Posted: Feb 26, 2022

Voyageurs lead early, then lose to Riverland

RRCC WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

By KEVIN BONESKE

For the Rainy Lake Gazette

COON RAPIDS – The Rainy River Community College women’s basketball team pulled in front early Saturday, Feb. 26, but the Voyageurs’ lead was short-lived before their season came to an end.

RRCC, seeded No. 2 out of the Minnesota College Athletic Conference’s Northern Division, lost its NJCAA Division III Region XIIIA semifinal to Riverland Community College, the MCAC South’s No. 3 seed, 81-71.

“We knew what they’re capable of,” said Voyageurs head coach Dieter Humbert. “They’re a phenomenal shooting team… They’re a well-oiled offensive machine. I thought we competed very well, played them tough the whole game. (I’m) really proud of our kids. We stepped up big, put up 71 (points). If somebody had told me before the game we’d have 71, I’d (feel) like we probably won it, but they hit a lot of big shots as well. I thought it was just a fantastic basketball game, high level, and both teams should be proud of the efforts of their players.”

RRCC, which ended the season 11-11 overall, also lost the two non-conference games it played against the Lady Devils.

The Voyageurs jumped out to a 5-0 lead in the region semifinal after Arcadya Conway made a 3-pointer.

Riverland battled back to take a 14-13 lead on a 3-pointer from Savannah Longhoma with about four minutes left in the first quarter.

RRCC didn’t score again until the final seconds of the opening quarter when a 3-pointer from Livonna Wallace cut the Lady Devils’ lead to 24-16 going into the second 10 minutes.

The Voyageurs pulled within two points with just over two minutes left before halftime when B’jne Arvie made a jump shot, then Riverland closed out the second quarter with a pair of field goals to lead 37-31 at intermission.

RRCC fell behind by 11 points about a minute into the third quarter after the Lady Devils’ Imani Colon sank a 3-pointer.

The Voyageurs then responded with a 9-0 scoring run capped off by a 3-pointer from Shamiyah Bradford to cut Riverland’s lead to 42-40 close to the midway point of the third quarter.

However, that turned out to be the closest RRCC would come for the rest of the game, as the Lady Devils responded with eight unanswered points.

Riverland, which entered the final 10 minutes leading 60-51, never saw its advantage dwindle to fewer than six points before time expired.

The Lady Devils were led in scoring by Camryn McQuery with 19 points, with Longhoma adding 17 points, Elyse Hebrink tallying 16 points and Colon also in double figures with 12.

The Voyageurs also had four players score in double figures with Wallace and Bradford each tallying a game-high 20 points, followed by Arvie with 16 and Conway with 11.

Riverland shot 29-63 (46%) from the field overall and 10-28 (35.7%) from 3-point range, compared to 29-67 (42.3%) and 9-27 (33.3%), respectively, for RRCC.

The Lady Devils made 13-24 (54.2%) of their free throws, while the Voyageurs went 4-11 (36.4%) from the charity stripe.

With RRCC having resumed its women’s basketball program this season following a year off during the COVID-19 pandemic, Humbert said he faces having players with freshman eligibility moving on academically.

“I’ve got some freshmen that I’m hoping that return, and I’ve got some kids already committed for next year,” he said. “The recruiting cycle never ends. I’m always having to stay one step ahead on that. It will be a bright future… Our freshmen really made some nice gains this year. I look forward to those that are able to return seeing what they can do next year.”

Though eight colleges comprise the MCAC North, Humbert said only five of them fielded a women’s basketball team this season, reducing the number of conference games from a possible 14 to 8.

“I’m looking forward to hopefully a return to normalcy next year that we can get in a full season – everybody has a team – and we can have a big year,” he said.

Riverland lost 69-60 in the Region XIIIA championship to Rochester Community and Technical College, which will host the NJCAA Division III National Tournament March 9-12.

River 81, RRCC 71

River 24 13 23 21 – 81

RRCC 16 15 20 20 – 71

RRCC: Livonna Wallace 20, Arcadya Conway 11, B’jne Arvie 16, Queristan Coates 4, Shamiyah Bradford 20. 3-pointers: Wallace 4, Bradford 4, Conway. Free throws: 4-11. Fouls: 21. Fouled out: Cierra Lindquist.