Blue Dragon women bounced in first round

The Hutchinson Community College women’s basketball team made their eighth

appearance to the NJCAA Division 1 Women’s National Championship on Monday.

However, the trip in Lubbock, Texas was cut short after the Blue Dragons faced a first-round exit, losing to the San Jacinto-North Gators 62-51.

HutchCC, the No. 18 seed, had high hopes coming into the tournament, as the Blue Dragons finished the season with an impressive 27-6 record. But to start the tournament they had to face a similarly-matched San Jacinto team. The Blue Dragons struggled scoring immensely, making only one of their first 12 shots.

At one point in the first quarter, Hutchinson didn’t score for nearly five minutes, leaving San Jacinto to increase its lead.

The second quarter was better for the Blue Dragons, but they found themselves down 13 to end the half. The second half was an uphill climb, as they tried to grind out points.

After a 7-0 run to start the fourth quarter, the Blue Dragons found themselves within four points, 47-43. However, the Gators answered with their own 8-0 run, and from there, the Blue Dragons simply couldn’t get back into the game.

The Gators shot an even 50 percent from the field, while the Blue Dragons shot 34.8 percent. For Hutchinson, Dejanae Roebuck was the leading scorer with 24 points.

She also had 12 rebounds, which led to her 14th double-double this season. Tia Bradshaw finished with 12 points and Kelsey Brett had five.

The Blue Dragons finished with a 27-7 record and are now 17-10 all-time in national tournament games.

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