Lady Wildcats win by 60 to reach national tournament
Robert Wanek Jr. Daily News
If Saturdays performance was any indication, the North Dakota State College of Science womens basketball team may just be getting started. The No. 22 Lady Wildcats thrashed Highland Community College, 113-53, winning the North Central District Championship at Ed Werre Arena in Wahpeton and clinching a spot in the national tournament.
Several players have led NDSCS in scoring this season. It was Quinn Neppls turn Saturday. The Maddock, North Dakota, guard exploded for a career-high 34 points on 15-of-19 shooting. Neppl completed the double-double with 10 rebounds and 5 assists to put the finishing touches on a monster performance.
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Quinn Neppl (left) had the hot hand Saturday. Her teammates took notice and fed her the rock early and often, leading to 18 first-half points for the NDSCS freshman.
Robert Wanek Jr. Daily News
Neppl said the game ranks at the top of her list for career highlights. She entered the contest averaging 9.3 points per game and bumped that mark to 10.1 with a bevy of buckets, including a 3-for-4 afternoon from behind the arc.
It felt really good because the beginning of the season was really hard, Neppl said. Seeing the improvement and being able to do that tonight meant a lot. It was probably my best performance ever compared with high school basketball to here. I feel like I had the upper hand on my defender speed-wise and their help side didnt move to the ball well, so just a quick Euro (step) was too easy.
For NDSCS, its the second consecutive trip to nationals and the seventh appearance in program history. Science has never won a national tournament game.
"It's extremely exciting having the opportunity to go back to the national tournament again. I'm just really grateful and proud of everything the players did," NDSCS Head Coach Park Masterson said. "I'm excited to go to Texas with the opportunity to make some history and win our first game down there. I think we have the team to do it."
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Robert Wanek Jr. Daily News
Highland was dominated in the paint by Grace Massaquoi, Ivy Fox and Maile Hunt. Massaquoi narrowly missed a triple-double with 8 points, 10 rebounds and 8 assists. Fox produced 16 points and 7 rebounds. Hunt offset a 2-for-10 night from the field with 14 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 blocks.
"It continues to show how well rounded our team is that whoever is scoring significantly for us isn't always the same (player)," Masterson said. "Other players are getting more assists, rebounds, steals or whatever it may be. It helps having Ivy and Grace with so many assists and good vision. They're creating that with penetration and attacks, being offensive threats and kicking the ball out it's huge. It speaks to the trust of each other as a team, knowing that their teammate is gonna do something good when they get the ball."
Charita "Tiny" Lewis ran the offense with 16 points, 4 assists and 3 rebounds. Arianna Berryhill also handled point guard duties, scoring 14 points and stretching the floor with four 3s.
Jordan Toman connected on a pair of 3s in the first quarter, as NDSCS built a 30-15 lead. The Mandan, North Dakota, product was 3-for-4 from downtown in the contest and matched her career high with 11 points. Glenburn, North Dakota, native Nadia Post chipped in 6 points, 4 rebounds and 2 assists in her final game at Ed Werre Arena.
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NDSCS sophomore Nadia Post puts up a runner on the baseline. Post helped NDSCS reach Saturday's district title game with her clutch scoring in the region championship six days earlier.
Robert Wanek Jr. Daily News
The 'Cats hope to bring a similar scoring variety to Texas, where they lost in the opening round a year ago to South Plains College, 65-42. The NDSCS offense was dominated by the contributions of Ivane Tensaie (Penn State) and Ambah Kowcun (Wichita State), but SPC held the duo to 10-of-27 shooting. This season, players have risen to the challenge when one arm of the offense is pinned down, making NDSCS a difficult group to prepare for.
"South Plains just had far more athleticism and speed than us. This year, our team is athleticism and speed, plus skill and shooting," Masterson said. "It will depend on the matchup we get, but I think we have a great chance to get a win."
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Robert Wanek Jr. Daily News
NDSCS shot 13-for-23 from beyond the arc in the district finals, draining over half of its 91 field goal attempts in the game. Highland shot 26.2% overall and was outscored 22-10 by a Wildcats bench with only three reserves. The Cougars were led by 17 points from Natalija Beleska and 14 from Maddie Hildebrand.
The NJCAA DI National Tournament takes place March 22-27 at the Rip Griffin Center in Lubbock, Texas. Daily News will publish tournament seedings when they are made available by the selection committee.
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Robert Wanek Jr.
Sports Reporter
Robert has spent over a decade reporting Twin Towns Area athletics, coaching baseball and officiatingsporting events. From MMA to golf, he covers the entire sports spectrum through stories,photos and videos. He was named Rookie of the Year in 2021 by the North Dakota Newspaper Association.
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Sunday, March 12, 2023 at 4:00 pm