This page has been updated with results through Saturday, March 7.
The Lincoln Land Community College women’s basketball team rebounded from its first home loss in two years.
The Loggers, ranked No. 10 in NJCAA Division II, avenged No. 7 Parkland College 74-61 in the regular-season finale on Wednesday, Feb. 25 at Cass Gymnasium with a burgeoning freshman class that includes forward Zoey Beehn and point guard Kylie Robinson.
Beehn, of Owensboro, Kentucky, engineered a double-double with 18 points and 12 rebounds, while Macomb-native Robinson knocked down all of her four 3-point attempts to end up with 16 points.
Beehn and Robinson certainly signal a promising future ahead. Beehn averages a team-best 14.4 points and 8.6 rebounds per game. Robinson isn’t far behind either with 14.1 ppg.
“She’s a good post,” Robinson said of Beehn, “so I know I can get her the ball and on defense she does really good, too.”
Robinson had a season-best 32 points in an 86-69 win over Rock Valley College on Nov. 8 and carried the Loggers with 31 points in the 92-82 overtime loss to No. 5 Illinois Central College on Feb. 21 that dashed a 34-game home winning streak.
Robinson said she has always been a scoring point guard, putting in additional work with her parents, Shawna and Ryan, while growing up. She is not only shooting 49.8% from the floor but also 44.4% from the perimeter.
She also averages 4.3 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 2.7 steals per game.
“I’d say we’re pretty close,” Robinson said of getting acclimated, “so at practice, it just makes it easier and we work hard. Afterwards even no matter how hard we go at each other, we’re not going to be mad at each other.”
Last season, the Loggers won their second straight Region 24 title before achieving fifth place in the national tournament.
Tournament schedules, results
University of Illinois Springfield and Lincoln Land Community College tournament schedules are included below.
The University of Illinois Springfield women’s basketball team won its final two games against William Jewell (105-55) and Rockhurst (97-69) for the eighth best record in the Great Lakes Valley Conference, but was eclipsed by Upper Iowa based on the points rating system. The Prairie Stars finished 14-14 overall and 11-9 in the GLVC, after tallying five wins all together last season.
Information and results will be updated here as they become known.
GLVC Men’s Basketball Tournament
At University of Missouri St. Louis
Friday, March 6 (quarterfinal)
No. 6 McKendree 89, No. 3 University of Illinois Springfield 63. UIS leading scorers: Jordan Rice 20, Isaiah Davis 12, Britt Dutton 10.
What to know: The Prairie Stars will make their ninth appearance in the GLVC Tournament, splitting the series against McKendree. UIS weathered a challenging final stretch with six of its last eight games on the road. The Stars went 3-5 over that period but still garnered the No. 3 seed due to the points rating system. McKendree’s points were deducted due to ineligible player participation for the first 11 games of the season. Graduate student Jordan Rice ranks third all-time in UIS scoring history with 1,301 career points. He also ranks among the school’s best in career assists (450) and steals (124). He is currently averaging a team-best 16.6 points per game. Lanphier grad Tye Banks is the team’s third-leading scorer with 11 points and 4.8 rebounds per game, behind Isaiah Davis’s 12.4 ppg.
NJCAA Division II Region 24 Men’s Basketball Tournament
Higher seeds host
Tuesday, March 3 (first round)
Lincoln Land 68, John Wood 62. LLCC leading scorers: Keshaun Harlan 23, Nathaniel Moore 14, Jaylen Lockhart 10.
Friday, March 6 (semifinal)
Danville Area Community College 77, Lincoln 65. LLCC leading scorers: Keshaun Harland 20, Jaylen Lockhart 14, Joshua Banks 12.
What to know: The Loggers won three of their last four games to finish the regular season .500 after ushering just four wins last season. Freshman guard Keshaun Harlan paces LLCC with 13.7 points per game, followed by freshman forward Jalen Ashley (12.4 ppg) and sophomore guard Nathaniel Moore (12.2 ppg).
NJCAA Division II Region 24 Women’s Basketball Tournament
Higher seeds host
Tuesday, March 3 (quarterfinal)
Lincoln Land 84, Spoon River 47. LLCC leading scorers: Lillie Woodworth 18, Alexis Wade 14, Zoey Beehn 12.
Thursday, March 5 (semifinal)
Lincoln Land 60, Parkland College 59. LLCC leading scorers: Zoey Beehn 13 points (12 rebounds), Kylie Robinson 14 points, Alexis Wade 12 points, Isabella Tiburzi 11 points.
Saturday, March 7 (championship)
Illinois Central College 65, Lincoln Land 58
What to know: Guards Lillie Woodworth (10.9 ppg) and Alexis Wade (10.3 ppg) lead the sophomore class. Wade, of Mount Pulaski, is a third-year sophomore after taking a medical redshirt as a freshman. She produced 15 points in the regular-season finale against Parkland.
This article originally appeared on State Journal-Register: Lincoln Land women’s basketball falls in Region 24 championship
Reporting by Bill Welt, Springfield State Journal-Register / State Journal-Register
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