W-Basketball: Golden Eagles Knock Off Nationally Ranked, Previously Unbeaten Kankakee
Box Score Behind a gritty team effort, the #4 NJCAA DIII Rock Valley College Women's Basketball team knocked off #6 NJCAA DII Kankakee Community College 78-73, handing the Cavs their first loss of the season. The Golden Eagles stretch their winning streak to 8, improving to 8-2 overall.
Despite trailing by 1 after the first quarter, RVC managed to earn a 36-33 halftime lead behind 11 points from
Jaycee Cleaver, and 8 points and 12 rebounds from
Tierra McGowan. The Golden Eagles never looked back, holding Kankakee to 25-73 (34.2%) from the field. Although RVC had 30 turnovers and gave up 22 offensive rebounds, it was the blistering field goal shooting (23-39 for 59.0%) that helped push the Golden Eagles over the top. The dribble penetration of Chriseesha Clark, Cleaver, and
Breeanda Howell caused problems for the Cavalier defense all afternoon.
"I am very proud of our ladies," said Head Women's Basketball Coach
Misty Opat. "It definitely was not pretty at times, but we stayed tough. We stayed together. We executed our game plan, and when things did not go our way, we did not pout or hang our heads. We just continued to stay with it. There are many things we can take from this win. Hopefully, we can continue to build and ride this momentum."
Cleaver led the way with 20 points, including 10-12 from the FT line. McGowan had 16 points and 21 rebounds. Clark added 14 points and 9 assists. Freshman
Emily Cox netted 11 points, burying 3 field goals from behind the arc.
UP NEXT
RVC Women's Basketball visits Kennedy-King College on Tuesday, December 13th. Tip off is set for 5 PM in Chicago.
