Westmont women’s basketball lose in Round of 16 at NAIA National Tournament

(SIOUX CITY, Iowa) Westmont Women's Basketball (27-5) saw its season come to an end today in the Round of 16 at the NAIA National Championship. The Warriors fell to #4 Central Methodist (30-5) by a score of 71-65.

"I am really proud of the fight we have shown all year," said Westmont head coach Kirsten Moore. "We have battled all year. This has been a year of adversity from day one. I think we never lost our belief. Down the stretch, tonight, I thought we could still do it and I think our players thought we could still do it. We were one shot away from being in control of that game."

Stefanie Berberabe led the Warriors in scoring with 25 points, making nine of 13 from the field and six of nine from the free throw line. Berberabe also tallied four assists and three steals.

Iyree Jarrett put up 14 points and dished off six assists while Gabriella Stoll scored 12 points and pulled down seven rebounds. Destiny Okonkwo notched eight points and six rebounds. Kaitlin Larson led the team on the boards with nine.

"Everyone that was out there gave us good minutes," said Moore. "Kaitlin was gritty on defense and gave us good leadership. Gabby gave us a huge scoring spark off the bench. When we had our three-post lineup, we were able to take advantage of some mismatches. She delivered and finished well.

"Destiny battled like crazy and Aleena (Cook) gave us a spark off the bench. Syd (Brown) got in foul trouble early but came back in and gave us important minutes.

"Iyree and Stef were relentless attacking the rim and had smart composure against their pressure. A lot of teams turn the ball over but I thought we handled their pressure.

"Our bench gave us tremendous energy tonight. While we were battling on the court, they were keeping our energy up.

"We just didn't make shots and I thought we had a lot of good looks from the 3-point line. We just couldn't get them to drop tonight."

As a team, the Warriors shot 41.5 percent from the floor, but struggled from 3-point range making just three of 23 attempts, all in the first half.

Westmont had trouble scoring early and trailed 10-3 in the early going. However, back-to-back threes by Jarrett and Berberabe and a put-back bucket by Stoll gave the Warriors their first lead of the game (11-10). After a long-distance bucket by the Eagles' Robin Beck, Jarrett drove the lane and scored to tie the game a 13. Eternati Willock scored at the buzzer for Central Methodist, however, to give the Eagles a 15-13 lead at the end of the first quarter.

The two teams played even ball in the second quarter with each team putting up 16 points. Neither team took more than a three-point lead. Berberabe tallied four field goals in the second frame and Jarrett added six points.

Westmont made a run at the Eagles in the third quarter, outscoring Central Methodist 20-17 to go ahead 49-48. With the Warriors down 37-34, Stoll scored the Warriors next six points on three field goals to put the Warriors up 41-39. However, Central Methodist responded with a 7-0 run on a three by Beck sandwiched between two layups by Willock.

Stoll scored again, to ignite a 9-2 Warrior lead with Okonkwo contributing two buckets on consecutive Westmont possessions - both times fed by Jarrett. Berberabe knocked down a pair of free throws to compete the run and give Westmont the lead at the end of three quarters of play.

Jarrett extended the Warriors lead to three points (51-48) with another drive to the basket, but it was answered by Daryna Bachkarova (11 points). Then, Jarrett fed Larson whose bucket put Westmont on top 53-50.

With just under nine minutes remaining in the contest, Leianya Massenat (18 points) hit from beyond the arc to tie the game at 53. An offensive rebound and put-back by Okonkwo gave Westmont a 55-53 advantage. The Eagles answered with a two-point field goal by Massenat, tying the game at 55.

After Berberabe put Westmont back on top 57-55, Jarrett was called for her fourth personal foul with 7:11 to play and had to take a seat on the bench. Massenat converted both resulting free throws to make the score 57 all.

The Warriors scored the next four points with Berberabe assisted by Stoll and then Brown assisted by Berberabe. Then with 5:25 to play, Arleighshya McElroy (20 points) scored in the paint to pull the Eagles within two at 61-59.

Neither team scored for more than two minutes. With 3:05 to play, McElroy drained a three, putting Central Methodist on top 62-61. The Eagles called timeout and Jarrett re-entered the game.

With 2:43 showing on the game click, Berberabe dished the ball to Stoll who put Westmont back on top 63-62. Unfortunately for the Warriors, it would be both their last lead, and their last field goal of the game. After McElroy scored 11 seconds later, the Warriors would go 0-7 from the field the rest of the way.

While this year's team will not have the opportunity to play for a national championship, it will long be remembered for its ability to persevere through numerous adversities, including both injury and COVID-19 illness.

It will also be remembered for its defensive prowess. The 2021-22 Warriors rank second in Westmont history for fewest points allowed by its opponents at 49.9 per game and first in scoring margin at 21.9 points per game. They will also be remembered for holding opponents to a 33.8 field goal percentage (34.2) and a 3-point field goal percentage of 24.9, both of which rank second in the Warrior record book.

More than the stats, however, the 2021-22 Warriors will be remembered for the fierce love and commitment to one another and their determination to put each other first. A commitment that helped them overcome adversity and achieve remarkable results both on and off the court.

(article courtesy of Westmont Athletics)