The Western Nebraska Community College women's basketball team battled but in the long run, dropped a 77-67 Region IX South Sub-region contest to Northeastern Junior College Monday evening at Cougar Palace.

                The loss drops the Cougars to 20-5 on the season but more importantly to 4-3 in conference play. It was the Cougar's third straight defeat. NJC moves to 25-3 on the season and is in the driver's seat to win the south sub-region with their 7-1 record. Otero is second in conference play at 6-2.

                WNCC will look to right the ship when they travel to McCook Community College on Friday night in a key conference action in hopes of staying in the top three of the conference standings.

                Monday's contest saw NJC score the first nine points for a 9-0 lead. WNCC didn't get on the scoreboard until Laura Montiel buried a 3-pointer with 5:55 to play. NJC led 11-3 before the Cougars ran off nine straight themselves on two steals and buckets by Monteil and Amiyah Donaldson. Faith Walker hit a bucket with 2:16 left in the opening quarter for their first, and only, lead of the night at 12-11. NJC led 18-16 after the first 10 minutes.

                The Plainswomen pushed the lead to double digits at 30-20 on a triple by Bianca Bindzus and went on to lead at halftime 37-28.

                The Cougars started the third quarter just like the first slow. NJC scored the first six points to lead 43-28. WNCC finally scored with 6:01 left in the third on a Mackensie Joseph bucket. NJC led 48-32 on another Bindzus 3-pointer. WNCC didn't quit as they scored the next eight points on an old-fashioned 3-point play from Walker and a 3-pointer by Gal-La Font. Adelina Urtane then hit a bucket to close to within eight, 48-40. NJC answered with five straight, including a trey from Seneya Martinez for a 53-40 lead. Font closed out the third with a bucket and a 53-42 NJC lead.

                WNCC outscored NJC 25-24 in the fourth quarter and, again, kept battling. WNCC cut the deficit to single digits on back-to-back 3-pointers from Urtane and Helena Kuck to make it 56-48. A mini 7-point run sent the score back to 15 at 63-48.

                WNCC trailed 74-58 when they exploded on a 9-0 run on buckets by Keyle Cervantes and Ebere Egbirika to make it a 74-67 game, but it wasn't enough as NJC got the 77-67 win.

                Urtane was the only Cougar in double figures with 19 points. Donaldson and Walker each finished with nine points while Joseph had seven.

                WNCC was out-rebounded in the contest 44-39.

                The difference in the game was shooting as WNCC shot just 33 percent from the field and were 7-of-32 from beyond the arc. NJC shot 49 percent and were 9-of-18 from the 3-point line. WNCC held the free throw advantage, making 12-of-14, while NJC was a perfect 6-of-6.

NJC                       18 19 16 24 – 77
WNCC                 16 12 14 25 – 67
NJC
Alexandra Westerdijk 6, Genesis Sweetwine 7, Seneya Martinez 11, Jailyn Potts 2, Ruby Sweeney-Spitzeck 15, Bianca Bindzus 17, A'Mya Winfrey 15, Erin Williams 4.
WNCC
Amiyah Donaldson 9, Ebere Egbirika 5, Keyla Cervantes 2, Helena Kuck 3, Gal-La Font 6, Laura Montiel 5, Faith Walker 9, Kiley Smich 2, Mackenzie Joseph 7, Adelina Urtane 19.