St. Bonifacius, MN -- North Central University (NCU) women's basketball faced off with the #1 seeded Champion Christian College (CCC) Tigers with a chance to play in the 5th place game of the National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA) National Championships. Caitlyn Ryan nearly had herself a triple double with 27 points, 10 rebounds, and 8 assists but in the end, the Rams fell to the Tigers by a final score of 95-86 ending their season.
Ryan would get North Central on the board first thanks to an emphatic and-one. However, Champion went on an 8-point run to make it 8-3 in their favor. Two layups from Ryan and a three from NiNi Davenport would allow the Rams to take a 10-8 lead but the Tigers answered back with a three of their own. Another and-one from Ryan and Davenport sinking another three would give NCU an 18-15 lead. However, Champion Christian retook the lead with back-to-back threes and ended the first quarter holding a 26-22 lead over North Central.
In the second half, the Rams would take a 35-33 lead over the Tigers, but Champion sank a three to retake the lead at 36-35. There was a total of 10 lead changes in the second quarter as teams traded buckets back and forth. North Central outscored Champion Christian in the quarter, however, the Tiger's lead stayed true at the end of the first half. The teams went into their respective locker rooms with Champion holding a 46-44 lead over NCU.
Coming out of the locker rooms, Kaitlyn VanderPloeg tied things up at 46 as she attacked the rim making her layup. Unfortunately, the Tigers immediately retook the lead at 48-46. Champion tacked onto their lead as they scored 9 unanswered points going up on the Rams 57-48. The Tigers rode their momentum as they held their lead for the rest of the quarter. Champion would go on a 6-0 run at the end of the third and increase their lead to 75-66.
In the final quarter, Champion continued to stay ahead of North Central as they did not relinquish their lead to the Rams. NCU was able to score the same amount of points as the Tigers, but they would not be able to overcome the Tigers' lead. In the end, the Rams fell by a final score of 95-86 and were eliminated from the NCCAA National Tournament.
Top Performers:
Looking Ahead:
This concludes the women's 2023-2024 season. The Rams ended the year with a 13-16 overall record and went 7-7 in Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) play earning a spot in the UMAC Postseason Tournament. NCU also won the 2024 NCCAA North Region Championship and participated in the NCCAA National Tournament.
North Central will bid farewell to 3 seniors Joelle Talso, Abby Howe, and Kayla Hola. The Rams will return a plethora of key players next season including First-Team All-UMAC forward Caitlyn Ryan and Second-Team All-UMAC forward Kaitlyn VanderPloeg.
All fans are encouraged to tune into the official Rams Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter pages for updates on women's basketball and all things NCU Athletics.
