By Brett Brown

For The Observer

The Northwest Mississippi Community College Lady Rangers had to wait until the final night of the regular season, but it was worth the wait as they celebrated the program's first MACJC north division championship since 2001 with an 85-66 victory against the Holmes Lady Bulldogs on Feb. 18 in Goodman.

Northwest improved to 13-6 and 10-2 in the division.  The Lady Rangers head into the MACJC State Tournament as the top seed from the north and will play East Central, the south number four seed from the south on Tuesday, Feb. 23, at 2 p.m. Northwest is seeking its first state title since the 1996 season.

Northwest finished one game above Itawamba in the final north standings which posted a division record of 9-3. Mississippi Delta and East Mississippi placed third and fourth, respectively, in the north with identical 8-4 records.

The Lady Rangers harassed Holmes all night with their full-court pressure defense. The Lady Bulldogs committed 14 of their 21 total turnovers in the first half which helped Northwest build a 45-33 advantage at the break.

The Lady Rangers opened the second half with a 15-7 run and claimed a 60-45 lead with just over 10 minutes remaining to gain the win.

Sophomore guard De'Kisha Fondon of Water Valley led Northwest with 18 points and six rebounds, while freshman guard Sandricka Bowen of Ashland added 13 points. Lady Ranger sophomore forward Hope Adams of Oxford added 12 points, while sophomore guard Tamara Wadlington scored 10.  The Batesville duo of Sabrina Townsend and Shayla McKinney chipped in with nine points each. McKinney and Kortny Tucker of Holly Springs led Northwest with seven rebounds each.