Dodge City women's basketball closed out the regular season by closing out the game well on the road against Seward County to secure a 67-62 victory.
The win moves the Conquistadors to 25-4 on the season and 20-4 in KJCCC action as the Conqs finished second in the KJCCC. The second-place finish earns the Conqs a first-round bye in the region tournament and a home quarterfinal playoff again on Tuesday, March 10th.
Conqs opened the contest, banging in a three-pointer by
Savi Mi, and after falling behind briefly at 4-3, went on an 11-4 run to lead 14-8 midway through the first quarter. Seward countered by finishing the first quarter on a 10-2 run, giving them an 18-16 advantage after the first quarter. A quick
Jade Célérier layup tied the game at 18-18 in the early seconds of the second quarter as the Conqs mounted an 11-2 run to lead 27-20, spearheaded by a pair of threes from
Manuela Piljevic. Seward once again answered as they scored seven straight to tie the game before the Conqs regained the lead and led 31-29 at halftime.
In the third, the Conqs constantly fended off the advances of Seward, remaining in front and leading 45-41 entering the fourth quarter. Conqs kept the lead until just over five minutes remaining as Seward hit a layup to take a 50-49 lead and then went up 52-49. Piljevic drained a three-pointer after a Conq timeout to draw the game even at 52-52 as the action went back-and-forth. A pair of free throws after a technical foul on the Conqs swung the lead back to Seward at 58-57, but the Conqs got a layup from Mi and then a technical foul on Seward, and Piljevic drained two free throws, giving the Conqs a 61-58 advantage with 50 seconds remaining. Conqs defense locked in and stymied Seward the rest of the way while Mi, Piljevic, and
Jordi Perry each hit a pair of free throws to ice the game for the Conqs 67-62.
Conqs shot 40% on the night, hitting 11 three-pointers and went a perfect 12-12 from the free throw line. Seward County shot 41.5%, but only 2-15 from three-point range as both teams had 20+ turnovers in the contest.
Piljevic had a career night, tallying 32 points on 10-19 shooting including 6-8 from three-point range and 6-6 from the free throw line, while adding seven rebounds, three assists, and two steals. Mi chipped in 18 points on 6-15 shooting and went 4-4 from the free throw line while dishing out five assists.
The Conqs now gear up for the Region 6 Tournament and will host a quarterfinal matchup on Tuesday, March 10th at 5:30 pm against the winner of the first-round game between Barton and Cloud County.
