Northwest College

News Archive (2019-20 and older)

Lady Trappers' road woes continue

NWC Falls TO .500 In Region IX North

The Northwest College women’s basketball team has defended its home court admirably this season. 

But they have not been as successful as road warriors. 

After a pair of Region IX weekend losses at Gillette College and Sheridan College on Friday and Saturday, the Lady Trappers saw their three-game winning streak end, and are now 3-11 away from Cabre Gym this season. NWC now sits at a troubling 5-5 in the Region IX North. 

The Trappers have played well at home, posting a 9-2 record, but are 12- 13 overall thanks to inconsistent play on enemy courts. When asked about the discrepancy, NWC head coach Janis Beal was left grasping at straws. 

“That’s a great question,” Beal said. “If I knew the answer we wouldn’t be three and whatever on the road. But on the road you have to play so much better ... you have to have that same intensity and I don’t think we’ve had that on the road.” 

The Trappers were hurt by the absence of leading scorer and sophomore Dana Bjorhus (13.1 points per game) who sat out of the weekend’s action after spraining her ankle in a game against Miles Community College on Jan. 31. Other injuries have plagued NWC this season, and Beal was limited to just eight players against Gillette and Sheridan. 

“The biggest thing for us is the adjustment of being limited on players,” Beal said. “You’re going to feel the effects when your leading scorer doesn’t play. We don’t always know who’s going to be able to go but somebody has to step up.” 

GILLETTE 72, NORTHWEST 68 

The effects of a limited roster showed early for the Trappers, as Gillette managed to stay with the visitors in the first half. It was a night-and-day difference for the Pronghorns, who were blown out by NWC, 82-62, in Powell on Jan. 10. 

The Trappers led 38-32 at the half, but couldn’t sustain momentum in the final 20 minutes of play. 

“It’s always more difficult to play a team on the road, but we definitely didn’t play as well as we did [at home],” Beal said. “Gillette showed that they wanted it more, especially at the free-throw line. Their attempts compared to ours showed that they were aggressive and we were not.” 

NWC made 13 of its 20 free throws, but Gillette countered with a solid 77 percent after going 26 of 32. The Pronghorns weren’t great from the floor, shooting just 40 percent (22 of 54), but NWC was worse, converting a dismal 26 of 71 field goals (37 percent).

Sophomore Caitlin Clancy paced NWC with 15 points, sophomore Sarah Neilsen added 13, freshman Kealani Sagapolu had 12 and sophomore Hatti Snyder finished with 10. Gillette’s Ingeborg Gjenstoe led all scorers with 20 points. 

SHERIDAN 81, NORTHWEST 57 

The Trappers had a much tougher time with Sheridan on Saturday than it did Jan. 9 in Powell. 

During the teams’ first meeting, the Generals rallied from an 11-point halftime deficit to secure a 15-point victory over the Trappers. This time, in Sheridan, NWC was down at the break and couldn’t replicate their foe’s magic. 

“Sheridan is a good team and they have a lot of good players,” Beal said. “It came down to field goal percentage and free throws.” 

The Trappers trailed 36-20 at the halftime buzzer, due in part to a 6-of-26 shooting performance (23 percent). In contrast, Sheridan fired at a more efficient 41 percent (12 of 29), and also made 11 of its 12 free throws. 

NWC finished with 18 made free throws, but their 21 total attempts left Beal wanting more after the Generals attempted 37. 

“It’s just evident that we need to get more aggressive down low and take some bumps,” Beal said. “Settling for shots outside of the paint or beyond the arc isn’t always going to work, and I think Gillette and Sheridan showed us that.” 

The Trappers finished 18 of 60 from the floor (30 percent) while Sheridan countered with 44 percent (24 of 55). 

Clancy scored 18 points to lead the Trappers, and Sagapolu registered a double-double with 10 points and 12 rebounds. Tiana Hanson scored a game-high 19 points for the Generals, and Sierra Toms followed with 17. 

The Trappers are now fifth in the eight-team race for the Region IX North crown. With four games left, NWC will need to win out to even entertain the idea of winning the region. Casper sits atop the mountain with a 9-1 record, however, their sole loss was issued by the Trappers, who knocked off the Thunderbirds 69- 68 on Jan. 24 in Powell.

The two squads meet again at 4 p.m. Saturday in Casper. 

The Thunderbirds have to go 0-4 in their final four region contests to give the Trappers a chance, but the likelihood of that is small, especially with Central Wyoming College (8-2) threatening from the second-place position. 

“I tried to tell the girls after the games that the season is not over — did we make it hard on ourselves? yes — but the season is not over,” Beal said. “If we can figure things out and gain some momentum over the last few games, we’ll be OK.” 

Beal isn’t sold on the idea of winning the region, and is hoping her team can cure its ailments before the region tournament begins on March 3. 

“The thing is, we have to understand that we have to figure some things out on the road pretty quickly,” Beal added. “... (B)ecause we know the region tournament isn’t going to be hosted here. We know that for sure.”