Lady Royals Come Up Just Short Against NDSCS in Region XIII Championship

The Lake Region State College Lady Royals basketball team entered the Region XIII Tournament as the #2 seed and sporting a 19-11 record. First up for LRSC in the Region XIII Semi-Final was the Bismarck State College Mystics. Lake Region had won the previous two meetings of the regular season against BSC. It was a back and forth first half in which the Mystics held a slight edge heading at the break 35-29. The Lady Royals would make their big push in the 3^rd quarter. They would dominate the 10 minutes going on a 23-8 run to take the lead at 52-43. They would never give it back and close out BSC 72-54 to advance to the Region XIII Championship.

Waiting for the Lady Royals in the Region XIII championship was the NDSCS Wildcats. LRSC could not get out of the gate in this game, NDSCS took a 16-2 lead after the 1^st. It continued to be a low scoring, defensive struggle for the championship. It was not until late in the 3^rd quarter when the Lady Royals would make a run and tie the score. It would be knotted up heading into the 4^th at 34-34. With just under a minute left it was a 2-point game in favor of the Wildcats. A crucial turnover with 4 seconds left would force the Royals to foul and send NDSCS to the line. They would only make 1 of 2, giving the Royals a chance to tie the game with a 3. Maara Nelson had a look at the buzzer but could not get it to go. The Lady Royals fall in the Region XIII Championship to NDSCS 45-42. Annie Jorgenson had 15 points and 5 rebounds, while Maara Nelson had 12 points and 7 rebounds.

With the loss, LRSC's season has concluded. They finish the year 20-11. Head Coach Danny Mertens said, "I want to thank these girls for all their hard work this season. I am very proud of this team and all they accomplished. We had our chances at the end against NDSCS and that is really all you can ask for. Big thank you to my sophomores. They have been wonderful representatives of this program for 2 seasons."

Go Royals!