Number 5 Alessa Soto Taken By Joey Murphy
By Sequoia Hall
The still-undefeated Lane Women’s Basketball looks to keep it that way as they face a quality Umpqua Community College team. On Wednesday, Feb. 26, they were able to beat Umpqua in a commanding fashion 83-63 with a rainstorm of 3’s leading the charge as they finished off the regular season undefeated.
First quarter
The Lane Titans started off the game strong with 3s from Maitlin Young, Kya Kanoho, and two from Emma McDonald. Umpqua was finding it hard to get past Lane’s shutdown defense. The Titan players kept their hands in passing lanes and were showing their blocking ability with a key demoralizing block by Micah Wicks.
The screen game was working early for Lane, allowing their first-quarter lead to get to 18 very quickly. The five 3s that they hit also helped as both teams were shooting but Lanes were landing, causing them to be up 29-11 at the quarter’s end.
Second quarter
The second started just like the first with Lane’s Kanoho hitting a three and the next play saw her hitting an athletic layup where she drew the and one connecting on the free throw. Umpqua went on a little run cutting the lead back to 18, but Lane’s consistent and tenacious defense made it hard for them to string buckets together.
Lane’s offense was boosted by their excellent rebounding halfway through the second half, the defensive rebounds were 14-5 in favor of Lane. Lanes’ excellent shooting continued as they kept the lead at or above 18 for the rest of the quarter, and their quick passing had Umpqua running back and forth trying to keep up.
The crowd was a raucous bunch and they were treated right in the second quarter with back-and-forth scoring. As the quarter progressed, the referee’s whistles became more frequent than the buckets but late free throws by Lane settled it down as the Titans finished the half shooting 50% from 3 compared to Umpqua’s 23.1%, giving Lane a 46 to 29 commanding lead.
Third Quarter
Back-and-forth scoring started by Umpqua’s Rebekah Beltran followed by jumpers from Lillee Duffin and Wicks. After Wicks’s jumper, she picked up her fourth foul on a questionable call. But Lane was able to rally with a 3 by McDonald, then she followed that up with a layup on the next play.
Lanes’ quick defense kept Umpqua’s shooters uneasy. While Emma McDonald picked up a double-double mid-way through the third with 17 points and 10 rebounds. Lane got back to the three balls with back-to-back by Kanoho and Young.
Umpqua was trying to keep up but the volume shooting of the Titans was just too much. Umpqua kept driving to the rim but the physical defense of Lane held strong, outscoring them 24 to 17 in the third, making the score 70 to 46.
Fourth quarter
The pace of play settled down with misses coming from both sides until Umqua’s Brooklyn Fely hit a jumper that ignited Lane with McDonald hitting yet another jump shot. Lanes’ defense stayed strong, only letting contested Umpqua shots up while slowing down the game on offense, up 20.
The game was still back and forth, each possession was taking longer, as Lane was passing up open shots and opted for keeping the ball longer. Lane was looking to shut things down and kept their foot on Umpqua’s throat with a three by McDonald and grinding defense that seemed to take the energy out of the Umpqua team.
With the crowd still being a factor, the pace of scoring sped up in the last two minutes with each team trading layups and free throws, and some quality free throws from the hometown girl Wicks, who went to school near Umpqua. As time expired, the traveling Lane fans and the team celebrated the 83-63 game. The Titans secure sole possession of the number-one seed in the conference as their unbeaten streak grows to 42 games with a dominant win to close out the regular season.
In sum
Lane was able to hold Umpqua star Fely comparatively quiet as she had 18 points, most of which came while down a significant amount. Lane was dialed in from 3 as they shot 50% as a team, with McDonald (4 for 8), Young(4 for 6), and Kanoho(4 for 6) each making 4 long-range shots. They now can rest and prepare for the upcoming NWAC conference playoffs where they have the No. 1 seed and are poised to make a deep run and try and get the elusive three-peat.
To find out more about LCC’s women’s basketball and see their schedule visit LaneTitans.com/sports/wbkb
