With regional loss, Lady Raiders still head to Spokane for state

The Lady Raiders basketball team lost the regional round of the state 2B tournament but were scheduled to play again today at the Spokane Veterans Memorial Arena to keep their postseason alive at the State 2B Basketball Tournament. 

The sixth-seeded Lady Raiders lost 70-50 against the number-three seed, Colfax Feb. 25 at University High School in Spokane Valley.

"We played against a high-caliber team and it took us a while to get going," Assistant Coach Matthew Pleasants said. "The start of the game was not pretty, and we had to chip at the lead. I will give the girls credit for the fight they demonstrated, because the game score could have been a lot different. Two of the biggest difference makers was the energy provided from Cylia [St. Pierre] and Almeta [Desautel] which helped get us going and cutting into the lead."

LR hit a third of their shots from the field, 18 for 54, and went nine for 13 at the free-throw line. 

St. Pierre led the Ladies with 15 points, with Aaliyah Marchand throwing down 13. 

Zalissa Finley led LR in rebounds with 11 of the team's 26 total. 

The loss sends LR to play against the 11th seeded Rainier team, today, March 2, at 9 a.m. when they need to win to stay in the tournament.

"We look forward to our next game as this can be an opportunity for us to build some momentum and go on a little run to finish out the season," Pleasants said.

If they win, the Lady Raiders will play Okanogan on March 3, also at 9 a.m. at the Spokane Arena on the west court.

Beating Okanogan would send them to the semifinal round Friday, when a win would mean a chance at either the championship or third or fifth place on Saturday.