Lady Pilots advance after claiming Midwest Regional Championship

After their quality of work during the regular season, the Lady Pilots earned an at-large bid into the NCCAA Tournament. The first round of the tournament is played at team sites and Bethel hosted the Grace Lancers last Friday for the Midwest Regional Championship. The Lady Pilots battled hard all game and captured a 66-62 victory. The game got off to a slow start and was a struggle for both teams as the Lancers led at the half 25-21. During the first half, the Lady Pilots shot just 1-13 behind the arc and 25 percent from the field. Nevertheless, Bethel was able to recover a 12 point Grace lead. After the Pilots surrendered their five point lead with two minutes remaining in regulation, they were able to redeem themselves by outplaying the Lancers by a score of 10-6 in overtime. Heather Seyfred played extremely well in her last game ever at Bethel with 21 points. Mandy Yoder also played well as she chipped in 13 points, seven rebounds, and three assists. Bekah Basinger also added ten points to the effort. Sarah Clark was a significant lift off the bench as she scored ten points and grabbed seven boards in less than 22 minutes of playing time. Following the game all-NCCAA selections were released. Seyfred was rewarded with a first-team selection, Yoder made second-team, and Basinger claimed honorable mention. The Lady Pilots will now continue their quest to defend their title as they travel to Grace next week to face their next opponent.