LEWISTON, Idaho – While the NAIA postseason is nothing new to Lewis-Clark State College Women's Basketball Coach
Brian Orr and most of the Warriors, there will still be a different feeling when the team takes the court Friday at 5 p.m. against William Jessup in the NAIA National Championship Opening Round at the LC State Activity Center.
For one, it will be the first time in Orr's highly-successful 20 years at the Warriors' helm that LC State will play at home in a national tournament game. Previously, all teams that qualified for nationals went to one site. This year, the 48 teams have been divided into 16 three-team pods for opening-round action. In each pod, the No. 3 seed will play the No. 2 seed, and the winner advances on to play the No. 1 seed. The 16 pod winners advance to the national tourney on March 18-23 in Sioux City, Iowa.
LC State, 12-5 overall, is the No. 2 seed in its pod, while William Jessup, out of Rocklin, Calif., is the No. 3 seed, and is 10-8 overall. The winner will play No. 1 seed Carroll, 21-2, on Saturday at 5 p.m. In the other women's pod at the LC Activity Center, No. 2 seed Montana Western, 16-9, tangles with Benedictine-Mesa of Arizona, 11-1, at noon Friday, with the winner taking on top seed Westmont (10-1) of Santa Barbara, Calif., at noon on Saturday.
"Well, obviously having the tournament in Lewiston, we couldn't be more excited about that," Orr said. "Everybody who has played this year has had to overcome tremendous adversity so our story isn't any tougher than anyone else. But playing at home honestly is an advantage. We are looking forward to it."
A limited number of fans is being allowed for each game.
LC STATE (12-5 OVERALL) – No. 2 seed
One of the biggest questions awaiting the Warriors is how will they respond after having nearly three weeks off. The Warriors last played on Feb. 21 when they defeated the College of Idaho 97-66 in Caldwell to capture the Cascade Collegiate Conference Tournament title.
"You never know," Orr said about how the layoff will affect his team. "You always worry about layoffs like this. What I like is the last time we played, we had our best offensive game of the year. We scored 97 points, which was a season high, we made our free throws, we moved the ball well, and the last thing we did was hoist the trophy. Those are all positive experiences. I just hope we come out and play to our potential. If we play to our potential, we will be fine."
One advantage for the team is its experience. The Warriors boast four senior starters who have been in the program for four years, along with junior Abby Farmer, a three-year player. All have been in the national tournament spotlight before.
"Our veteran leadership has been a key all season long," Orr said. "They have been great not only getting us through the challenging year but at the same time being able to run a practice, knowing the drills and knowing what our expectations are has really helped. Going into the tournament, that leadership is even more critical."
Senior Kiara Burlage, who was named the CCC's Player of the Year, leads a balanced Warrior attack with an average of 16.8 points and 6.9 rebounds per game. Abbie Johnson is at 12.6 points and 5.9 rebounds, while Jansen Edmiston is at 10.6 points and is second on the team in 3-pointers made. Peyton Souvenir (8.8 points) and Abby Farmer (8.1 points and a team-best 27 3-pointers), also add to the offensive punch.
As a team, the Warriors are averaging 69.8 points per game, while holding opponents to 64.1 points and 37.7 percent shooting from the field.
Two things Orr said the Warriors need to do is control the defensive rebounds and limit their turnovers.
"We can't give up second and third shots and we need to take care of the basketball," he said. "I wouldn't say those are our biggest weaknesses, but when we do those two things, we have a great chance of winning the game."
WILLIAM JESSUP (10-8 OVERALL) – No. 3 seed
William Jessup also has the nickname of the Warriors and won the Golden State Athletic Conference's East Division. The team won its final three conference games to capture the title.
The team got off to a rough start, losing its first five games, but finished the year by winning eight of its final 10.
Coach Hernando Planells won the conference's Co-Coach of the Year award while senior forward Miranda Zaragoza earned All-GSAC honors. She led the team in both scoring at 11.4 points per game and rebounding at 8.8 per game.
William Jessup averages 63.6 points per game and is allowing only 59 to opponents, which ranks No. 29 in the NAIA. The team is allowing opponents to shoot only 35.2 percent from the field and 27.3 percent from the 3-point line.
"William Jessup is a really good defensive team," Orr said. "We will have to execute and play to our strengths, but we have to make baskets."
William Jessup and LC State have one common opponent this year in College of Idaho. LC State went 4-0 against the Yotes and won the games by an average of 25 points per outing. William Jessup went 1-1 against the Yotes in mid-December, falling by two before capturing its first win of the season, 64-52.
DETAILS
Per NAIA and local guidelines, 400 spectators will be permitted in the Activity Center for each game of the tournament. Tickets are valid for single games only and the Activity Center will be cleared out after each game. Fans can watch the games on live stream by visiting www.lcwarriors.com/watch. The cost for a women's pass on Friday is $20 and will include both women's games, and Saturday the cost will be $30 because they are championship games.
Tickets for Friday, March 12 will be $10 per game, and $15 on Saturday, March 13. 100 tickets will be allocated to both the visiting teams and home teams, per NAIA regulations. There will be 50 tickets allocated to LC State students. Any unclaimed tickets will be sold at the ticket window.
Concessions will not be sold and no food or beverages will be allowed in the facility. Masks are required at all times.
Stay up to date with all things Warrior Athletics at lcwarriors.com and on social media @LCWarriors.