Lady Roadrunners claim region tournament championship

The second-seeded Lady Roadrunners defeated the top seeded and 21st ranked Mineral Area College Lady Cardinals 88-86 in overtime in the Region 16 Division I Women's Basketball Tournament championship match on Saturday, Feb. 27, at the Ozark Christian College Multipurpose Building in Joplin. The Lady Roadrunners (22-7) found themselves down 40-25 early in the third quarter, but erased that deficit by outscoring Mineral Area 32-13 to take a 57-49 lead into the fourth quarter, courtesy of a deep three-point basket from sophomore guard Zhanesha Dickerson. 

Mineral Area refused to go away and took a 78-76 lead with about 25 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter. The Lady Roadrunners missed a pair of three-point shots, but they got one more opportunity after a jump ball. SFCC inbounded the ball with nine seconds remaining. Dickerson came to the rescue getting an offensive rebound and scoring as time expired to tie the game at 78. SFCC outscored Mineral Area by two points in the overtime to secure the victory and the program's third region tournament championship in the last six years. 

Dickerson led three Lady Roadrunners in double-figure scoring with 23 points. She also tied for the team lead in rebounds with Thelma "TuTu" Williams by pulling down nine. Sophomore guard Sierra Clayborn contributed 12 points. Freshman guard Bre'anna Lamar added 11 points including three three-point shots in consecutive possessions in the third quarter. Sierra Clayborn and Seara Clayborn tied for the team lead in assists with three. Freshman center Kendra Boone led the team in blocked shots with two. Sierra Clayborn and Dickerson tied for the team lead in steals with two apiece. 

Sierra Clayborn and Dickerson earned First-Team All-Region 16 for the Lady Roadrunners. Williams earned second-team honors. 

SFCC will travel to Norfolk, Nebraska, to take on Northeast Community College on Friday, March 4, for the District K Championship with the winner receiving an automatic bid to the NJCAA Division I Women's Basketball Championship. Tipoff is scheduled for 6 p.m. in the Cox Activities Center. 

David Rohrbach

SFCC Athletics