CARSON, Cali. – The Montana State University Billings women's basketball team reached the end of their 2022-2023 campaign, falling 77-66 to Cal State University Dominguez Hills in the NCAA Tournament West Region Semifinals.
 
It marked the conclusion of an excellent season for the Yellowjackets (25-8, 14-4 GNAC), where they tied the school record for total wins in a season.
 
"This team is special to me," said Yellowjacket's head coach Kevin Woodin. "We needed to get back to the regionals, it had been five years since we last made it, and to win a game while we were here was very important. This team was incredible on the road all season, I've never had a team that could win away like this. We had the eleven game winning streak in the middle of the GNAC season which was also incredible. But the thing I'll remember the most of this team was our balance, and our ability to overcome adversity. They should be proud of every one of their accomplishments, because they did it all together."
 
Facing off against the top seeded Toros (30-2, 21-1 CCAA), the 'Jackets kept the game close early with a hot shooting first quarter, shooting 46.7% from the field in the opening quarter and nailing 4-9 from three. Dominguez Hills would settle into the game in the second quarter however, outscoring MSUB 20-13 in the period to jump out to a 43-31 lead at the half. Dominguez Hills played aggressively, full court pressing the whole game and earning 13 second chance points.
 
"Dominguez is a strong team," said Woodin. "They shot well in the first half, really did a good job of controlling the offensive rebounds."
 
The third quarter opened with continued troubles shooting for the Yellowjackets, who shot just 28.6% from the field in the quarter. They overcame those struggled to keep even with the Toros through Kortney Nelson's free throws. The guard from Scobey went 7-10 from the line in the quarter, creating offense through aggressive driving.
 
MSUB regained it's shooting touch somewhat in the fourth quarter, going 64.3% across the final ten minutes and hitting it's first three pointer since the first quarter. It wouldn't be enough though, as the Toros kept ahold of a solid lead, taking the victory and moving on to the west region finals.
 
"I felt we needed to make a few more threes than we did," said Woodin. "We moved the ball well, I just thought we needed a few more shots to fall. We had a lot of fight in our players all night. I thought maybe if we could get the score within a few possessions we'd have a shot, and our effort was outstanding, but credit to them, they kept us at arm's length."
 
Nelson finished with 13 points and eight assists in the game. Dyauni Boyce had 12 points and five rebounds. Shayla Montague added 11 points and a team high seven rebounds. Aspen Giese scored five points, while Danielle Zahn and Natalie Andreas each hit a three pointer.
 
The Yellowjackets had two seniors making their final appearances for the team. Taryn Shelley scored 15 in the game, adding four rebounds. The Shoreline, Washington native finished her MSUB career with 1500 career points, eighth in program history. Cariann Kunkel from Hamilton, Montana added six in the game, continually challenging the Toros on both sides of the court.
 
"Taryn and Cariann represent everything our program does," said Woodin. "They're great leaders on the court, in the classroom, and in the community. They always give 100% no matter what. I have been fortunate to have them and I will miss being able to coach them."
 
THE BUZZ: Nelson was selected as the St. Vincent Healthcare Player of the Game.