Kirkwood Womens Basketball

KCC women top Columbus Central

NORFOLK, Neb. - Kirsten Larson popped in five 3-pointers and scored 17 points Friday night as Kirkwood trimmed Central-Columbus, 80-75, in Omaha.

Tyra Polite hit four triples and scored 16 points for the Eagles (4-3). Anna Martesen contributed 12 points.

Ariel Sneed finished with eight points and eight rebounds. Polite collected seven assists. Aliyah Isaac and Taylor Silva had five assists.

Adrianna Beck made six 3-pointers and scored 24 points for Central-Columbus (5-3).

KIRKWOOD (80): Sneed 3 2-2 8, Miles 0 0-0 0, Downs 0 0-0 0, Isaac 0 2-2 2, Silva 1 0-0 3, Oberman 1 0-0 3, Sudduth 0 0-0 0, Polite 5 2-4 16, Larson 7 3-4 17, Hutchins 0 0-2 0, Martensen 4 4-8 12, Bockholt 2 0-0 5, Clark 3 0-0 6, Wood 1 1-2 3. Totals 27 14-24 80.

CENTRAL-COLUMBUS (75): Beck 9 0-0 24, Brewer 2 2-5 6, Bryant 0 0-0 0, Muhammad 4 0-0 10, Rossmeier 2 6-6 10, Washington-Carson 6 0-2 12, Weller 4 2-2 13. Totals 27 10-15 75.

Halftime - Central-Columbus 38, Kirkwood 37. 3-point goals - Kirkwood 12 (Larson 5, Polite 4, Silva 1, Oberman 1, Bockholt 1), Central-Columbus 11 (Beck 6, Weller 3, Muhammad 2).

No.5 Illinois Central tops No.3 KCC

PEORIA, Ill. April Gebke and Destiny Ramsey scored 19 points apiece Saturday as No. 5 Illinois Central trimmed No. 3 Kirkwood, 74-68, in a junior college women's basketball game in Peoria, Ill.

Ariel Sneed led Kirkwood (3-3) with 16 points and seven rebounds. Cassidy Clark collected 13 points and seven rebounds. Tyra Polite had seven assists.

Kirkwood and Illinois Central have both won six national titles and have two of the top NJCAA Division II programs in the country.

KIRKWOOD (68): Sneed 7 1-2 16, Isaac 2 0-0 4, Silva 3 0-0 6, Sudduth 3 1-3 8, Polite 2 2-2 7, Larson 3 0-0 8, Martensen 2 0-0 4, Bockholt 1 0-0 2, Clark 4 4-4 13. Totals 27 8-11 68.

ILLINOIS CENTRAL (74): Carpenter 1 2-3 4, Gebke 7 2-3 19, Jones 1 10-12 12, Kumer 2 0-0 5, Ramsey 6 7-8 19, Robinson 4 0-0 11, Stubblefield 2 0-0 4. Totals 23 21-26 74.

Halftime - Illinois Central 31, Coe 26. 3-point goals - Kirkwood 6 (Larson 2, Sneed 1, Sudduth 1, Polite 1, Clark 1), Illinois Central 7 (Gebke 3, Robinson 3, Kumer 1).

No. 3 Eagles fall to No. 10 Parkland

PEORIA, Ill. - The third-ranked Kirkwood women's basketball team lost to No. 10 Parkland, 62-59, Friday night in the opening round of the Illinois Central tournament.

Kirsten Larson hit four 3-pointers and led the Eagles (3-2) with 14 points. Cassidy Clark scored 11 points for Kirkwood.

Kassidy Alderman led Parkland with 19 points.

KIRKWOOD (59): Sneed 1 0-0 2, Miles 2 0-0 5, Isaac 0 5-7 5, Silva 2 3-4 8, Sudduth 0 1-2 1, Polite 2 0-0 4, Larson 4 2-2 14, Hutchins 1 0-0 2, Martensen 2 1-2 5, Kallenberger 1 0-0 2, Clark 4 1-2 11. Totals 19 13-19 59.

PARKLAND (62): Hartman 1 0-0 2, Alderman 7 0-1 19, Moses 1 0-0 2, Wascher 7 0-4 14, Vaughn 1 2-2 4, Litchfield 1 7-8 9, Zerrusen 2 1-2 5, Cross 1 2-4 4, Mitton 0 3-4 3. Totals 21 15-25 62.

Halftime - Parkland 30, Kirkwood 23. 3-point goals - Kirkwood 8 (Larson 4, Clark 2, Miles 1, Silva 1), Parkland 4 (Alderman 4).

KCC's Sneed signs with Southern Miss

Ariel Sneed of Kirkwood Community College has signed a national letter-of-intent to play basketball at Southern Mississippi University next season.

Sneed, a 6-foot sophomore from Harvey, Ill., was named a third team NJCAA Division II All-American last season after averaging 10 points and six rebounds for Kirkwood.

"I chose Southern Miss because as soon as I touched ground on its campus, I felt a sense of belonging," she said in a story posted on the Southern Mississippi website. "I received nothing but positive vibes while there the entire time, and it was just a feeling that was right.

"Spending time with the coaching staff and players just reassured me that this was where I was meant to be! I couldn't be happier with my decision."