UCC Basketball: Riverhawks finish regular season with split at Lane

EUGENE — The regular season came to a close for the Umpqua Community College men’s and women’s basketball teams on Wednesday night at Lane Community College. 

The No. 6 Umpqua women fell to No. 5 Lane 107-101 in double overtime.

The Titans made a layup with 8 seconds left to play in regulation to send the game to overtime. Neither team managed to break away in the first extra period, but a 6-0 run to start the second overtime period gave Lane a lead it wouldn’t relinquish. 

The loss dropped Umpqua (21-8, 12-4 South Region) into third place in the South Region standings. Lane (25-4, 13-3 South Region) secured a second place finish with the win. 

UCC’s Kaelyn Shoemaker and Giselle Muffett had 25 points each. Shoemaker added 24 rebounds and three blocked shots. Gretchen Orton scored a game-high 46 points to lead Lane. 

The No. 4 Umpqua men beat Lane 93-82 and finished the season with a three-game winning streak. 

The Riverhawks had six players in double figures, led by Jackson Taylor with 16 points. Jackson McKee and Caden Hunter had double-doubles for Umpqua (25-4, 13-3 South Region).

Noah Salmon led Lane (14-14, 9-7 South Region) with a game-high 25 points, 7 rebounds and 6 steals. The Titans finished fourth in the South Region.

The Umpqua Riverhawks will now prepare for the NWAC championship tournament which starts next week at Columbia Basin College in Pasco, Washington. 

The UCC women will face South Puget Sound in the first round at 10 a.m. March 7. The Riverhawks lost 73-66 against South Puget Sound back at the start of the season. 

The UCC men will square off with either Centralia or Highline at noon on Thursday next week. The Trailblazers and Thunderbirds are tied for fourth place in the West Region.