Warriors in title game

by From staff and wire service
| March 21, 2017 1:00 AM

BILLINGS, Mont. — Former Post Falls High standout Brooke Litalien scored 13 points and had three assists and the Lewis-Clark Warriors built an early lead and finished strong for a 65-41 win Monday night over the Vanguard Lions of Costa Mesa, Calif., in a semifinal game of the NAIA tournament at Rimrock Auto Arena.

Caelyn Orlandi, a former Coeur d’Alene High standout, dished out 12 assists and scored three points.

Lewis-Clark State was the No. 4-ranked team in the most recent NAIA coaches’ poll, with Vanguard coming in at No. 5.

Another former Coeur d’Alene Viking, Brittany Tackett, added 10 points for the Warriors, who advance to the championship against Oklahoma City, which beat Campbellsville (Ky.) 87-78 on Monday night.

Jossilyn Blackman added 12 points for Lewis-Clark, which scored 12 points off turnovers and 30 points came from players off the bench.

After the break, the Warriors (35-1) got hot from beyond the arc, hitting 4-of-7 3-pointers.

Orlandi broke two Lewis-Clark State assists records on Saturday night in a 72-67 win over Westmont.

In addition to scoring 25 points Saturday, Orlandi had 10 assists to tally 236, which broke the LCSC season record, and she now stands at 248 for the season.

Orlandi also eclipsed the career assists mark in that game, and now has 621.

Claire Lamunu had 19 rebounds and 15 points for Vanguard.

LCSC will take on Oklahoma City tonight at 6 p.m. on ESPN3.