By SHEALYN PRATT
The Lady Rangers won the Great American Conference Championship on Sunday after three sometimes nail-biting wins.
The tournament began Thursday in Fort Smith, Arkansas. The Lady Rangers opened play against East Central Tigers women’s basketball — a team they had both won and lost to in regular season play. It was a tightly contested matchup at the tournament that came down to the final possession.
Northwestern secured a 66-65 victory after Summya Adigun, a 5-foot-9 guard, made the game winning free throw with 1 second on the clock, advancing the team to the semi-final round Saturday.
“It felt very good but I was also very nervous.” Adigun said after the game. “When I made that free throw I was just like, I get another day. We get another day, and so it felt really rewarding.”
Before the semifinals, Adigun and teammate Kira Bass shared their thoughts on the team’s mindset and expectations heading to the next round.
“I don’t want it to be over yet, so I’m kind of like let’s just get to the next game.” Adigun said. “Let’s keep going, play for as long as we can and ride it out. Hopefully, we get a bid into the National Tournament. That’s kind of our goal.”
The Lady Rangers faced Arkansas Tech on Saturday night. NWOSU had both won and lost to the Golden Suns durinng the regular season.
Northwestern trailed 32-27 at halftime but rallied in the second half and came back for a Ranger win of 61-58. The win advanced them to the championship game.
“I’m really excited, and I feel like we definitely earned this spot,” Bass said after the Saturday win.
Sunday’s championship matchup came against Southeastern Oklahoma State Savage Storm women’s basketball team, which had fallen both times to the Lady Rangers in season play.
Still, it was not going to be an easy win. At half time, the Lady Rangers found themselves down by nine points with the score 36-27. However, the team mounted a strong comeback in the second half, out-scoring their opponent to earn a 71-64 victory and claim the conference title.
Several members of the Lady Rangers were recognized with tournament honors post win celebration.
Kira Bass was titled the tournament’s Most Valuable Player. Teammates Summaya Adigun, Jada Shipp and Catyn Graham also were recognized and selected to be on the all-tournament team.
“Not a lot of people get to be a college athlete and get to play basketball at this high of a level and so it has been a really cool experience,” Bass said. “I’m just really grateful to be able to do this and get such high awards and accolades.”
The seventh seeded Lady Rangers will now advance and play the second seed Concordia St. Paul in the Central Region Division for the NCAA Division II Women’s Basketball Championship, which begins later this week. This quarterfinal gams is at 2:30 p.m. on Friday in Mankato, Minnesota.
If the Lady Rangers win, they will face the winner of the Fort Hays vs. Harding game on Saturday at 5 p.m.
How to watch
- https://www.ncaa.com/game/6537990 (must sign in for free streaming)
- Downtown Rialto Theatre by donation to help buy championship rings
- Listen at https://www.alvaradio.com/