MENOMONIE Wis. – The Yellowjacket women's basketball team enjoyed the NCAA selection show Monday, learning where they would be heading in the program's first NCAA tournament appearance since 2018.
 
It wasn't a long trip for the Yellowjackets, who were placed in the regional hosted by former Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) UW-Stout. The opponent, however, was not a team the Yellowjackets met earlier in the season. In fact, the opponent wasn't even a team from eh same time zone.
 
When the selections were done, the Yellowjackets were paired in the bracket with Whitman College. Whitman, out of Walla Walla, Washington, was a formidable test for the Yellowjackets Friday. The Blues, who came into the game at 26-1 on the year, were the No. 7-ranked team in NCAA Division III, meaning the Yellowjackets were facing their toughest competition of the campaign and would have to have their best effort to advance to the second round.
 
The Yellowjackets fell behind early and were unable to overcome the deficit, falling to Whitman 77-54 at Johnson Fieldhouse.
 
In the first quarter the Yellowjackets fell behind by 10, fueled by eight turnovers, compared to just one for Whitman, and trailed 20-10 at the end of the frame. They found themselves down 24 at the half before cutting into the lead, outscoring Whitman 19-14 in the third quarter.
 
Chloe Peterson (Hutchinson, Minn./Hutchinson) led the Yellowjackets Friday, scoring 15 points in just 18 minutes off the bench. She was 3-of-8 from the field but an impressive 9-of-11from the free throw line. Charlotte Ferstl (Plain, Wis./River Valley) was also strong in her first NCAA tournament game, scoring 12 points on 6-of-9 shooting to go along with a team-high six rebounds.
 
Game Notes

• Whitman led from start to finish, scoring just 19 seconds in and never trailing.
• It took 2:06 for the Yellowjackets to get on the board, and that came in the form of a layup by MyKenzie Leccia (Somerset, Wis./Somerset).
• The Yellowjackets had eight turnovers in the first quarter compared to just one turnover for Whitman.
• Ferstl opened the second quarter scoring with a jumper, and Katie Dobson (Black River Falls, Wis./Black River Falls) hit a three, and less than a minute into the quarter the Yellowjackets cut the Whitman lead in half, to 20-15. Whitman answered with an 18-2 run to go up 38-17. The Yellowjackets were down 46-22 at the half.
• Whitman scored the first three points of the second half before Elise Besonen (Ewen, Mich./Ewen-Trout Creek) answered with a three in the first minute. The bucket was the first of the game for the Yellowjackets' top scorer.
• A layup by Peterson with 4:32 left in the third quarter, getting the Yellowjackets to within 16, 53-37, but that's as close as they would get the rest of the way.
• Elsa Olson (Cottage Grove, Minn./Park) also hit double figures for the Yellowjackets, finishing with 11 points on 50 percent shooting.
• Whitman held Besonen at bay. The three she made early in the third quarter was her only basket of the day. She finished 1-of-8 shooting.
• The Yellowjackets had 13 different players appear in the game and eight different players score.

The Yellowjackets finish the season with a record of 17-11.
  Read Full Article