Despite a hot start, the Joliet Junior College women's basketball team couldn't keep that momentum as the Wolves fell to Dallas College Cedar Valley, 75-61, Friday in the NJCAA Division III Central District Championship.
Midway through the opening quarter, the Wolves were up by as much as seven, leading the Suns, 11-4. Cedar Valley took its first lead with 2:15 remaining and the lead swapped back and forth before the quarter ended in a 15-15 deadlock. The Wolves never regained the lead after that.
"I think we went into the game with a lot of energy," freshman center
Kiyah Robertson said. "We were all ready, we were all locked in and we all had a common goal. In the first quarter, we did really good but in the second quarter we started falling off and we really had to fight to get back in there."
And fight they did. Late in the game, the Wolves trailed by as much as 20 points but cut the lead down to nine.
"I thought the girls fought, they fought hard," Wolves coach
Shaun Sanderson said. "I think there were moments of the game, they start watching that scoreboard and just kind of doubted themselves. And then we had that spurt in the 4th quarter when we cut it down from a 20-point deficit to a three-possession game."
Cedar Valley got hot shooting from 3-point territory, and the Wolves needed time to figure it out. The Suns finished 8 of 25 from the three, but it felt like a lot more.
"Coming into the game, we thought they had a three-headed monster all at the guard spot," Sanderson said. "That No. 3 [Mia Thomas], she's probably one of the most fundamental shooters you'll see at this level. We, for some reason, lost her and we couldn't get to her. We wanted to make sure we ran her off the 3-point line and not let her be in a catch-and-shoot situation. We wanted to make it a little bit harder and at least have somebody in her face."
Those adjustments and the late rally, ultimately, fell short.
Robertson led the Wolves, scoring 24 points while pulling in nine rebounds. She went 8 of 18 from the field with 8 of 11 free throws made. She and her coach said it is among her best collegiate performances to date.
"I would say this is probably one of my best college games so far because there was a lot of pressure, a lot of people in the crowd and I didn't let that effect me," Robertson said. "Instead I let it fuel me."
"I think Kiyah has kind of proven she can play with the best of them," said Sanderson. "She had to battle with a couple bigs down there. She finished with 24 tonight, but probably should have finished with 30."
Sophomore
Ashanti Brown also aided the Wolves in their late comeback attempt. She played all 40 minutes and finished with 21 points, seven rebounds and a pair of assists. She shot 7 of 18 from the field with a 1 of 4 from the three. Brown was perfect from the foul line with six.
"Ashanti's effort was phenomenal," Sanderson said. "She didn't even come out of the game. She laid it all out on the line. She's a gamer and we're blessed to have her. She hit some shots, got to the basketball and got to the free throw line."
With the loss, the Wolves' fate is now out of their hands as the team hopes for an at-large bid for the NJCAA Division III tournament. An announcement is expected Wednesday. Robertson is optimistic about JJC's chances to continue, but her coach not as much. Still, Sanderson is proud of his team's performance this season.
"It's not the record we would have liked but I thought these kids grew and competed and that's what we want to see -- growth," he said. "But the job doesn't stop. We've gotta recruit, recruit, recruit."
