Quincy, Ill. - Kayla Gordon's career-high 20 points helped lead the #2 seeded ICC women's basketball team to a 76-69 win over #1-seeded Lincoln Land to capture the Region 24 title and punch the Cougars' ticket to the NJCAA Division II National Tournament on March 15-19.  

The sophomore combo guard from O'Fallon was impressive on both ends of the court, shooting 9-14 from the field and spear-heading a stellar team defensive effort.  Cierra McNamee (16 points), Peyton Dearing (10 points, 3 assists), Kyleigh Block (8 rebounds, 7 points), and Dayja Evans (6 points, 3 rebounds) also provided big punches and puts the Cougars back at Nationals for the second consecutive year and fifth time in the last seven seasons (2022, 2021, 2019, 2018, and 2016).  

"It feels amazing to be going back to Nationals," head coach Karrie Redeker said.  "Today was a total team effort and our kids stepped up and played their roles to near perfection.  Kayla and Cierra were very consistent and played well, and everyone else just followed their lead.  We are so proud of the way our team has come together and are looking forward to playing more basketball together at the national tournament in Michigan."  

McNamee got ICC on track with two quick scores to start the game while the Cougar defense established themselves, forcing four straight LLCC turnovers in the opening minutes.  Dearing and Gordon hit back-to-back three-pointers as ICC took a 19-17 lead after one period.

The Cougars opened up a 29-20 lead on Kyleigh Block and Gordon treys (assists McNamee & Kristyn Mitchell) while McNamee and Gordon added layups forcing the Loggers to call timeout.  LLCC regrouped to tie the score at 33-all before a Gordon put-back and Laisha Armendariz-Lopez jumper got the Cougars rolling again.  Dayja Evans hit a long-range bomb (assist Gordon) to give ICC a 38-36 lead and then McNamee swished in another trey (assist Evans) just before the halftime buzzer to hold a 41-36 halftime lead.  

ICC scored on their first five possessions starting the half on free throws and three straight Gordon buckets to hold a 50-44 advantage.  Dearing extended the lead to 53-46 with another three-pointer (assist Gordon) but the Loggers again went on a run to knot the score at 55-all with 2:41 in the third.  The Cougars closed out the quarter strongly on two free throws by T'yana Lovelace, another trey from Evans, along with four points from Mitchell put ICC up 64-59 heading into the fourth.

Scoring was sporadic to start the final frame until Lovelace and Block each got big put-backs to put ICC up 68-61 with 4:24 to play.  After a Lincoln Land score, the Cougars turned it over but got a stop on the defensive end on which Edwards corralled the rebound and hit Dearing for a layup that she converted into an old-fashioned three-point play to put ICC up 71-63 at the 3:36 mark.  The Loggers stayed on the attack, cutting ICC's lead to 72-67 with a chance at two free throws but missed both, however the Cougars turned the ball over and LLCC cashed in for a basket, cutting the Cougar lead to just 72-69 with 1:04 to play.  Dearing was fouled on a drive to the hoop and hit one free throw making it 73-69.  ICC's defense held tough and Gordon drove the paint for a runner to give ICC breathing room at 75-69.  Mitchell hit one free throw for the final margin as the Cougars celebrated the win at the final horn.  

Besides making big plays on the offensive end and getting key rebounds in the fourth, the Cougar defense held the Loggers to 5-21 field goal shooting to help get the win.  On the afternoon, the Cougars shot 8-21 from three-point range (38%) and 12-16 (75%) from the free throw line.  

Other:  In addition to the Region 24 plaque and National Tourney bid, McNamee and Gordon were named to the All-Region 24 team for their efforts this season. The 2022 Region Championship and subsequent Nationals bid is good for the program's 32nd all-time National Tournament appearance.

Next up:  The Cougars, now 24-9 overall, will await their tournament seeing when the NJCAA Selection Show happens on Tuesday at 2pm CST. A link to tune into the selection show will be shared when it becomes available. With the 16 automatic qualifiers determined, the full list is found by clicking here.