SIOUX CITY, Iowa – The No. 2-seeded and No. 7-ranked Indiana Tech women's basketball team opened up the 2019 NAIA Division II National Championship on Wednesday afternoon with a 73-63 victory over seventh-seeded West Virginia University Institute of Technology inside Tyson Events Center. The win gives the Warriors 31 on the season, setting a new program record.
Kendall Knapke led all players with a game-high 25 points and grabbed a team-best nine rebounds while
DeAnn Kauffman added 16 points and six rebounds.
Alexis Hill chipped in with 13 points, five rebounds and two blocks while
Kyra Whitaker had 12 points and two assists off the bench.
Rachel Bell rounded out the Warriors scoring with seven points and four rebounds.
The Golden Bears got out to a 6-3 lead out of the gate after Knapke put the Warriors up 1-0 on their opening possession. A 6-2 run put the Orange and Black ahead 9-8 with 6:32 left in the first half, and the rest of the period was a back-and-forth affair but a 7-0 run from Tech, with Knapke scoring six of those points, but them ahead 20-17 at the end of 10 minutes.
WVU Tech opened the second quarter on a 13-5 run to take a 30-25 lead with 6:23 on the clock. A bucket from Bell at the 4:26 mark snapped a two-minute and 20-second scoring drought for the Warriors and sparked a 7-3 run to bring them within a point of the Golden Bears. The River States Conference Regular Season and Tournament Champions, who were making their first appearance in the national championship, went on a 7-0 run to extend their lead to 40-35, but a buzzer beater three from Hill made it a two-point game at the break.
The Golden Bears continued to give the Warriors fits in the third quarter as they extended their lead to 54-47, their largest lead of the game, with 2:46 to play in the period. Whitaker would hit the remaining two baskets of the quarter, both coming from behind the arc and the second coming as the horn sounded, to bring Tech within a point at 54-53.
Knapke tied the game up at 54 with a free throw while Kauffman put the Warriors up 56-55 two possessions later that sparked a 9-0 run, with Kauffman hitting a 30-footer with the shot clock expiring to cause a collective gasp from the WVU Tech faithful. Tech leaned on its experience and defense in the final five minutes to put the Golden Bears away, as they outscored WVU Tech 11-6 over the home stretch and held WVU Tech scoreless for nearly three minutes down the stretch to ice the game.
Tech (31-3) moves on to the second round of the NAIA Division II National Championship and will take on third-seeded and No. 9-ranked Eastern Oregon University on Friday at 9:30 a.m. EST from the Tyson Events Center.
