North Platte falls to Golden Eagles

Cheyenne, Wyo. – The North Platte women's basketball team came up short on Friday night, falling 87-67 to Laramie County Community College.

Dezirae Gonzales paced the Knights with 17 points, while Aliyah Herron added 14 and Reece Yahn contributed 12. Kyenna Jackson anchored the team on the boards, pulling down six rebounds.

"We waited too long to start playing, we did not come ready to compete and it showed," said head coach Jeff Thurman. "I thought we fought and battled in the fourth quarter."

Laramie County opened the game on an 8-2 run before back-to-back threes from Herron and Gonzales sparked an 8-0 surge for the Knights. The Golden Eagles answered immediately with a 15-0 run of their own, but Gonzales halted the momentum with a strong drive to the rim as North Platte traded baskets with LCCC to close the quarter.

Laramie County continued to control the pace, scoring 15 of the next 23 points to widen the margin heading into the media timeout. The teams continued to exchange buckets, but North Platte headed into the locker room trailing 52-33.

In the third quarter, the Golden Eagles held North Platte to just seven points over the first six minutes as they stretched their lead to 33. North Platte found some rhythm late in the period, shaving three points off the deficit entering the fourth.

The Knights opened the final frame with a strong 9-2 run that forced a Golden Eagles timeout. North Platte continued to battle, outscoring the Golden Eagles by three the rest of the way, but the early gap proved too large to overcome.

"We need to get over this one," Thurman said. "We have to have a better response and be ready to compete against a solid Eastern Wyoming team tomorrow."

Knights (2-7) return to action on Saturday against Eastern Wyoming College. Tip is set for 2 p.m. in Torrington, Wyo.