Posted: Nov 25, 2025
The Western Nebraska Community College women's basketball team lead from start to finish in putting four players in double figures in the 75-59 win over Eastern Wyoming College Tuesday night at Cougar Palace.
The win pushed the Cougars to 5-4 on the season but, more importantly, stopped a 2-game losing skid. The win was a complete team effort with everyone contributing in some fashion.
WNCC head coach Ryan Davis said the way the team played Tuesday showed a lot of character.
"It comes down to playing harder and committing to the game plan that we've put together," Davis said. "We talked a lot about mental preparation and just being ready to go tonight and I think they were really prepared even before the game started. We started better and then it flowed through the whole rest of the game."
Something WNCC did Tuesday against EWC was start strong in the first quarter. WNCC jumped to a 14-4 lead as Celina Donyo had six points and Zozefine SIpolina buried back-to-back 3-pointers. EWC made a mini run, cutting the deficit to 14-11, but Dunja Stojanovic buried a triple and the Cougars led 19-14 after one.
After that, the team hit shots and had mini runs to keep the Lancers at bay. Davis said the start in the first quarter was crucial and it just carried over to the other quarters.
"They did a really good job of just jumping out to an early lead and we talked about the beginning of the game and then we talk about the beginning of the second half being really important. It kind of sets the tone," Davis said. "I think the 19 points (in the first quarter) shows you that they were mentally prepared for the game and we weren't last night (Monday night).
The second quarter was a battle as EWC cut the deficit to 19-18 on a Yaiza Paredes bucket. WNCC responded with five points, but the Cougar lead was trimmed to two, 26-24. That was when WNCC went on a 10-0 run that included two old-fashioned 3-point plays for a 36-24 lead. WNCC led at half 36-28.
The third quarter saw EWC score the first two buckets but then the Cougars started to light up from behind the arc as freshman Juseana-Rae Delatori made three 3-pointers within a 2-minute period for a 46-34 lead. WNCC led 53-39 after three periods.
Delatori said it was a big team win and it felt good that their shots were doing down.
"I haven't shot like that since high school and being able to finally get my threes back, it felt really good and I got my confidence back," the freshman from Hawaii said.
WNCC made just one 3-pointer in the overtime loss to Miles Community College on Monday and Tuesday night, the Cougars shot 35 percent from the 3-point area as they buried seven triples. WNCC also shot 40 percent from the field and were 16-of-24 from the charity stripe.
Donyo and Charisma Johnson led the Cougars with 17 points apiece. Donyo also had six rebounds in the win while Johnson had four rebounds, two assists, and five steals to go with her 17 points. Delatori added 13 points with three triples while Ella Chesta-Carty had 12 points with six boards.
EWC had three in double figures, led by Yaiza Paredes with 18 points and Madison Bush-Lewis with 17. Ariadna Martinez tallied 14 points.
WNCC will have a couple days off before they head to Cheyenne for the LCCC Thanksgiving Classic where they will play Central Wyoming College on Friday and Laramie County Community College on Saturday.
EWC, dropped to 4-6 and will be back in action Friday and Saturday at Gillette, Wyoming, for a tourney where they will face Miles on Friday and Lake Region State College on Saturday.
Davis said he is just proud of how the team bounced back from falling in overtime in back-to-back games.
"I'm just proud of the bounce back," Davis said. "We fought. We were down eight with four minutes yesterday (Monday night) and I told them that even though we lost (against Miles), the fight was good and we need that fight through the whole game. This win is a big kind of statement kind of thing. If you can't bounce back after last night and show you'll fight, then we're in trouble and they did a great job."
EWC 14 14 11 20 – 59
WNCC 19 17 17 22 – 75
EWC
Rhia Sagger 4, Madison Bush-Lewis 17, Ariadna Martinez 14, Yaiza Paredes 18, Ilalsaane Davis.
WNCC
Celina Donyo 17, Veralyn Aviles 3, Charisma Johnson 17, Zozefine Sipolina 6, Ella Chesta-Carty 12, Dunja Sipolina 6, Juseana-Rae Delatori 13, Aniaya Burton-Herandez 2, Brynn Sybrant 2.
Celina Donyo 17, Veralyn Aviles 3, Charisma Johnson 17, Zozefine Sipolina 6, Ella Chesta-Carty 12, Dunja Sipolina 6, Juseana-Rae Delatori 13, Aniaya Burton-Herandez 2, Brynn Sybrant 2.