For the second straight year, the ladies in black and gold were crowed Region XVI champions.
The top-ranked Three Rivers women’s basketball team overcame an early deficit to beat No. 10 Moberly Area 81-73 Saturday night at the Libla Family Sports Complex.
The Raiders (28-0) will be making a return trip to Lubbock, Texas, for the NJCAA National Tournament, which starts March 16.
“We still have some things to work on, but at this point everybody is 0-0," Myia Yelder said. "We'll have to play every game in the national tournament like it's going to be our last because it could very well be our last game."
Despite playing most of the first half from behind and Yelder on the bench in foul trouble, the Raiders were able to mount a comeback sparked by Karlee Holland in order to take the lead before halftime.
"It really came down to the girl on my left and on my right," said Yelder, who was named Region XVI Player of the Year.
"My teammates stepped up tonight and Karlee really pulled us out of that jam in the first half."
Holland dropped all 15 of her points in the first half.
"We've always talked about stepping up and having each others back this year," Holland said. "When Myia was sat down in the first half, tonight was my night to step up."
Yelder was the leading scorer with 20 points despite only playing 25 minutes and change. The sophomore sank 7 of 12 shots from the field and led with five assists.
Joi Montgomery had a double-double with 12 points and 13 rebounds while Autumn Dodd and Jenna McMillen each recorded 10 points. Ari Winston added nine points.
One stat that coach Alex Wiggs was proud of was his team's defensive rebounds while limiting Moberly Area’s offensive boards to only seven. The Raiders finished with a 41-34 rebounding advantage.
"We did a phenomenal job on the defensive glass," Wiggs said. "Everybody talks about our zone defense, but we rebounded so well out of our zone defense and I'm very happy about that."
Three Rivers was off to a slow start as Moberly Area went on an 8-2 run in the first two minutes of play.
Despite playing from behind, the Raiders were able to keep pace with the Greyhounds as Moberly took a 20-14 lead into the second quarter.
Three Rivers started the second with a 9-6 run in the first 3:10 to make it a one-possession game as Moberly Area led 26-23. After the Greyhounds made a bucket on their end, Holland drained a 3-pointer from the corner to put Three Rivers within two.
After both teams traded stops and the Greyhounds missed a couple of free throws, the Raiders once again got the ball to Holland and she was able to deliver from the top of the arc to give Three Rivers their first lead of the game, 29-28, with six minutes until halftime.
“That's what we've done all year long," Wiggs said. "Myia went out in foul trouble, but it did not matter because Karlee stepped up and other peopler were stepping up. It speaks volumes about this team."
The teams traded baskets the rest of the half and the Raiders took a 41-39 lead into the break.
Three Rivers started the second half with a 13-8 run to go up 54-47 in the first five minutes, but Moberly Area was within striking distance as they trailed 63-59 at the end of the third.
The Raiders went on a 12-4 run in the first six minutes of the fourth, punctuated by 3-point buckets from Yelder and Dodd, to give them a double-digit lead, 75-63.
Three Rivers sank 9 of 19 shots from 3-point range with Yelder and McMillen hitting both of their attempts, Dodd sinking 2 of 4 and Holland knocking down 3 of 6.
The Raiders also finished 16 of 25 from the foul line with Holland going 6 for 6.
Three Rivers held on for their fourth win over the Greyhounds this season and their eighth straight since losing the 2020 region final. Both teams advanced to the national tournament last year and Moberly Area could do so again as one of eight at-large bids.
The Raiders will find out Sunday who and when they play in the NJCAA National Tournament with a watch party at 6:30 p.m. that will be open to the public at the Libla Family Sports Complex.
Along with Yelder, Montgomery and Dodd were named first-team all-region while Winston, McMillen and Holland were named to the second team and Wiggs was named Coach of the Year for a second time.