Estherville, Iowa

A late arrival, both to the arena and for the Reivers' offense nearly overwhelmed the visiting team Wednesday night against Iowa Lakes.

IWCC (8-2, 8-1) chased Iowa Lakes (4-5, 4-5) for much of the first half before rallying late on a triple by Arielle McElroy to tie the game at 29.

Lakes would rebound to take a four-point halftime lead which would grow to nine by the time the Reivers began their comeback.

"I was really proud of how we jumped off the bus and dealt with tough circumstances on the road." Said Head Coach Lindsey Vande Hoef, "We didn't shoot very well but we found a way to have the BEST minutes at the end of the game."

Gabriella Smith started the comeback with a free-throw before Isnelle Natabou blocked a shot and then scored four straight points to cut the deficit to five.

'Western' would finally break free when Hayley Berfield knocked down a go-ahead three midway through the fourth quarter to give the Reivers a 63-61 lead.

The Lakers would manage just two field goals the last 5:19 of the contest, the final bucket with 3:08 left to go, a jumper by Rachel Breck that tied the game at 65.

Ruba Abo Hashesh would put the Reivers ahead for good on a layup 30-seconds later and McElroy's free-throw gave the Reivers their final margin of victory, 68-65.

"We had some big rebounds by Dustie Obah that helped give us the momentum to finish that game." Added Vande Hoef, "We have a ton of depth and plenty of players able to step up and contribute.  It wasn't easy but we showed some toughness to battle and found a will to win."

The Reivers' next games come on Saturday at 1:00 pm, when DMACC visits Reiver Arena.

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