The Lake Region State College basketball teams spent their Thanksgiving in Wyoming.
Each team played the following Friday and Saturday in the First National Bank Classic in Gillette, Wyo. Both teams took losses on each day.
LRSC men’s hockey also had a game this weekend, at home on Saturday against Jamestown. The Royals fell short there, too, in a tough overall weekend for the college teams.
All of it was non-conference action, though. It’s still the early going of the basketball season, with conference play not starting until after the new year.
The LRSC men’s basketball team lost 81-62 to Gillette College on Friday and 113-75 to Eastern Wyoming College on Saturday.
In Friday’s defeat, the Royals trailed only 35-30 at halftime. It got away from them in the second half. Alvin Payne led LRSC with 20 points, while Akok Ajou had 13 and Quyavant Douglas added 12 off the bench. LRSC had the advantage on the boards, 52-46.
A box score was not reported for Saturday’s game. However, the 113 points was the most the Royals have given up since the Mon-Dak Pre-Conference Tournament.
LRSC has now lost three straight games after a six-game winning streak. The Royals wrapped up November with a 7-5 overall record thus far.
The women’s team, meanwhile, fell 101-70 to Gillette College on Friday and 78-68 to Eastern Wyoming College on Saturday.
In Friday’s loss, the Royals were within 11 after three quarters, but a 30-10 fourth quarter sunk them.
Zoie Austin, LRSC’s leading scorer, put up 23 points. It was already her fifth time scoring 20 or more points this season. She’s scored double-digit points in all 10 games she’s played in.
Austin, however, didn’t play in Saturday’s 10-point loss. The Royals led 41-38 at halftime and were tied 58-58 after three quarters. They were outscored 20-10 in the fourth quarter.
Kiritiana Patea, a starter on Friday, also didn’t play on Saturday.
Sydney Schwabe, last year’s leading scorer, paced the Royals with 17 points on Saturday. She was one of four Royals in double figures, with Jenna Tierney scoring 14 and Lara Graham and Danielle McNamara each adding 12.
LRSC has lost two games in a row after winning five straight. The Royals’ women finished November with a 6-5 overall record.
The women’s basketball team only has two games scheduled for December, while men’s basketball has three. None of them are at home.
The women travel to St. Cloud Technical & Community College this Wednesday. Then they’ll play Jamestown JV on the road Tuesday, Dec. 9. Their next game after that is at home on Jan. 2 against Gillette College.
The men have another out-of-state road trip this weekend. They’ll be playing Indian Hills Community College and Marshalltown Community College on Friday and Saturday, respectively, in the Norris Asphalt Classic in Ottumwa, Iowa.
Then, they’ll travel with the women to play Jamestown JV on Tuesday. Their next game after that is also at home on Jan. 2 against Gillette College.
In college hockey, LRSC only had one game this past weekend: a 4-1 loss to Jamestown at home for the men on Saturday.
The Royals fell behind 3-0 in the first period. Their lone goal came from Alex Sabourin at 3:45 in the third period. It was Sabourin’s first goal of the season, scoring during a power play. Austin Thompson and Rigley Astle had assists.
The teams had an equal amount of shots on goal, with 56. LRSC goalie Nathaniel Bowlby saved 52 of them. Jamestown goalie Ethan Haglund remarkably had 55 saves.
The Royals have now lost seven consecutive games to fall to 7-10 on the season. Their last win came on Nov. 1.
The LRSC men’s and women’s hockey teams host Augustana this Saturday and Sunday.
