THREE SCORE IN DOUBLE-FIGURES AS HAWKS FALL TO NO. 1 EAGLES

NORFOLK, Neb. – The Northeast Community College women's basketball team hosted the nation's top-ranked team Saturday at the Cox Activities Center in Norfolk as they welcomed No. 1 Kirkwood Community College to their home floor. The Hawks fell in the matchup by a final score of 76-63.

Northeast (18-7, 10-5 ICCAC) knew the challenge that was coming in the battle with the defending national champion Eagles who entered the afternoon 24-0, but they held their own most of the way in the contest. The Hawks and Kirkwood mirrored each other on the stat sheet in shooting percentages as the teams shot 39.7% and 36.7% from the field and 29.6% and 28% from three in the ballgame, with Northeast just trailing the Eagles in each of those percentages.

Aaliyah Jones (Rapid City, S.D.) scored 15 points in the loss while Mia Wiederin (Norfolk, Neb.) and Clara Garrote (Salamanca, Spain) both tallied 14 points in the showdown as the 13-point defeat marked Kirkwood's third-closest victory of the year.

STAT SHEET:

Aaliyah Jones (Rapid City, S.D.): 15 PTS, 3 REB, 2 AST, 4 STL

Mia Wiederin (Norfolk, Neb.): 14 PTS, 3 REB, 5 AST

Clara Garrote (Salamanca, Spain): 14 PTS, 6 REB, 3 AST, STL

HEAR FROM THE HAWKS COACH:

Head Women's Basketball Coach Matt Svehla on Saturday against No. 1 Kirkwood:

"Our team played hard, and I was pleased with our effort," Svehla said. "We gave up some things in the first half that put us in a tough spot, but we defended better in the second half. It's always tough to lose, but they are a good team."

Svehla on the week ahead that will bring the two final road trips of the regular season:

"We will have two road games this week that are always challenging, so we will need to play well," Svehla said.

UP NEXT:

The Hawks will travel for a contest with Iowa Central Community College at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday in Fort Dodge, Iowa.

HAWKS HAPPENINGS:

For all the latest information on Northeast Hawks Athletics, please visit northeasthawks.com. For updates and other exciting content, follow:

@northeastcchawks on Facebook

@northeasthawks on Instagram

@northeasthawks on TikTok

@NortheastHawks on Twitter/X

@NortheastCCWBB on Twitter/X