By: Dana Becker
Messenger Sports Staff
The Iowa Central women put together a memorable send-off for five sophomores here Wednesday night, running past Southeastern, 90-60.
Prior to tip, the Tritons honored Emily Theiss, Kaitlyn Tendal, Laney Pilcher, Alyssa Lux and Mia Danielson inside Hodges Fieldhouse, as all five will graduate later this year.
Pilcher scored a game-high 20 points with Tendal adding 14, Theiss 13, Danielson 11 and Lux nine.
"The motto of our program is, 'Write The Next Chapter,'" ICCC head coach Sabah Dickerson said. "All season long, we've been writing our chapter together and we are so incredibly proud of our sophomore class.
"Emily and Kait were huge additions to our program last season and they had big roles as our only returners. We cannot say thank you for all of the positives they did to impact our program.
"Alyssa, Mia and Laney are graduating due to credit hours. Those three had a role this season and each shined brightly throughout the course of the season."
Former Fort Dodge Senior High standout Lainey Maehl added eight points and a pair of rebounds in the win, which was the second straight and moved Iowa Central's (20-8 overall, 12-8 in ICCAC) home record to 10-4 on the year.
Up next for the Tritons will be the Region XI-A Tournament in Boone this Saturday. Iowa Central takes on Des Moines Area (20-10, 15-5) at 1 p.m., with the winner facing either second-ranked Kirkwood or Ellsworth on Monday.
The Tritons were once again nearly perfect from the free throw line, going 17-for-19. They remain No. 1 in the country at nearly 81 percent as a team.
"We are thrilled that they get to finish their home schedule with a win," Dickerson said, "and we are looking forward to following them as they move on to their four-year programs."
Iowa Central finished the month of February with a record of 5-2 overall and are 11-5 since the start of 2024.
For Southeastern (8-19, 5-15), Naire Lucas scored 22 and Princess Ibeh had 17.
The 90 points were the most scored by the Tritons this year since putting up 91 in a road win over Southeastern last month. They have scored at least 80 points six times this year.
During the regular season, DMACC won both meetings, 80-66 and 81-69.