INA, Ill. (March 6, 2020) — The third time was the charm for the Lady Warriors. After falling to the Trailblazers twice during the regular season, the Rend Lake College Women’s Basketball Team knocked off Vincennes University to advance in postseason play.
The win will give the Lady Warriors a chance for the National Junior College Athletic Association Women’s Basketball Midwest District title Friday night in Ina. But the semifinal matchup Thursday against Vincennes was no easy task. The game was a tight affair throughout, with no team seeing a lead bigger than 8 points. The fourth quarter alone saw six lead changes as the two teams traded blows down the stretch. But clutch shooting from the floor and free-throw line allowed the Lady Warriors to stretch their lead at the end of the game and ultimately take home the victory.
Madison Buford (St. Louis, Mo.) led the way in scoring for the Lady Warriors, posting 32 points.
“She really stepped up and had some amazing moments,” Coach Dave Brown said.
But Brown said it was a complete team performance that held the Trailblazers in check throughout the contest.
“It was a great defensive effort. They ran our scheme perfectly,” Brown said. “It was the best team performance I’ve seen all year — from anybody.”
Who’s up next?
The Lady Warriors are set to take on No. 1-seeded Wabash Valley College in the Midwest District final at 5 p.m. Friday, March 6 at Rend Lake College. Wabash Valley, also the Lady Warriors, finished the regular season with a record of 29-2 and beat RLC twice. RLC fell 108-66 on the road in January and 78-57 at home in February. But RLC will get home-court advantage in Waugh Gymnasium as host of the Midwest District Tournament.
“It’s hard to beat somebody three times,” Brown said. “All we can do is give our best effort and leave it all out there.”
A win over Wabash Valley would not only earn RLC the Midwest District title, but also an automatic bid for the NJCAA National Tournament. National tournament seedings will be announced Monday, March 9 and the Division I Tournament Championship will be held at the Rip Griffin Center in Lubbock, Texas.
The Lady Warriors are also venturing into territory the program hasn’t seen in more than a decade. An RLC women’s basketball team has never won a district or region tournament and the last time the Lady Warriors competed for a postseason title was when the 2006-07 team finished as the runner-up in the Region XXIV Tournament (the playoff format has undergone some reshuffling in recent years and the NJCAA switched to the district tournament format). The 2006-07 squad was coached by Glenn Box, who is currently an assistant coach for the Indiana University Women’s Basketball Team. Box said he’s proud to see the continued success of the program.
“Very happy with the job the coaching staff has done there,” he said. “they are representing Southern Illinois well.”