TRAPPER WOMEN CLASH IN CONFERENCE GAME STRETCH

Three Region IX North home games in six days greeted the Northwest College women's basketball team this week, losing two difficult games before a strong shooting night propelled the Trappers to their first conference victory of the season.

Northwest dropped a difficult contest 81-70 to Eastern Wyoming College on Thursday night, a spirited comeback came up short against Laramie County Community College 69-54 on Saturday before a strong shooting night Tuesday pushed Northwest past Central Wyoming College 83-50.    

EASTERN WYOMING 81, NORTHWEST 70
Hoping to rebound from a difficult weekend on the road, the Trappers (12-10 overall, 1-4 Region IX North) returned to Cabre Gym to take on the Lancers (9-12 overall, 3-1 Region IX North) to get back on track.

Both teams battled to start the first quarter, with the Trappers leading 9-6 midway through the frame. Neither team found a way to hold the lead after the first, deadlocked at 17-17 heading into the second quarter.

Eastern came out stronger in the second, going up 27-21 and then 31-21 with 3:30 left.

The lead grew to 11 multiple times, and Northwest trailed 36-25 at the break. Northwest continued to trail, getting only as close as six down 45-40 with 3:20 left.

The Lancers held the Trappers at bay through a strong rebounding performance.

Eastern pushed the lead out to 15 over the first four minutes of the fourth quarter, not allowing Northwest to make a significant run late and ending with an 81-70 win.

Northwest was outrebounded 42-24, and were unable to find a way back despite forcing 21 turnovers from the visitors.

"Something we talk about time and time again is that it comes down to rebounding," coach Lauren Davis said. "That's what it came down to."

The Rustlers finished 31-38 (81.6%) from the line compared to 11-23 (47.8%) for the Trappers.

Roxanne Rogers led with 17 points, Kamalani Anitielu had 12 points, Kelsi Nicholson had 12 points and six steals while Tayva Phillips had 10 points as the final Trapper in double figures. Carolina Ruiz chipped in eight points and six assists.     

LCCC 69, NORTHWEST 54
Northwest returned to the court on Saturday, looking for a response against the Golden Eagles (9-11 overall, 2-2 Region IX North).

A difficult shooting start had the Trappers trailing early and often against the Golden Eagles, down 14-9 with four minutes left in the first quarter. LCCC built the advantage to double-digits, taking a 21-13 lead into the second quarter.

The visitors started strong in the second quarter, extending their lead to 25-13 and forcing a timeout from Davis.

LCCC made the lead as large at 35-17 with two minutes left in the half. A buzzer-beater from Ruiz made it 38-23 at the break, with Northwest searching for answers in the second half.

Northwest was unable to find those answers in the third quarter, continuing to trail by 10-15 before a Nicholson buzzer-beater made it 53-41 heading into the final 10 minutes.

An offensive outburst kicked off the fourth quarter, with Rogers and Bianca Silva helping quickly cut down the lead to 53-50.

Nicholson turned defense into offensive, converting a block into a layup and giving Northwest hope down 53-52 with five minutes remaining.

"It was just too little too late," Davis said.

Strong shooting down the stretch helped LCCC re-establish its advantage, going on a quick 13-0 run to seal the fate of the Trappers and walk away with a 69-54 victory.

Northwest shot 22-70 (31.4%) from the field, compared to 22-38 (57.9%) from the Golden Eagles.

"I told the girls we had our opportunities even with our bad shooting percentages," Davis said. "It usually just comes down to a couple things even on a bad shooting night."

Rogers led with 14 points, just ahead of Silva with 13 points and seven rebounds.     

NORTHWEST 83, CENTRAL WYOMING 50
Wrapping up with the third game in six days, the Trappers welcomed the Rustlers (8-15 overall, 1-4 Region IX North) to Cabre Gym as Northwest continued searching for a first Region IX win.

Cold shooting plagued both teams over the first three minutes, before Rogers got things started with a 3-pointer that sparked a dominant performance for her.

"That was a point of emphasis, we need to get Roxanne the basketball," Davis said.

Central Wyoming answered and held a one-possession advantage for five minutes of the quarter before the Trappers took the lead for good up 13-12 through a Rogers jump shot. Northwest took a 19-15 lead into the second quarter.

The lead was at single digits until the Trappers made it 30-19, and the lead continued to hold between 8-12 until late in the quarter. Two 3-pointers by Rogers just before the break gave Northwest a commanding lead over the visitors, up 41-24.

Northwest pushed its advantage over 20 midway through the quarter, after an Isabella Gurie basket made it 54-33. The lead continued to swell, and an Anitielu basket made it 63-40 heading into the fourth.

Northwest found its scoring groove, and finished the contest with an 83-50 win with the lead as large as 34.

"We have an amazing team from a standpoint of they are bought into what we are doing," Davis said. "Anything I ask of them they will do it, and tonight was proof of that."

Rogers led with 29 points, ahead of Gurie with 14, Anitielu with 12 and Nicholson with 12. Ruiz led with nine assists.

Northwest finished with a 39-32 rebounding advantage, earning 20 second chance points compared to seven for the Rustlers.

"We got a lot of offensive rebounds and were not settling. We took great shots," Davis said.    

HOME STAND WRAPS UP
After the quick blitz of games the Trappers will wrap up a four-game homestand on Friday, welcoming Gillette College to Cabre Gym.

The Pronghorns (12-10 overall, 1-3 Region IX North) come to Powell for the first time since before COVID-19, after the program was disbanded for several years during the pandemic.

"It will be a fun game for me, I played there. It will be cool to coach against them when they're back in the region," Davis said. "I know they are going to be big … it will be a really telling game for us."   

EASTERN WYOMING 81, NORTHWEST 70
Total rebounds then offensive rebounds in ()
Points — Roxanne Rogers 17, Kamalani Anitielu 12, Kelsi Nicholson 12, Tayva Phillips 10, Carolina Ruiz 8, Bianca Silva 4, Isabella Gurie 4, Jai'La Porter 3
Rebounds — Kamalani Anitielu 5 (1), Carolina Ruiz 4, Kelsi Nicholson 4 (1), Isabella Gurie 3, Roxanne Rogers 2 (1), Jai'La Porter 2 (1), Selen Ucek 2, Tayva Phillips 1 (1), Bianca Silva 1
Assists — Carolina Ruiz 6, Jai'La Porter 3, Roxanne Rogers 2, Kelsi Nicholson 1
Steals — Kelsi Nicholson 6, Tayva Phillips 2, Kamalani Anitielu 2, Jai'La Porter 2, Roxanne Rogers 1, Carolina Ruiz 1    

LCCC 69, NORTHWEST 54
Points — Roxanne Rogers 14, Bianca Silva 13, Kelsi Nicholson 8, Tayva Phillips 7, Kamalani Anitielu 5, Carolina Ruiz 4, Anna Knight 2, Jai'La Porter 1
Rebounds — Bianca Silva 7 (1), Kelsi Nicholson 5 (2), Carolina Ruiz 5 (2), Kamalani Anitielu 4 (2), Roxanne Rogers 2 (1), Anna Knight 2 (1), Tayva Phillips 1 (1), Tyne Killip 1, Isabella Gurie 1
Assists — Bianca Silva 4, Roxanne Rogers 2, Kamalani Anitielu 1, Kelsi Nicholson 1, Anna Knight 1, Carolina Ruiz 1
Steals — Kamalani Anitielu 3, Tayva Phillips 2, Bianca Silva 2, Jai'La Porter 1
Blocks — Kamalani Anitielu 1, Kelsi Nicholson 1    

NORTHWEST 83, CENTRAL WYOMING 50
Points — Roxanne Rogers 29, Isabella Gurie 14, Kamalani Anitielu 12, Kelsi Nicholson 12, Tayva Phillips 6, Anna Knight 6, Bianca Silva 4
Rebounds — Tayva Phillips 8 (2), Bianca Silva 6 (1), Roxanne Rogers 5 (1), Carolina Ruiz 5 (2), Isabella Gurie 4 (1), Anna Knight 4 (3), Kamalani Anitielu 3 (1), Kelsi Nicholson 3 (2), Jai'La Porter 1
Assists — Carolina Ruiz 9, Kamalani Anitielu 4, Bianca Silva 4, Tayva Phillips 3, Roxanne Rogers 1
Steals — Bianca Silva 3, Roxanne Rogers 1, Kamalani Anitielu 1, Kelsi Nicholson 1
Blocks — Roxanne Rogers 2