The Three Rivers Lady Raiders entered Friday's NJCAA second-round tournament game as underdogs, but certainly didn't play as such in the first half, taking a halftime lead before ultimately losing to Clarendon 61-57.
The Lady Raiders (27-6) were defeated by Clarendon in an attempt to secure their spot in the Elite Eight, obtaining the loss as a 12 seed. The Lady Raiders certainly put forth a valiant effort, but they ended up suffering their sixth loss of the season in the second round of the NJCAA tournament.
Clarendon (32-2) scored the first two baskets of the first quarter and took a 6-2 lead before the lower-seeded Lady Raiders found success on the offensive end. Freshman Samyah Jordan nailed a free-throw line jump shot, and fellow teammates De'Naya Ross and Londyn Harper nailed three-pointers to push Three Rivers ahead by two.
Clarendon converted yet another basket within the paint area before sophomore guard Tristan Spearman nailed a jump shot to tie the game up at 10 points apiece.
Ross connected on a late-quarter three-pointer, and Jordan followed up her exploits by nailing a bank shot to send her team into the second quarter up 15-12.
Clarendon sprinted out to a second-quarter lead by scoring the first two baskets of the frame. Three Rivers experienced a scoring drought for the first two minutes of the quarter before Jordan connected on two free throws after getting fouled. Freshmen Amelia Corasaniti and Ytaly Lewis scored the remaining points in the first half for the Lady Raiders, as the former converted a tough running layup and the latter nailed a deep three-pointer.
Lady Raiders' Ross, Jordan, and Corasaniti combined to score 18 of their team's 26 points in the first half, which resulted in Three Rivers maintaining a slim one-point lead at intermission.
Both teams struggled percentage-wise in the first half, as the Lady Raiders converted 32 percent of their shots, while Clarendon shot at a 33 percent clip.
Ross started the third quarter on a positive note for the Lady Raiders, but Clarendon sharply responded by going on a 14-3 run to take a 39-29 lead.
Lady Raiders forward Kiera Neal converted a bank shot to reduce Clarendon's advantage down to eight. Several easy baskets and a tough putback layup from Corasaniti reduced the lead down to four. Samyah Jordan caught fire at the end of the third quarter, which resulted in Three Rivers rallying back to take a 45-43 lead heading into the fourth quarter.
In the fourth quarter, Clarendon scored the first two baskets of the frame. Jordan and Ross converted shots to keep the Lady Raiders in step with the Lady Bulldogs. The teams went back and forth during the frame, as Harper and Jordan each made free throws to ensure that the Lady Raiders wouldn't fall behind rapidly.
With four minutes left in the contest, Three Rivers trailed by four. Corasaniti nailed a much-needed three-pointer to trim the Lady Bulldogs' advantage to one point with just one minute left.
A crucial turnover late from Three Rivers permitted the Lady Bulldogs to close out the game and win 61-57.
Ross led the Lady Raiders with 16 points, while Jordan was right behind her with 15 in the contest. Corasaniti added 13 points for Three Rivers.
Valentina Chinhama finished as the leading scorer for Clarendon, as she poured in 18 points. Armanda Sindalawa scored 15 points, collected nine rebounds, and dished out seven assists. Nuria Mucongo added 13 points in the process, along with six rebounds.
Liaudwin Seaberry Jr - Daily American Republic
