(Joplin, MO) The Pima Community College women’s basketball team is advancing to its first NJCAA Division II National Championship game since 2011.
The No. 6 seeded Aztecs secured their second upset of the tournament, downing No. 2 seed Baltimore CCBC Essex 115-112 in overtime. The Aztecs snapped the Knights’ 15-game winning streak; their third straight win over an opponent with a double digit win streak.
This was the third straight year the Aztecs and the Knights have met in the national tournament. CCBC Essex had won the previous two meetings; 89-75 in the Quarterfinals in 2023 and 80-74 in the Second Round in 2024.
The Knights led 93-90 and hit a three-pointer and a pair of free throws to take a 98-90 advantage with 1:05 left. CCBC Essex missed a pair of free throws and sophomore Mattanaya Vital (Amphitheater HS) hit a three-pointer and was fouled on the other end. She converted on the four-point play to cut the deficit to three points with 39.3 seconds left. The Knights turned the ball over and freshman Kiley Sours-Miller scored in the paint to cut it to 98-97. The Knights made one of two foul shots and Sours-Miller scored under the basket to tie the game with 2.8 seconds left to force overtime.
Sophomore Kennedi Niemann got the Aztecs off to a hot start in the extra frame as she scored the first points after grabbing an offensive rebound and drained a three-pointer to make it 104-99 with 3:36 left.
The Knights cut it to 106-104 but the Aztecs countered when sophomore Rori Hoffmeyer (Cibola HS) scored in the paint with an assist from Vital. The Knights cut it again to a two-point lead, but Hoffmeyer responded on the next possession with a score.
Niemann helped close the game out as she collected a steal and scored off an assist from Vital to make it 112-106 with 26.0 seconds left. Niemann made two more free throws capping off a nine-point overtime period.
“Ken has been so consistent throughout this tournament,” Sours-Miller said. “I talked to her after Regionals and said ‘this is when it counts, we’re not done yet.’ She has stepped up. It makes me mad that she didn’t get (ACCAC) Defensive Player of the Year. This is nothing new. Her 17 point-average (16.7 points in three games) is a big deal for us. We wouldn’t be where we’re at without her.”
The game featured 13 ties and 14 lead changes.
Sours-Miller finished with a team-high 31 points on 14 for 23 shooting to go with nine rebounds while sophomore Rori Hoffmeyer scored 23 points on 11 for 17 shooting with nine rebounds.
Vital closed out the game with 18 points, seven assists and three rebounds as she went 4 for 10 from beyond the arc.
Niemann posted 17 points and was 3 for 7 from three-point range to go with five rebounds and two assists.
Sophomore Amelie Buffill-Gutierrez (Sabino HS) provided a spark off the bench with 13 points, going 5 for 8 from the field and seven assists.
“I had to show up in a game like this because people were counting on me,” Buffill-Gutierrez said. “You could tell during shootaround, everyone was trying their hardest and it rubbed off on me to do what I know I could do. (Gissel Gamble) was tough and we knew she was going to score. I was trying my hardest to stop her. She was cooking me, but we were able to stop her when it counted.” Gamble scored a game-high 53 points for the Knights.
Freshman Melicia Nelson (Window Rock HS) fell short of a triple-double with nine points, 10 rebounds and 13 assists.
The Aztecs will play No. 4 seeded Johnson County Community College (Kansas) for the NJCAA Division II National Championship on Saturday at the Leggett & Platt Athletic Center in Joplin, MO. Tipoff is set for 7:00 p.m. (CT); 5:00 p.m.(Tucson time).
“We still have 40 minutes. We still have to play our hardest and be locked in,” Sours-Miller said. “As soon as the locker room celebration was over, we were prepping to play Johnson County.”
Press Release courtesy of Pima Aztec Athletics – Raymond Suarez
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