RAWLINS, Wyo. – The 14th-ranked Western Nebraska Community College women's basketball team put six in double figures and the Cougars rolled to their third win of the season with a 95-56 win over Central Wyoming College at Rawlins, Wyoming, Saturday afternoon.
WNCC trailed just once during the contest and that was the opening two free throws of the contest. After that, Shanti Henry nailed a 3-pointer and the Cougars never trailed again.
WNCC blistered the net in the first half, shooting 42 percent and the Cougar defense was stifling, holding the Rustlers to just 16 percent shooting.
Central Wyoming sliced the first-half lead to 10-6, but the Cougars went on a 9-0 run behind a trey by Amani Brown and four points from Martrice Brooks for a 19-6 lead. The Cougars went on to lead 29-12 after the first quarter.
WNCC stayed hot in the second quarter as Brown and Payton Fields each nailed 3-pointers and the Cougars led 35-14. Later, Fields hit another trey for a 41-17 lead and then Brown had an old-fashioned 3-point play for a 44-19 lead. WNCC led 46-24 at intermission.
WNCC and Central Wyoming combined for 51 third-quarter points as the Cougars out-scored the Rustlers 28-23. Central Wyoming cut the lead to 18 points at 55-37 with 5:38 to play in the third. WNCC came back and went up 68-41 on a Yara Garcia old-fashioned 3-point play. WNCC led 74-47 after three.
WNCC went up 78-49 early in the fourth on a Rashaan Smith offensive rebound putback. Smith put the Cougars up 82-31 on another bucket. WNCC went on a 9-0 run late for a 93-53 lead on a Garcia steal and bucket and then then a Breanna Fowler 3-pointer.
WNCC shot the ball well from the field, making 41 percent from the field while nailing 41 percent from beyond the arc. WNCC was 9 of 22 from the 3-point line as Henry had three treys while Brown had two.
WNCC was lights out from the charity stripe, shooing 90.3 percent and making 28 of 31 from the free throw line. Douglas was a perfect 6-of-6 from the line while Garcia was 5-of-5 and Fields was 4-of-4. Brown was 7-of-8.
Brown led the scoring with 17 points followed by Ale'Jah Douglas with 14, Henry with 13, Garcia and Isabelle Cook with 11 each, and Fields with 10.
WNCC won the rebound total 44-30. Cook finished with 11 boards followed by seven from Fields, six from Smith, and four from Garcia.
WNCC, 3-0, will be back in action Tuesday when they host Eastern Wyoming College in a women's and men's doubleheader. Action Tuesday begins at 5:30 p.m. for the women's contest with the men's game to follow.
WNCC (3-0) 29 17 28 21 – 95
Central Wyo. 12 12 23 9 – 56
WNCC
Isabelle Cook 11, Ale'Jah Douglas 14, Amani Brown 17, Shanti Henry 13, Payton Fields 10, Yara Garcia 11, Breanna Fowler 3, Martrice Brooks 4, Ashley Panem 1, Shayane Poirot 3, Rashaan Smith 8.
CENTRAL WYOMING
Elena Almeria Lillo 2, Alex Terrazas 11, Alexxis Motisi 14, Livia Knapp 24, Anna Hutchinson 3, Natalija Markovic 2.