Strong second half is not enough as No. 9 Women's Basketball falls to No. 7 Lake Land
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Mesa Community College | 12 | 12 | 24 | 24 | 72 |
|
Lake Land College | 19 | 21 | 14 | 22 | 76 |
Lake Land College
| Game Statistics | Mesa Community College | Lake Land College |
|---|---|---|
| Field Goals | (33-67) | (27-53) |
| Field Goal % | 49.3% | 50.9% |
| Rebounds | 34 | 29 |
| Assists | 17 | 15 |
| Turnovers | 14 | 13 |
| Pts off Turnovers | 18 | 16 |
| 2nd Chance Pts | 17 | 10 |
| Pts in the Paint | 42 | 28 |
| Fastbreak Pts | 2 | 4 |
| Bench Pts | 10 | 13 |
Sunday March 23, 2025 - 10:00 p.m. | Dylan DeVlieger
No. 9 Mesa Women's Basketball fell to No. 7 Lake Land College in the 5th Place bracket Semifinals, 76-72 ending their 2024-2025 season.
The Lady T-Birds came out slow from the field, missing six of their first eight shots while the Lakers made six of their first nine, jumping out to a 14-4 lead. Mesa would fight back to close out the quarter as they ended the period trailing 19-12.
The second quarter was a momentum swing for LLC as they started the quarter on an 11-2 run keeping Mesa scoreless for nearly the first five minutes of the period. The Lakers built their lead to 24 points before Ashiian Hunter and Bella Barrett would each score four straight points ending the quarter on an 8-0 run. At the half Mesa trailed Lake Land, 40-24 as the T-Birds were outscored 21-12 in the quarter. Eight of Mesa's 12 points in the quarter came with less than two minutes left in the period.
In the first half Mesa struggled from beyond the arc going 0-7 while the Lakers went 3/7 from distance.
With Amya Bekele picking up three fouls in the first half Alayna Boss started the second half for Mesa which helped jump start the T-Birds energy coming out of a sluggish opening half.
MCC started the half off on a 10-4 run as Barrett scored four of Mesa's first six points. Britany Kogbara would begin to impose her will down low as she would score Mesa's next six points cutting the deficit to ten points.
Out of the media timeout Hunter would hit back-to-back threes bringing the T-Birds to within seven points, Kogbara would score again after a Syndey Richards turnover and Hunter would nail a jumper after a Charleece Davis layup to cut the lead to five. Mesa would end the quarter trailing, 54-48 after an Audri Spencer three-pointer.
Mesa stuck to their lineup of Hunter, Barrett, Boss, Kamiyah Hurd, & Kogbara almost the entire third quarter as Meisha Caserio was the first sub with just 57 seconds left in the period.
The T-Birds outscored LLC, 24-14 in the quarter as they went 11/13 (84.6%) from the field in the period. Hunter and Kogbara each had eight points in the quarter, Barret scored six, while Hurd had two.
In the final quarter Mesa would cut the lead to just one point with 5:57 remaining as Boss nailed a jumper after a Hurd offensive rebound. Both teams would trade buckets as Mesa was unable to come up with key stops down the stretch.
With one minute left Kogbara scored off an offensive rebound to cut the deficit to four, on the other end the Lakers were able to connect on a three-pointer to give them a seven point cushion with 34 seconds left.
Mesa fought back and cut the lead to just one with 23 seconds left. Kogbara would foul out on the next possession. LLC went one for two from the free throw line giving Mesa a chance to tie or take the lead on the ensuing possession.
Hurd would miss a jumper and though Barret grabbed the offensive rebound she was unable to score as the Lakers would grab the miss and be fouled by Hurd. Davis would hit both free throws, sealing the win and ending Mesa's season.
The second half was Mesa's best all season as they went 22-32 (68.8%) from the field scoring 48 points. Kogbara led the way and scored 16 of her 22 points in the final 20 minutes.
Hunter finished with 15 points, Barrett scored 14, while Hurd had 11. Boss scored all 10 of the T-Birds bench points as she had six in the second half.
The T-Birds ended their 2024-25 campaign with a 25-10 record (17-1 ACCAC). Mesa earned the honor of Conference Champions as they held the best record in DI and DII ACCAC teams.
PC: NJCAA
