers that when we are in the half court and we don't give ourselves the opportunity to get a shot on the rim."

The Cougars had four players finish in double figures, led by Cruz and Robinson's 19 points and eight rebounds each. Hughes finished with 18 points, including a perfect 10 of 10 from the free throw line. Stock tossed in 11 points.

NJC was led by Widgett Washington who had 33 points, including four 3-pointers.

NJC 30 55 -- 85
WNCC (18-11) 34 52 -- 86
NORTHEASTERN COLORADO
Dre Calloway 11, Will Bell 15, Widgett Washington 33, Jerrell Washington 10, Trevor Brady 12, Nate Nelson 2, Griffin Brady 2.
WESTERN NEBRASKA
Geoffrey Firmin 6, Saul Torres 2, O'Rion Hughes 18, Joe Stock 11, Mateau Chaves 3, Francisco Cruz 19, Brylle Kamen 3, Ritchie Mundende 6, Geddes Robinson 19.

WNCC women win final home game 66-48 over No. 22 Northeastern Colorado

Stormye Everett and Amber Kistler had a memorable last game at Cougar Palace Sunday afternoon. The two Western Nebraska Community College sophomores combined for 36 points and 16 rebounds to lead the Cougar women to a huge 66-48 win over No. 22 Northeastern Junior College.

The win was the Cougars' fifth straight victory heading into this weekend's Region IX tournament in Sterling, Colo.

"This win is huge and I am so excited," said a happy Everett. "We haven't beat NJC in the last two years that I have been here and we finally beat them by 18 in our house. This shows our potential heading into the regional tournament. This was also my last game here so this win meant a lot. I am happy."

What Everett, Kistler and the rest of the Cougar women can be happy about is the way they beat a much taller NJC team. The Cougars out-rebounded the Plainsmen 56-44 and converted 69 percent (18 of 26) free throws. WNCC shot 31 percent for the game, but it was by far better than Northeastern's 26 percent, including just 15 percent from the 3-point area.

"Out-rebounding them was huge," Everett said. "We had a little slump in rebounding and that was how teams were beating us, and now that we know we can outbound teams it will help especially against teams that are bigger than us at regionals."

For a brief moment during the game, NJC looked as if they were going to run away with the contest. WNCC enjoyed an early 7-2 lead only to watch the Plainswomen go on a 15-4 run to take a 17-7 lead. The Cougars didn't fold as they kept playing their game while receiving some clutch buckets by Everett and big rebounding from Hemingford's Shelby Campbell, the smallest player on the court. Campbell finished the first half with six rebounds to lead the team.

What really brought the Cougars back from the 10-point deficit was not giving up. WHCC finished the half on a 11-2 run. Kistler came up big with four free throws and then nailed an NBA 3-pointer at the buzzer to give the Cougars a 30-26 halftime lead.

"When we were down, we just kept our composure and didn't let the score bother us," Everett said. "We continued to play our game, made stops on defense and limited our turnovers. And, Kistler's 3-pointer was huge. It kept the momentum up and that is what we needed, momentum."

The Cougars carried Kistler's momentum-turning trey into the second half. Yuki Morimoto started things with four four straight technical foul shots after NJC's head coach Darryl Parker was tossed from the game.

NJC fought back slicing the lead to 39-31 on a Dawn Wattley bucket. Kistler brought the Cougars back as the Bayard graduate grabbed a rebound and drove the length of the court for a lay-up and a 45-33 lead. Kistler followed that with her second 3-pointer of the game and then two free throws to go up 50-37.

The Plainswomen made one last ditch effort to come back as Lynnae Cox drained a 3-pointer to cut the lead to 50-40. WNCC came back to outscore NJC the rest of the way 14-8, including back-to-back 3-pointers by Morimoto and Kistler.

WNCC had three players in double figures. Kistler led the way with 22 points, seven rebounds and 9 of 10 shooting from the free throw line, while Everett had 14 points and nine rebounds. Morimoto finished with 16 points and seven rebounds.

Hemingford's Campbell finished with nine rebounds and sto steals.

NJC also had three players in double figures led by Maty Diallo with 13 points and eight rebounds. Sabelle Diata had 12 points on 6 of 24 shooting, while Lynnae Cox had 11 points and three 3-pointers.

WNCC, 23-7, will next be in action at the Region IX tournament in Sterling, Colo., where they will face Little Big Horn College on Friday at 3 p.m.

NJC (25-5) 26 22 -- 48
WNCC (23-7) 30 36 -- 66
NORTHEASTERN COLORADO
Dara Kipp 2, Amy Marin 4, Lynnae Cox 11, Dawn Wattley 6, Sabelle Diata 12, Maty Diallo 13.
WESTERN NEBRASKA
Amber Kistler 22, Stormye Everett 14, Yuki Morimoto 16, Tiffany Moorer 6, Carolina Alves 2, Kelli Culver 2, Khayla Gladney 4.

WNCC baseball team drops games against NJC

Submitted by Jeremy Woznick, Star-Herald Sports Reporter

PUEBLO, Colo. - The Western Nebraska Community College baseball team dropped a non-conference doubleheader to Northeastern Junior College Saturday afternoon in Pueblo, Colo.

WNCC (1-11) lost by scores of 4-3 and 4-1. Five of the Cougars' losses so far this season have been by just one run.

"We're much better than our record shows," WNCC coach Mike Jones said. "We are seeing progress. We just made a few too many errors today, but we are progressing."

WNCC was supposed to host its home opener against Miles City Community College this weekend in Scottsbluff. But the field conditions forced the games to be cancelled.

In Saturday's first game, WNCC plated all three of its runs in the bottom of the fourth inning to knot the score at 3-3. But NJC scored the game-winning run in the top of the sixth to sneak out the victory.

JC Morales led WNCC offensively by going 2-for-3 with a run scored. Jason Sloan, Oscar Rodriguez and Jared Baros all had run-scoring singles for the Cougars.

Carlos Luzon pitched well in his first collegiate start. Luzon allowed three runs on seven hits in getting a no decision. He struck out four.

Jacob Stutzman took the loss on the mound. He allowed one run and struck out one in two innings of work out of the bullpen.

In game two, WNCC mustered its lone run in the top of the first when Trace Marsden drove in Elvis Garcia.

Marsden and Shane Wade both went 2-for-3 with doubles. Caleb Patton also had a double in the game for the Cougars.

Carlos Palomo took the loss on the mound. He allowed three runs on just two hits in five innings. Palomo struck out three and walked five.

John Bravard worked one inning in relief and struck out one.

WNCC is scheduled to be back in action Wednesday in Fort Collins, Colo., against the Colorado State University club team. The Cougars will then open Region IX play Saturday at home against Trinidad State Junior College.

Game One
NJC 101 101 0 - 4 11 0
WNCC 000 300 0 - 3 9 3
LP - Jacob Stutzman.

Game Two
WNCC 100 000 0 - 1 7 1
NJC 102 001 x - 4 5 1
LP - Carlos Palomo.
2B - Shane Wade, Trace Marsden, Caleb Patton.

WNCC softball splits with Lamar Community College

LAMAR, Colo. -- The Western Nebraska Community College softball team split a conference doubleheader with Lamar Community College Saturday in Lamar, Colo.

The Cougars spotted Lamar a 4-0 lead in game one before falling 4-2. In the second contest, the No. 11 ranked Cougars scored the winning run in the seventh inning to prevail 9-8 in a wild contest. The Cougars are now 8-1 on the season and 1-1 in conference play.

The second game was an offensive slugfest as the Cougars jumped out to a 6-0 lead before Lamar scored twice in the third inning. WNCC held an 8-2 lead but couldn't hold the lead as the Runnin' Lopes tied the contest at 8-8 after six innings.

WNCC fought back in the seventh inning with a single run to earn the split. Stephanie Townsend started the comeback with a one-out double. Then Megan Bourdon lashed a 2-out double to score the go-ahead run.

Townsend then pitched a flawless seventh inning to pick up the win in the circle in relief of Brittany Enterline in the sixth inning.

The Cougars pounded out just eight hits in the contest in scoring their nine runs. Allie Alverson, Adena Hagen and Jordan Schoepflin each had two hits in the win. Hagen had a double, a run scored and a RBI, while Alverson scored two runs. Schoepflin had a run scored and and RBI.

Ashton Hughes also blasted a double, whole Townsend had a double and three runs scored. Katie Groves also scored two runs, while Tonya Atencio had two RBIs.

WNCC committed four errors in game two. They also committed two errors in game one, which proved costly.

Lamar scored a single run in the first first and three more in the third inning to take a 4-0 lead in the opening game. WNCC came back to slice the lead in half with two runs in the sixth. Adena Hagen started things with a double followed by Katie Groves belting a 2-run home run.

Both teams managed just eight hits in the opener. Hagen went 3-for-3 with two doubles and a run scored. No other Cougar had more than one hit in the opener.

Taylor Anderson suffered the loss going six inning and scattering eight runs. Anderson struck out three and had just one earned run.

The Cougars will next be in action when they travel to McCook Community College for a conference doubleheader on Wednesday, followed by road trips to Otero Junior College and Garden City March 6 and 7.

Game One

WNCC 000 002 0 -- 2 8 2

Lamar 103 000 x -- 4 8 0

LP -- Taylor Anderson; 2B -- Adena Hagen

Game Two

WNCC (8-1) 213 200 1 -- 9 8 4

Lamar 000 132 0 -- 8 11 3

WP -- Stephanie Townsend; 2B -- Townsend, Megan Bourdon, Ashton Hughes, Adena Hagen.

WNCC softball team tops Frank Phillips in doubleheader

LAMAR, Colo. – The Western Nebraska Community College softball team remained perfect on the season by shutting out Frank Phillips College Friday in Lamar, Colo.

Taylor Anderson tossed a 2-hitter in the opener as the Cougars registered an 8-0 win. Brittany Enterline followed with another dazzling pitching performance while tossing a 5-hitter in the Cougars 9-0 win.

The No. 11-ranked Cougars will return to action Saturday when they face Lamar Community College in a conference doubleheader in Lamar, Colo.

Both games saw some clutch hitting for WNCC. In the opener, the Cougars pounded out 11 hits, including back-to-back home runs by Katie Groves and Stephanie Townsend in the third inning to put WNCC up 3-0.

Groves and Townsend each went 2-for-2. Groves had two runs scored and two RBIs, while Townsend had a double, two runs scored and two RBIs.

Also collecting multiple hits were Megan Burditt, Allie Alverson and Ashton Hughes. Alverson delivered two RBIs in the contest.

Anderson picked up her third win of the year by limiting Frank Phillips to two hits, while walking two and striking out two.

The second game saw Enterline register her third win as well with a five hit performance. The freshman from Tracy, Calif., struck out four and walked five in seven innings.

Offensively, the Cougars pounded out 12 hits Alverson led the team with a 3-for-4 performance, missing hitting for the cycle by just a home run. Alverson’s triple came in the seventh inning as she scored Jordan Schoepflin. Alverson finished with a double, two runs scored and two RBIs.

Burditt, Schoepflin and Adena Hagen had multiple hits. Schoepflin went 3-for-4 with two runs scored and two RBIs, while Hagen scored two runs and had an RBI.

First game
Frank Phillips 000 00 – 0 2 2
WNCC 012 5x – 8 11 2
WP – Taylor Anderson (3-0); 2B – Stephanie Townsend; HR – Townsend, Katie Groves.

Second Game
WNCC (7-0) 000 232 2 – 9 12 0
Frank Phillips 000 000 0 – 0 5 2
WP – Brittany Enterline (3-0); 2B – Alverson; 3B – Alverson.

WNCC men, women set for final home game

Western Nebraska Community College’s Amber Kistler really hasn’t thought too much about Sunday’s last home contest against Northeastern Junior College. But, in the back of her mind there is some tears starting to develop as the Bayard graduate will be playing her last game at Cougar Palace as well as the Panhandle.

“It hasn't really sunk in yet that this is the last time I will be playing here,” Kistler, the Bayard graduate, said. “I've thought about it a lot, I just want our last home game in Nebraska to be a memorable one. For me, it will be my last game at the Palace and it's kind of sad in a way.”

The WNCC men and women will have their final home game of the season on Sunday as they entertain Northeastern Junior College. The women’s game tips off at 2 p.m. with the men’s game to follow.

The women enter Sunday’s contest at 22-7, while the men are 17-11. Both teams have a number of sophomores that will be playing their last games in Cougar Palace. After Sunday’s contest, the Cougar women will head to the regional tournament in Sterling, Colo., with a 3 p.m. contest against Little Big Horn College.

The men will have one more regular season game left after the NJC contest as they travel to Eastern Wyoming College on Monday. The men will then head to the regional tournament in Sheridan, Wyo. The Cougar men’s first contest at regionals is slated for March 6 at 8 p.m. against Lamar Community College.

Kistler and Stormye Everett are the only two women’s sophomores, while the men have four sophomores that will be finishing up their career at WNCC in Francisco Cruz, Saul Torres, Geddes Robinson and Scott Bamforth. Bamforth started the season before an injury sidelined him for the season.

Kistler is hoping to end her Cougar Palace playing career off in style

“I've played here before high school when I was on the Hickory Husker team when I was 13 so I have played here since then, through high school, and now college,” she said. “It's been an awesome experience since high school conference games, summer league, hosting regionals, and now my final home game Sunday.”
It will not be a tall order for the women’s or men’s team come Sunday against good Northeastern Junior College teams. In fact, the Plainswomen have defeated the Cougars six straight times, including three times last season. NJC defeated the Cougars in January 58-39.

Kistler said they need to be on the top of their game come Sunday.

“To come out on top with a win we have to play good defense and go hard on offense,” We need to get every rebound and every loose ball. We have to play real Cougar basketball. To stop their big girls, we just need to play our defense and rotate on defense also.”

Kistler’s shining moment as a member of the Cougar team was last year after the Cougars came back from a double-digit deficit to defeat Northeast Nebraska by 15 points.

“The most significant memory I have so far is when Coach Harnish came into the locker room after we beat Northeast Nebraska last year to host regionals and won the coin toss,” she said. “We were screaming and yelling, and he smiled at us. I think he was really proud.”

Well, Kistler is hoping to add another shining moment to her athletic career after Sunday.

“We are leaving it all on the court Sunday, we are ready to play like we know how to,” she said. “This Sunday is special to me because it is my last time to play in front of my home crowd, people who care about me, and on the floor I've spent so much time on. It's crazy but I'm ready for it. I can't really describe it right now. I just want to thank everybody who has done anything for us. The teachers, coaches, everybody is so great to us.”

WNCC men's basketball team falls to North Platte

The Western Nebraska Community College men’s basketball team had North Platte Community College right where they wanted them.

North Platte, however, showed why they are the top team in Region IX with a 24-4 record as they fought back to claim a 67-63 win to secure the No. 1 seed from the East Sub-region. The Cougars, at 17-11, earned the No. 2 seed entering the Region IX tournament, which begins March 5 in Sheridan,Wyo.

“We played pretty good in the first half. I think in the second half we lost a little bit of control. Next game we will get it,” sophomore Geddes Robinson said. “Games like this we should have put them away early and be up by 20 instead of letting it be a close game.”

The Cougars quickly got out of the gate, jumping to an 8-0 lead on a Brylle Kamen offensive rebound and back-to-back 3-pointers by Joe Stock and Francisco Cruz. WNCC pushed the lead to 12-3 on a Robinson driving bucket and a basket by Cruz.

North Platte bounced back, slicing the lead to 15-13 on one occasion before the Cougars cranked it back up to go up 30-21 late in the first half. North Platte didn’t panic as Chase Grabau nailed a 3-pointer and Karol Gruszecki had a bucket to tighten the game up. WNCC went on to lead 34-29 at intermission.

WNCC played well early in the second half as they kept the Knights at bay, taking a 41-32 and held a 51-45 lead with 10 minutes left in the game.

The Knights fought back tying the game at 53-53 with 7:56 left on a Joseph Ragland baseline lay-up. WNCC came right back as Robinson gave the Cougars the lead again. The score was tied a number of times after that. North Platte took their first lead of the contest at 62-61 with 56.8 seconds to play as Rundell Mauge sank one of two free throws.

The Cougars came right back as Cruz nailed two charity tosses with 39.6 seconds to play. After a timeout, Gruszecki drained a 3-pointer from the corner for the Knights biggest lead of the night at 65-63. WNCC called a timeout and a open 3-pointer fell short with six seconds left. Ragland then sealed the game with two free throws with 3.8 seconds.

“We did start strong, but we couldn’t hold them off,” Robinson said. “We need to build a bigger cushion and a bigger lead. We picked up a lot of stupid fouls at the end; a lot of fouls that we didn’t need.”

Cruz and Robinson led the Cougars with 21 and 20 points respectively. Robinson also pulled down 10 rebounds.

North Platte had three players hit double digits. Ragland finished with 23 points, including 9 of 10 from the free throw line. Chase Grabau finished with 14 points and eight rebounds, while Gruszecki had 13 points.

The WNCC men will look to rebound Sunday and Monday when they finish the regular season. The Cougars will host Northeastern Junior College in a women’s and men’s doubleheader beginning at 2 p.m. on Sunday in what is sophomore recognition day. Then, on Monday, the Cougar men will wrap up the regular season when they travel to Eastern Wyoming College for a 7 p.m. contest.

“We are going to be ready to come out and play a pretty good game [on Sunday] and have more intensity,” Robinson said. “Sometimes I think a loss is good for us that way we can it can pick us back up and make us more hungry. We are taking more baby steps toward a bigger goal. We lost to them by 20 points last time and this time we lost by four, so that is pretty good for us.”

North Platte (24-4) 29 36 – 67

WNCC (17-11) 36 27 – 63

NORTH PLATTE

Dorian Williams 3, Joseph Ragland 23, Brenton Brown 5, Chase Grabau 14, Jordan Weatherford 5, Karol Gruszecki 13, Rundell Mauge 4.

WESTERN NEBRASKA

Geoffrey Firmin 5, Saul Torres 4, O’Rion Hughes 2, Joe Stock 6, Francisco Cruz 21, Brylle Kamen 5, Geddes Robinson 20.

WNCC baseball splits with Otero

WNCC baseball splits with Otero Junior College

LA JUNTA, Colo. – The Western Nebraska Community College baseball team picked up its first victory of the season after splitting a non-conference doubleheader with Otero Junior College Wednesday afternoon.

The Cougar men fell in the first game 4-3 before coming back with a 4-0 win in the night cap.

In the second game, WNCC scored three runs In the third inning and then added a single run in the fifth, while pounding out 11 hits. WNCC’s Tim beard picked up the win with a complete game shutout, allowing just four hits.

In the first game, WNCC quickly got behind as Otero scored three runs to open the game before the Cougars sliced the lead to 3-2 in the fifth inning. WNCC scored a run in the seventh.

The Cougars will next be in action Friday when they face Lamar Community College in a non-conference doubleheader in Lamar, Colo.

First Game
WNCC 001 010 1 – 3 7 0
Otero 300 001 x – 4 8 1
WP – Danny Morales.

Second Game
WNCC (1-9) 003 010 0 – 4 11 2
Otero (6-5) 000 000 0 – 0 4 1
WP – Tim Beard, LP – Mike Loseke.

WNCC women turn back EWC 70-65

The Western Nebraska Community College women’s basketball team used a 21-0 run in the first half and then held off a furious Eastern Wyoming College second-half rally to register their 22^nd win of the season with a 70-65 victory Tuesday evening at the Verl Petsch Activities Center.

WNCC held a 34-21 lead at intermission as the Lancers made just 3 of 21 3-pointers in the opening half. In the second half, EWC rimmed in 10 3-pointers to come back to take 65-64 lead with 1:46 to play.

The Cougars scored the next six points as the WNCC defense stiffened as Tiffany Moorer and Shelby Campbell converted two free throws a piece, and Stormye Everett hit a bucket with 41 seconds to play to secure the win.

“I think the difference in the first and second half, and we played the same defensively, is that they were 3 of 21 in the first half from the three-point range and in the second half they made the threes. That is the difference,” WNCC coach Dave Harnish said. “They caught fire behind the 3-point line and just started making shots. I think the one good thing we did is every time we get behind in close games is we are able to shot people down in the last two to three minutes.

“I don’t know why we do that all game long. I thought the last three or four of their possessions, we blocked three of their shots and they never did get a good shot up the last minute or two of the game.”

EWC coach Tom Andersen said the team’s shooting in the second half definitely was a spark for the team.

“We shot terrible in the first half. We got some decent looks and some offensive rebounds, but we just couldn’t knock down the shot,” Andersen said. “The second half we got going a little bit, hit a few shots, and that makes a big difference. The kids got excited and we started playing a little better defense. It was a good game right down to the end. I am disappointed in the loss, but I am encouraged by our effort.”

EWC jumped out to a quick 7-3 lead behind a 3-pointer by Danielle Brown. WNCC put the clamps on that run as they went on a 21-0 run over the next 11 minutes as Tiffany Moorer and Yuki Morimoto hit clutch shots.

WNCC also got clutch performances from the bench during the run as Kelli Culver nailed a 3-poitner and then Carolina Alves had an offensive putback for a 24-7 lead. Marque Lunderman stopped the run with two free throws with 5:53 left in the half as WNCC led 34-21 at halftime.

Moorer connected on back-to-back buckets to start the second half. WNCC held a 12-point lead, 46-34, with 11 minutes to play on an Amber Kistler bucket and kept the lead around eight points for most of the second half. WNCC led 58-48 with seven minutes to play on three Campbell free throws.

EWC came back as they went on a 9-0 run as Danielle Brown and April Johnson each canned 3-pointers, cutting the lead to 58-57. Campbell stopped the run with a driving bucket and then Morimoto hit her first bucket of the second half to up the score to 62-57.

Back came EWC as Johnson nailed her fourth trey of the game followed by a 3-pointer by Lunderman to come within one point. EWC then took their first lead since early in the game on two free throws by Johnson before being held scoreless the final 1:46 of the game.

Andersen said that against a tall team like the Cougars, they did live and die by the 3-pointer. EWC shot 29 percent (13 of 45) from beyond the arc. The Lancers made 10 3-pointers in the second half and just two 2-pointers.

WNCC, on the other hand, shot 45 percent from the field for the game and was 18 of 27 from the free throw line. Campbell was 8 of 10 from the charity stripe to lead both teams. The Hemingford graduate finished with 10 points.

The Cougars had three other players in double figures, led by Morimoto with 14 points, Moorer with 13 and Stormye Everett with 12.

EWC also had four players in double figures. Jessica Brown and April Johnson each had 14 points, while Jayda Schilling and Danielle Brown each had 11 points.

The Lancers will next be in action Saturday when they host Otero Junior College at 5:30 p.m. to close out the regular season. WNCC will close out the regular season Sunday against Northeastern Junior College at Cougar Palace. Tip-off for the Cougar women’s game is set for 2 p.m.

WNCC (22-7) 34 36 – 70
EWC (14-15) 31 44 – 65
EASTERN WYOMING
Jayda Schelling 11, Koel Hall 5, Jessica Brown 14, April Johnson 14, Marque Lunderman 7, Danielle Brown 11, Sarah Smith 3.
WESTERN NEBRASKA
Amber Kistler 4, Stormye Everett 12, Shelby Campbell 10, Yuki Morimoto 14, Ariane Brown 2, Tiffany Moorer 13, Carolina Alves 2, Thais Pinto 8, Kelli Culver 5.

WNCC's Cruz verbally committs to become a Wyoming Cowboy

Western Nebraska Community College’s Francisco “Paco” Cruz spent Saturday watching the University of Wyoming play No. 13 BYU University and dreaming of someday maybe scoring points in the “Arena.”

Saturday’s visit to Laramie, Wyo., for the 6-foot-4 WNCC sophomore was the deciding factor on his college choice as he verbally committed to become a Wyoming Cowboy and help rebuild a Wyoming basketball program. Sunday’s decision brought to an end the season-long bombardment of coaches trying to get his basketball talents for the next two seasons.

“I really liked the campus and I really liked the people, players and coaches. I just felt good about it,” Cruz said. “It is a good place where I am going to play and a good conference. I think we can be successful in a couple years.”

Wyoming definitely wanted Cruz to become a Cowboy as the head and assistant coach spent many days and nights in Cougar Palace watching him put up numbers. Cruz also was entertaining interest from the University of Montana, California-Riverside and Coastal Carolina.

“The head and assistant coach was watching me all the time. They really wanted me,” Cruz said. “Going to Wyoming is closer to home and it is the highest level to play in. I just feel good about it and hope everything will work out.”

WNCC head coach Russ Beck said Wyoming is a perfect fit for Cruz.

“Paco can play at a lot of different levels and I do like the way Wyoming went about recruiting him. They identified a need they have in finding someone for the wing position that can shoot and understands how to play. Wyoming has a relative young team and they have a lot of potential, and adding another shooter like Paco helps their team step to a new level. I think it is a good opportunity for him.

“The Mountain West is a very competitive conference with the likes of UNLV, BYU and New Mexico, all teams that have been ranked at some part of the year, and they will get three teams into the NCAA tournament. Wyoming is building towards that end to get to the NCAA tournament. I am excited for him and I am excited for Wyoming and their staff.”

Wyoming plays in the Mountain West Conference, which features two top 15 teams – BYU at No. 11 and New Mexico at No. 12.

“It will be hard next year because it is one of the best conferences in the country,” Cruz said. “I hope I can play as good as I am playing here. I hope everything works out good.”

Beck said attending Wyoming, which is less than three hours from Scottsbluff, will give a lot of people an opportunity to watch and follow him.

“I think the closeness was a big part of his decision. He is close to his high school coach and close to Denver where he played high school basketball,” Beck said. “He is also close to Scottsbluff and the people he knows here. All of us can enjoy his two year career at Wyoming.”

Cruz is having one of those MVP campaigns this season. As a freshman, Cruz had 41 3-pointers and 460 points, while being named the college’s male most valuable athlete.

This season, the sophomore is averaging 20.3 points a game with 63 3-pointers made this season. Earlier this year, Cruz became only the 10^th player in school history to score over points in a game when he scored 41 in a win against Eastern Wyoming.

For his 2-year career at WNCC, Cruz has made 104 3-pointers and scored 967 points. Cruz needs just 31 points to become only the 12^th player in school history to finish with over 1,000 points for his career. Last player to achieve that goal was Tommie King back in 1998-2000, when he scored 1,086 points. King went on to play at Iowa State University.

Cruz is also pulling down 5.7 rebounds a game and shooting 46.9 percent from the field and 77.6 from the charity stripe. Cruz is hitting on 44.4 percent of his 3-point shots (63 of 142).

Cruz said that he will be playing a shooting guard when he attends the Wyoming. He added that his game improved a lot under Beck.

“My game has improved a lot,” he said. “I am making a lot of shots this year and I am able to penetrate a little more this year. I am also trying to play defense a little bit more.”

The verbal commitment means that Cruz don’t have to worry about entertaining phone calls from coaches; now he can concentrate on leading the team through the rest of the season.

“I am glad to get the decision out of the way because I don’t have to worry any more about it,” he said. “I just have to worry about the season and finish strong.”

The Cougar men will entertain North Platte Community College on Wednesday at 7 p.m. in a contest that will decide the East Sub-region champion. If the Cougars defeat North Platte by 15 points, they will win the sub-region and the No. 1 seed in the regional tournament. Otherwise, they will be No. 2 out of the sub-region.

WNCC, 17-10, has been playing well since falling to the Knights back on Feb. 5 and a big key to that streak of four straight wins is because of their defense.

“We are playing more aggressive defense and that is helping us win,” he said. “We put on a lot of ball pressure and that is helping us play really hard on defense.”

Pintos scores 25 as WNCC women top Lamar 77-44

Western Nebraska Community College’s Thais Pinto poured in 25 points and had three blocked shots to power the Cougar women to a 77-44 win over Lamar Community College Friday at Cougar Palace.

The Cougar women used a 20-1 run to close out the first half in picking up their 21^st win of the season. Pinto had six straight points during that crucial run to help the Cougars to a 46-18 halftime lead.

“We played much better defense and this win reflects the job we are doing during practice,” Pinto, the Cougars’ 6-foot-7 post, said. “After we lost three games at home, this win shows us how we have overcome and now have won three straight home games.”

What won the game for the Cougars was the strong first half and several players had a hand in the 46-18 halftime lead.

Yuki Morimoto scored 15 of her 19 points in the opening 20 minutes. Shelby Campbell and Carolina Alves also came off the bench to score three points each. Tiffany Moorer also was hot early, scoring six straight points to bring the Cougars back from a 5-2 deficit to a 9-5 lead. The Cougars never trailed after that.

“We were aggressive in the first half,” Pinto said. “We played together, we played with each other more, we had steals, and we hit the boards.”

The Cougars shot a blistering 60 percent from the field in the opening half, as well as connecting on 60 percent from beyond the 3-point range. The Cougars also were unselfish with the fall in the opening half as they had 13 assists and six steals. Stormye Everett, who didn’t score in the game, contributed five first-half assists.

WNCC just gelled on the night as they out-rebounded Lamar 42-26 and out-shot the Lopes 53 percent to 23 percent. The only negative from the game was turnovers as the Cougars committed 20 turnovers, but most of those miscues came from different lineups on the court.

Pinto had one of her best games of the season with 25 points. Her previous best was a 22-point outing against Colby back in December.

“I am working hard in practice and the games to get better for regionals,” she said. “I am trying to stay more confident and working on my toughness.”

Morimoto finished the game with a double-double, scoring 19 and pulling down 10 rebounds. Amber Kistler also finished with 11 points and three steals, while Moorer had seven points.

Lamar was led by Ashley Torres with 16 points, including four 3-pointers.

WNCC, 21-7, will next be in action Tuesday when they travel to Torrington, Wyo., to face Eastern Wyoming College. Tip-off for that contest is slated for 5:30 p.m. The last time these two teams met, EWC escaped Cougar Palace with a 68-66 win.

“We need to play defense, stop penetration and have less turnovers then in the first game we played them,” Pinto said. “We also need to play strong for 40 minutes.”

Lamar 18 26 – 44
WNCC 46 31 – 77
LAMAR
Morgan Smith 4, Britany Rayford 11, Ashley Torres 16, Krystina George 4, Nicole Midder 1, Jackie Eberhard 2, Emily Purton 2.
WESTERN NEBRASKA
Amber Kistler 11, Shelby Campbell 4, Yuki Morimoto 19, Tiffany Moorer 7, Carolina Alves 3, Madison Keller 2, Thais Pinto 25.

WNCC assistant softball coach takes in Winter Olympics in her home country.

WNCC student assistant softball coach Natasha Dypchey was in awe over the the Winter Olympics which are currently being held in her home Providence of British Columbia.

Dypchey, from Surray, British Columbia, went home last weekend to absorb some of the pageantry of the event.

“This was my first Olympic experience.” Dypchey said. “In Canada the Olympics are a big thing. There is one channel that is dedicated to the Olympics and only runs Olympic coverage all day. It was a memorable experience and I want to go and see as many as I can.”

Dypchey was there for the weekend and didn’t watch any of the events. What she did experience was the atmosphere of the games.

“My best memory was taking in all of the events and seeing all of the people and being in the atmosphere for the Olympic games,” she said.

Dypchey, who lives an hour from Vancouver, said the closest event to her house is just 30 minutes away and that is the long track speed skating competition. Just being in Vancouver during the event was history in itself.

“The Olympics were amazing,” she said. “There were so many people everywhere and everyone was in great spirits and willing to just have a conversation with anyone.”

Dypchey said that they went to all the country pavilions, including having their picture taken with Russian sailors.

“We went to all of the pavilions for each country,” she said. “Some of the major countries host places that show you a bit of their own culture and they have food and give out free scarfs and pins, so that was pretty cool. Each province of Canada also has their own pavilion, too.”

The other thing that stood out for Dypchey was seeing the Olympic flame.

“Seeing the outdoor Olympic torch was the coolest thing that I saw,” she said. “Also the Russian pavilion was pretty cool because they are hosting the next winter Olympics. They had a lot of exhibits to show what their country is doing to prepare for the next winter Olympics.”

The Winter Olympics opened Feb. 12 with the opening ceremonies and will run through Feb. 28 with the closing ceremonies. In the mean time, there are a lot of people from athletes to media outlets to spectators that have come to Vancouver to watch the epic event.

“There are just over 2 million people in and around the city of Vancouver.,” she said. “The media was out in full force and they were everywhere you looked, just like the police and security force.”

The Olympic games started, however, with tragedy as 21-year-old Georgian luger Nodar Kumaritashvili died on a training run on Friday, Feb. 12. There is a memorial wall for Kumaritashvili at the luger site and there is a lot of heavy hearts over the death.

“I never saw the actual memorial on the mountain and by the track in which he died at,” she said. “But when the news came out everyone was devastated and it was hard to think about it.”

With Vancouver holding such a worldly event, there definitely are some bad things that come out of the event. Besides all the people, tickets for a lot of the events start around $75 and higher. Also, there are people that are against the Olympics.

“The Olympics are supported by almost everyone,” she said. “There were a few protesters that were from the east coast of Canada that are against the games, but other than that everyone has been very very supportive and are in high spirits. It is one big party down there that everyone is celebrating.”

Dypchey actually was glad to have the opportunity to witness the Olympic experience even though it was just for one weekend — she had to return to WNCC on Monday since the Cougar softball team, which she is a student assistant coach, opened the season this week.

WNCC drop two heartbreaking games to Pratt Community College

PRATT, Kan. -- The Western Nebraska Community College baseball team received stellar pitching performances, but couldn't get anything going offensively in suffering a doubleheader loss to Pratt Community College Thursday on the road.

WNCC lost in the bottom of the seventh inning 2-1 in the opener, and then lost a heart-pounding 10-inning 2-1 contest in the nightcap.

"These were some tough losses. We got real good pitching," WNCC coach Mike Jones said. "Both starters, Rodil and Julio were good. The bullpen was good. it was just that we made some baserunning mistakes and we swung at some bad pitches. Those really cost us."

WNCC struck first in the opener, scoring a single run in the second inning as Nelson Quintero unleashed a 2-out single and scored on a single by Jared Baros.

Pratt tied the game with a single run in the fourth inning and then scored the winning run on a wild pitch with the bases loaded.

JC Morales took the loss for the Cougars after a outstanding outing by Rodil Martines. Martinez went five innings, scattering four hits and striking out three. John Bravard threw a strong sixth inning striking out two.

WNCC managed just three hits in the first game. The Cougars also had three hits in the second game as well as the Cougars struck first, scoring a run in the third inning as Caleb Patton scored from third base on a double play play.

Pratt tied the game in the sixth inning. WNCC came back and had runners in scoring position in the eight and 10th innings, but couldn't get the clutch hit to score the go-ahead run. In the Cougar's eighth, Patton led off with a double but pinch runner Kevin Sanford was left stranded at third.

In the 10th inning, Jared Baros was hit by a pitch. Quintero then walked. Both runners, however were stranded with three straight outs. Pratt then won the game on an one out single to left field.

"in the second game we had quite a few chances where we had guys in scoring position at second base and we just couldn't get that base hit that we needed," Jones said. "in a way it was better today [then Wednesday]. We had some good defense and we showed up ready to play. We just have a long ways to go as an offensive team. We need to start having better at bats and getting some hits. We are just not hitting the ball well enough."
David Castle took the loss in the game after some gutsy pitching performances from starter Julio Davila and relievers SIdney Jones, Carlos Luzon and Jake Stutzman. Davila started the game, going five hitless innings. Davilo struck out eight but walked five batters.

WNCC managed just three hits in the game from Patton, Oscar Rodrigues and Josh Parker.

The Cougars, 0-8, will have over a week off before they return to action Feb. 27-28 when they host Miles Community College at Cleveland Field.

"We have some time where we can get back to work, have some quality practices. Hopefully we will get a chance to play at home next weekend," he said. "Our offense has to get a lot better. We having bad at bats and we are struggling in hitting the breaking ball. we have a long ways to go offensively, but we have experience. We have a lot of sophomores that had a lot of at bats for us last year. I think it is only a matter of time until we get in some kind of rhythm and start putting up some runs."

Game One
WNCC 010 000 0 -- 1 3 0
Pratt 000 100 1 -- 2 5 0
LP -- JC Morales; 2B -- Elvis Garcia.

Game Two
WNCC (0-8) 001 000 000 0 -- 1 3 0
Pratt 000 001 000 1 -- 2 3 3
LP -- David Castle; 2B -- Caleb Patton.

WNCC softball goes 5-0 on season

STERLING, KAN. -- The Western Nebraska Community College received three stellar pitching performances from Jordan Schoepflin, Taylor Anderson, and Brittany Enterline to help the No. 11 Cougars stay perfect on the season in games Thursday in Sterling, Colo.

Jordan Schoepflin limited Sterling to just four runs as the Cougars pounded out 16 hits, including a home run by Ashton Hughes, for the 10-4 win.

Taylor Anderson and Brittany Enterline then shut down Hutchinson Community College in the twinbill as the Cougars recorded a 4-0 and 16=7 sweep over the Blue Dragons.

This is also the first time in school history that the Cougars are unbeaten after the opening week of the season. The Cougars are 5-0 on the season and have scored 71 runs in five games.

"Jordan, Taylor and Enterline threw well and it was nice to go on the road and go 5-0," WNCC coach Maria Winn-Ratliff said. "Ashton Hughes played very well in all five games."

Winn-Ratliff was especially pleased with the team's performance in the second game with Hutch as they battled back from a 6-0 early deficit to score14 runs in the final two innings to collect the victory.

"I was very proud of the girls in the second game with Hutch because they fought back after they were down 6-0 to take the lead in the sixth inning," she said. "Megan Bourdon had two big hits in that rally coming in off the bench. It was a good trip and hope we can carry over our performance into conference next week in Lamar."

WNCC turned things around in that second game against Hutch, trailing 7-2 after five innings. The Cougars came back with nine runs in the sixth inning to go up 11-7. The big hit in the inning came from Ashton Hughes, who belted a 2-run home run.

Several players finished with multiple hit games. Katie Groves went 4-for-5 with a run scored, two doubles and six RBIs, while Hughes went 2-for-6 with a home run and two RBIs. Megan Burditt and Tonya Atencio also went 3-for-6. Burditt had three runs scored and a double, while Atencio scored two runs.

Also collecting two hits in the win were Boudon with a double, Brittany Chacon with three runs scored, and Allie Alverson with three runs scored and two RBIs.

Enterline picked up the pitching win going 6 2/3 innings, while scattering 12 hits, striking out four and walking one.

That win capped off a perfect two days for the Cougars. In the first game against Hutchinson, Taylor Anderson struck out six and scattered four hits in getting the complete game, shut out.

WNCC scored a single run in the first inning as Burditt singled and scored on a sacrifice fly by Groves. WNCC added three insurance runs in the fifth inning.

Burditt went 3-for-4 with two runs scored. The other two hits came from Groves and Stephanie Townsend.

In the day's opening game, the Cougars opened up a tight game early to roll to the 10-4 win. WNCC held just a 6-4 lead after three innings before scoing two runs in the fifth and single runs in the sixth and seventh innings.

Schoepflin went the distance in scattering 10 hits, while striking out four.

WNCC finished the game with 16 hits. Hughes paced the team with a 4-for-4 performance including two RBIs, four runs scored. Hughes also popped a third-inning 2-run scoring home run.

Groves finished the game going 3-for-4 with two doubles and a RBI, while Atencio, Townsend and Alverson all had two hits. Alverson had two RBIs, while Townsend had a double and two RBIs.

WNCC will be back in action Feb. 27-28 when they open up conference play with a trip to Lamar Community College followed by a doubleheader at Frank Phillips College.

Game One
WNCC 123 021 1-- 10 16 4
Sterling 103 000 0 -- 4 10 0
WP -- Jordan SChoephflin (1-0); 2B -- Katie Groves (2), Megan Burditt, Steph Townsend.

Game Two
WNCC 100 030 0 -- 4 4 3
Hutchinson 000 000 0 -- 0 4 6
WP -- Taylor Anderson (2-0); 2B -- Townsend.

Game Three\
WNCC (5-0) 000 209 5 -- 16 15 1
Hutchinson 510 100 0 -- 7 12 1
WP -- Brittany Enterline (2-0); 2B -- Groves(2), Megan Bourdon; HR -- Hughes.

WNCC baseball team swept at Barton Community College

Submitted by Jeremy Woznick, Star-Herald Sports Reporter

GREAT BEND, Kan. - Early-season offensive woes continued to trouble the Western Nebraska Community College baseball team in a doubleheader against Barton County Community College Wednesday in Great Bend, Kan.

The Cougars mustered a total of just three runs in dropping both games by scores of 12-2 and 5-1. The setbacks dropped WNCC to 0-6 on the season.

"We did not play as well today as we did this past weekend. It was disappointing that we kind of took a few steps backward," WNCC coach Mike Jones said. "For us, this is par for the course. We've always struggled offensively early in the season. It just takes us a while to get going offensively."

WNCC finished the two games with just four hits.

In game one, Barton County jumped out to a 6-0 lead after two innings. The Cougars plated two runs in the top of the fifth inning to climb within 6-2, but Barton County answered with four runs in the fifth and two more in the sixth.

Barton County out-hit the Cougars in the game, 13-2.

Jared Baros had a run-scoring single for WNCC. Trace Marsden also drove in a run and scored a run. Elvis Garcia went 1-for-2 with a run scored.

Armani Gonzalez took the loss on the mound. He allowed six runs on seven hits in four innings of work. Gonzales struck out four.

In game two, Barton County moved out to a 5-0 lead through five innings. WNCC got its lone run of the game in the top of the fifth inning when Nelson Quintero singled home Marsden. The Cougars' other hit of the contest came off the bat of Shane Wade, who had a double.

Tim Beard took the loss on the mound. He allowed three earned runs on seven hits in four innings of work. Beard struck out two. David Castle pitched two innings in relief. He allowed just one hit and struck out one.

Jones said his ball club is getting a lot of early-season experience against teams from a tough conference.

"These are good teams that we are playing," Jones said. "This Jayhawk Conference always produces good teams. We're seeing good competition. The two pitchers that we saw today were better than what we saw against Garden City. They were pretty advanced for this early in the season."

The Cougars will be right back in action today in another doubleheader against Pratt Community College in Pratt, Kan. First pitch is scheduled for 2 p.m.
Jones said Rodil Martinez will get the start in game one and Julio Davila will start game two.

Game One
WNCC 000 020 - 2 2 2
Barton County 240 042 - 12 13 1
LP - Armani Gonzalez (0-1).

Game Two
WNCC (0-6) 000 010 0 - 1 2 1
Barton County 012 200 x - 5 8 0
LP - Tim Beard (0-1).
2B - Shane Wade.

WNCC softball team belts seven home runs in doubleheader sweep over Fiends junior varsity

Stephanie Townsend and Ashton Hughes each hit grand slams as the No. 11-ranked Western Nebraska Community College swept a doubleheader from Friends College junior varsity 17-4 and 24-0 Wednesday in Wichita, Kan.

The Cougars hammered seven home runs on the day in pounding out 31 hits. The Cougars will return to action Thursday when they face Sterling College junior varsity in a single game and then play Hutchinson Community College in a twinbill in Sterling, Kan.

WNCC also received two stellar pitching performances. In the first game, Taylor Anderson gave up four runs on 11 hits in securing the win. The second game saw freshman Brittany Enterline dazzle a one-hitter in striking out three in picking up her first collegiate win of the year.

Offensively, WNCC was sizzling from the plate as they blasted blasted four home runs in the first game. Three Cougars smacked home runs in the fifth inning, including solo shots from Katie Groves and Brittany Chacon, and a 2-run dinger from Hughes. Jordan Schoepflin added a 2-run home run in the sixth inning.

Six Cougars had a multiple hit game. Groves led the way going 4-for-5 with three RBIs and four runs scored, followed by Schoepflin and Townsend each going 3-for-4. Schoepflin had three RBIs and three runs scored, while Townsend had four RBIs, two runs scored and two doubles.

Hughes, Chacon, and Megan Burditt each tallied two hits in the game.

WNCC quickly took control of game two, scoring six runs in the first inning and never looked back behind Enterline’s near-perfect pitching performance.

The Cougars hammered three home runs in the contest. Groves had a 2-run shot in the second inning to give the Cougars an 8-0 lead. Groves finished the contest 3-for-4 with three runs scored and four RBIs.

Townsend then had a grand slam in the third inning. The sophomore from Roosevelt, Utah, finished the contest 2-for-5 with four RBIs and two runs scored.

Hughes’ grand slam came in the 7-run fifth inning. Hughes, a freshman from Regina, Saskatchewan, went 2-for-5 with three runs scored and five RBIs.

Five other Cougars finished with multiple hits. Schoepflin and Adena Hagen each went 3-for-4. Hagen had a double, two RBIs and four runs scored, while Schoepflin had two runs scored and three RBIs. Amanda Saldivar went 3-for-5 with two RBIs and two runs scored, followed by Townsend with a 2-for-5 game and two runs scored and four RBIs.

Chacon also went 3-for-5 with four runs scored, while Allie Alverson went 2-for-4 with a triple and two RBIs. Megan Burditt had three runs scored in the game.

Game 1
WNCC 001 448 – 17 18 2
Friends JV 020 011 -- 4 11 5
WP – Anderson (1-0); 2B – Townsend (2).

Game 2
WNCC (2-0) 625 47 – 24 20 0
Friends JV 000 00 – 0 1 5
WP – Enterline (1-0); 2B – Hagen; 3B – Alverson; HR – Groves, Townsend, Hughes.

WNCC men take down McCook 86-66

The Western Nebraska Community College men’s basketball team opened up a 6-point game and put the game on cruise control in registering a huge 86-66 sub-region win over McCook Community College Tuesday night at Cougar Palace.

The win was especially huge as its keeps the Cougars in contention for the No. 1 seed from the sub-region with a 3-2 mark. North Platte leads the sub-region with a 3-1 mark. North Platte has Northeast Nebraska this weekend and then will travel to Cougar Palace to face WNCC on next Wednesday.

WNCC freshman Joe Stock said this win is a huge momentum boost for the team.

“Our team is finally coming together and we picked the right time at the end of the season with a couple games left,” the freshman from Thibodaux, La., said. “We are playing our best basketball right now. That was a big win and that puts us in a run for first place in our sub-region. We have to beat North Platte by 15 points and we get first place and other then that we get second place.”

After the Cougars opened up the game and got ahead by 20 points late, the players kept playing as the attention turned to whether the team could score 83 points and give the fans in attendance free Runzas. Well, with 28.6 seconds left to play Mateus Chaves knocked home two free throws to make the crowd happy.

“That Runza promotion kept the excitement going, but the refs also dragged the game a little bit,” Stock said. “But we wanted to get 83 points for our fans. It was nice to please the fans and get a win at the same time.”

For a time there, it didn’t seem as if the game would be in the 60s or 70s for a final score. WNCC held a 37-31 lead at intermission. The Cougars, however, used the long ball from Cruz and Stock along with two electrifying dunks by Brylle Kamen and O’Rion Hughes to push the lead to 57-47.

Moments later, Stock nailed his second 3-pointer of the night and then Cruz went on a 9-point scoring spree, including back-to-back treys to put WNCC up 69-53 with six minutes to play. Cruz later notched his seventh 3-pointer and his 32^nd point of the night to the Cougars up 76-55 with 3:25 to play.

WNCC was mildly threatened early in the game, but each time kept the lead – there were only three lead changes and two ties in the contest. The big key in the contest was shooting as WNCC shot 57 percent from the field including a blistering 64 percent (9 of 14) from beyond the arc. Cruz was 7 of 9 from long range, while Stock was 2 of 3.

Cruz led the Cougars with 32 points and six rebounds, while Geddes had 16 points and six rebounds. Stock also chipped in 11 points for the Cougars.

McCook shot just 41 percent from the field and 19 percent from beyond the arc. Andrew Hanson led the way with 21 points followed by Marcus Landry and Antonio Dye with 12 points each.

WNCC, 17-10, will next be in action on Feb. 24 when they host North Platte Community College at 7 p.m.

McCook 31 35 – 66

WNCC (17-10) 37 49 – 86

MCCOOK

Darius Robinson 2, Nick Schneider 1, George Pollard 2, Antonio Dye 12, Marcus Landry 12, Andrew Hanson 21, John Hill 2, Shawn Tarver 7, Eric Cutright 7.

WESTERN NEBRASKA

Andre Marone 2, Saul Torres 4, O’Rion Hughes 4, Joe Stock 11, Mateus Chaves 5, Francisco Cruz 32, Brylle Kamen 8, Ritchie Mundende 4, Geddes Robinson 16.

WNCC women pick up 20th win of the season

The Western Nebraska Community College women’s basketball team combined for 16 assists and 10 Cougars scored in WNCC’s 76-51 win over McCook Community College in a sub-region contest Tuesday at Cougar Palace.

The Cougars also played strong defensively, something they haven’t done for a while, in holding a scrappy McCook ball club to 22 percent shooting, and 26 percent shooting from beyond the arc. The win was also the Cougar’s 20^th of the year which is their 23^rd straight year of collecting 20 wins in a season.

“We were not selfish at all and we moved the ball really well tonight and that is something we haven’t been doing,” Scottsbluff graduate Madison Keller said. “We are also happy with our defensive effort because we have been letting teams score 70 and 80 points a game, so tonight’s effort was really good for us.”

WNCC’s defense wasn’t that way early as the Indians raced to a 10-4 lead early on. The Cougars then went on a mini run scoring seven straight points including a 4-point play from Bayard’s Amber Kistler.

McCook came back and tied the game at 11 before the Cougars defense really kicked in, holding the Indians scoreless for the next four minutes. In the meantime, WNCC put some distance between them and the Indians, going on a 11-0 run that included buckets by Keller, Shelby Campbell, and Yuki Morimoto. Kistler finished off the run with a driving bucket. WNCC led at halftime 37-26.

In the second half, the Cougars were just as strong defensively, holding McCook to just 25 points. They also put the game out of reach early as they opened with the first three minutes on a 7-0 run as Morimoto launched a trey. They kept playing strong as they went on a 9-0 on seven points from Morimoto to go up by 20 points, 55-35.

The big key for the Cougars was shooting and rebounding. WNCC, which has been in a shooting slump as of late, shot 48 percent from the field and 40 percent from beyond the 3-point arc. The Cougars also out-rebounded McCook 58-33 as Kistler paced the team with seven boards. The Bayard graduate also finished with 12 points and seven assists

Morimoto paced the Cougars with 17 points while Stormye Everett finished with 15 points. Thais Pinto also had a break out performance, finishing with 10 points and six rebounds.

“We played pretty well,” Keller said. “We have been stressing defense and to run our offense, that is what we were trying to do and I think it worked for us the best.”

WNCC will be back in action Friday when they host Lamar Community College at 7 p.m. at Cougar Palace. Keller said they are getting back to the way they played first semester when they went 13-2.

“It is nice to start this run when it is getting to the end of the season and region ix is coming up,” she said. “We have to step up our defense every possession and offensively we have to run our offense and move the ball around.”

McCook 26 25 – 51

WNCC 37 39 – 76

MCCOOK

Alexa Ward 3, Sierra Guy 1, Ellie Hiester 9, Brittany Bunker 2, Emmalee Fladland 9, Jacqueline Lavato 4, Donnell Betts 5, Skyler Johnson 6, Morgan Spencer 8, Lauren Woods 4

WESTERN NEBRASKA

Amber Kistler 12, Stormye Everett 15, Shelby Campbell 5, Yuki Morimoto 17, Carolina Alves 4, Madison Keller 2, Taylor Puttergill 2, Michelle Glaze 4, Thais Pinto 10, Kelli Culver 5.

No. 11-ranked WNCC softball opens season on Wednesday

The Western Nebraska Community College softball team will be entering this season with lots optimism as well as a target on their back.

The Cougars will open the season Thursday on a road trip to Wichita, Kan., as one of the nation's elite. WNCC is No. 11 in the NJCAA pre-season poll and it is an honor that Cougar coach Maria Winn-Ratliff embraces with honor.

"It is a huge honor for the program and the institution," Winn-Ratliff said. "No matter if we were ranked or not we continue to practice hard every day to accomplish our goal of getting better every day."

The pre-season recognition as the team's attention, but as the same time they know what it will take to be successful this season. Last year, the Cougars finished with a 42-18 record and a third place finish at the regional tournament. Two seasons ago, the Cougars made school history after going 54-10 and capturing the regional title.

WNCC is hoping to recapture some of that glory from two seasons ago. That journey begins Wednesday when they open the season in Wichita, Kan., Friends College junior varsity. The Cougars will then face Sterling College junior varsity on Thursday. The Cougars were scheduled to play Hutchinson and Butler Community Colleges on Saturday and Sunday, but the weather forecast scratched those games.

"I think we all are ready," she said. "It has been nice to get outside and actually practice on our field in January and February."

This year's team should be excited for the season. They return some key returners and some a talented freshmen class.

"This will be one of the faster teams that we have had and look to score a lot of runs with our speed," she said. "We are still working out a few kinks on the infield moving some players around and trying to get the right fit. We have been hitting the ball very well and should score lots of runs."

The one goal for this year's team is to win a second regional title in three seasons. WNCC will host regionals in March, and Winn-Ratliff said this team has the capabilities of achieving their goals.

"I think if we do the right things, anything is possible," she said. "It will take consistent pitching throughout the regular season as well as the tourney. Pitching is the key. This season should be exciting because this group is fun to watch and loves to play."

Pitching definitely will be the big key for this year. WNCC graduated Kelsey Garner from a year ago, but return a very diverse pitching staff that are fighters in the circle. This year staff can go five deep, including returner Stephanie Townsend from Roosevelt, Utah. Taylor Anderson is a transfer that had a strong fall season. The other three pitchers are freshmen, including Jordan Schoepflin of Arvada, Colo., Brittany Enterline of Tracy, Calif., and Ashton Hughes of Regina, Saskatchewan.

"Our staff is very different in the looks that they give teams," Winn-Ratliff said. "We return Stephanie Townsend who saw some action last year for us and really came on strong in the region tourney. Taylor Anderson is a transfer who threw really well for us this fall. Ashton Hughes is a versatile player and will not only find time in the circle but at various positions on the field as well. Brittany Enterline started a little slow but has made huge adjustments and has been pitching very well for us. Jordan Schoepflin is a fireball and will provide innings for us in the circle and as well on the infield. To start the year we will not have a 1, 2 ,3 we will most likely have four of our five pitchers playing at the same time. We are very lucky with their versatility both defensively and offensively."

The pitching talents are only part of a talented squad. The Cougars also return last year's freshman of the year Katelyn Groves of Bluffdale, Utah. Groves set the season home run and RBI record last season, as well as tying the career home run record with 17 dingers. Groves, who played primarily first base a year ago, will probably be making the stitch to third base this season.

Other players that will be seeing action on the infield this season will be freshman Jacqui Cappuccilli, of Las Vegas, Nev., along with sophomores Tonya Atencio of Denver, and Brittany Chacon of Broomfield, Colo. Hughes, Townsend and Schoepflin will also see action at the corner positions.

Sophomore Adena Hagen of Birch Hills, Saskatchewan, will anchor the outfield for a second straight year. Also seeing outfield action will be sophomore Megan Burditt of Los Alamos, N.M., along with new faces Allie Alverson of Toole, Utah, and Amanda Saldivar of El Paso, Texas.

The catching position

Adena Hagen is our anchor in the outfield she will return in Center for us as well as returner Megan Burditt in left we have added some new faces in Allie Alverson and Amanda Saldivar who are battling for right field. We have some utility players that will also get some action it the outfield like Bourdon, Townsend and Schoepflin.

The catcher position will have the most inexperience with the of Alyssa Hickey at semester.

"Losing Alyssa Hickey at the break has put some pressure on our new catchers, but they have been working hard every day and getting better every day," WInn-Ratliff said. "We have 3 newcomers behind the dish Cappuccilli, Hughes and Megan Bourdon (Duck Lake, Saskatchewan). Like our pitchers they give us a different look as well. Each one of them is very unique."
Winn-Ratliff said each player will be counted on during the season, especially with a roster of just 14 active players.

"I think all 16 members of our team are key players. We are going to rely on all of them at given times," she said. "I expect them all to practice and play hard every day and don't want any surprises on who is key or came up big because they all should be ready for that."

After this weekend's season openers, the Cougars will get into Region IX play when they face Lamar Community College on the road Feb. 27. WNCC will play their home debut on March 26 against Lamar Community College.