MOORHEAD, Minn. – UW-River Falls closed its season Friday night with an 81-84 overtime loss to Ripon in the opening round of the NCAA Division III Women's Basketball Tournament at Memorial Auditorium in Moorhead, Minn. The back-and-forth matchup featured eight ties and 12 lead changes as the Falcons battled on the national stage.
River Falls weathered an early deficit, eventually settling into rhythm offensively, shooting over 51 percent from the floor while getting steady production across the entire lineup. The Falcons chipped away in the third quarter and saved their strongest stretch for the fourth, scoring 27 points to pull even late and extend their postseason into overtime against the Red Hawks.
Zoey Buchan delivered in the biggest moments, as the senior guard has done for the entirety of the season. The senior guard drilled a step-back three while drawing contact for an and-one and the lead with three minutes left in the contest. Buchan was then fouled again from beyond the arc with 12 seconds remaining and calmly sank all three free throws to tie the game and force overtime. Buchan finished with a team-high 20 points, hit three shots from deep, and went a perfect 9-for-9 at the line.
Emily Anderson turned in another effective performance with 15 points on a perfect 6-for-6 shooting night and added the Falcons' final basket at the buzzer in overtime. Savannah Leopold matched Anderson with 15 points, knocking down two three-pointers and grabbing key rebounds late, while Jocelyn Plonski added 13 points and provided a strong interior presence on both ends. The Falcons' bench contributed 25 points to help swing momentum throughout the game.
Overtime remained tight, with both teams trading scores before Ripon capitalized at the free-throw line, hitting eight in the final five minutes of play to secure the victory.
The game marked the end of a resilient season for the Falcons. This season, UWRF hosted a WIAC Tournament game for the first time since 2017, earned an at-large berth to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2016, and finished the year ranked No. 25 in the final D3hoops.com poll.
