(Longview, WA) – The Lower Columbia women's basketball team bounced back from an opening loss to win two straight at the 2023 Lower Columbia Holiday Classic.
The Lane Titans took this year's title with a 73-71 victory over Umpqua in an intense championship game.
GAME #1 – WALLA WALLA 76 LOWER COLUMBIA 51
The Warriors turned a close game into a blowout by outscoring the Devils 22-11 in the third quarter and 18-10 in the fourth.
Paige Pentzer and Brielle Magnuson had 24 each to lead the Walla Wall victory.
The Devils struggled at all levels. The team shot 31 percent from the floor, 23 percent from distance and were outrebounded 37-21. Head coach
Lucas Myers was at a loss following the game as his team's effort was not up to par.
Kayla Kasubuchi had 15 points, six rebounds and three assists.
Morgan Hamilton scored 13 points.
GAME #2 – LOWER COLUMBIA 72 SHORELINE 64
The Devils bounced back to avenge an earlier loss to Shoreline with two solid middle quarters. Down by three after one, the Devils outscored the Dolphins 26-14 in the second quarter and 25-17 in the third stanza. Shoreline made a rally in the 4
th to get within three with 1:22 left, but the Devils got a huge three pointer from
Payton Torrey and four free throws from
Reigha Niemeyer to close it out.
Niemeyer,
Bailee Larson and
Karlee VonMoos led LCC with 16 points each. VonMoos also had a team-high eight rebounds, three steals and two blocks.
Torrey was huge off the bench with 15 points, three assists and eight steals.
GAME #3 – LOWER COLUMBIA 68 CLARK 57
The Devils closed out the three-day tournament with a win over the Penguins. Clark was playing with just seven players and they came out and led 15-4 after the first quarter. Any talk of an upset was wiped away when the Devils outscored Clark 30-10 in the second quarter.
Larson had 19 points to lead the way. The sophomore added nine rebounds, three assists and four steals.
Kasubuchi went 8 for 13 from the floor for 18 points. Hamilton was very active with 15 points, four boards and six steals.
Maris Baklund provided a spark with five points and three steals.
The Devils open the new year with a road game at Bellevue on Friday January 5
th. Game time is 5 pm.
