Women’s basketball starts 5-1 for second straight year
December 11, 2023
Through six games, UWRF women’s basketball is 5-1, mirroring last year’s hot start. The Falcons are coming off a mediocre 2022 season, where they failed to participate in the WIAC tournament. They went 14-11 overall but struggled against teams in the WIAC. River Falls finished 4-10 in the conference and tied with UW-Platteville for the final playoff seed. Platteville participated in the tournament as the #6 seed and the Falcon's season ended bitterly.
Former assistant coach Shelby Lyman stepped into the leading role last season as she served as the Falcon's interim head coach. Though the Falcons missed the WIAC tournament, Lyman helped secure their first winning record since 2017.
In April 2023, Lyman was named the permanent head coach of the women’s basketball program.
In game one this season, River Falls faced the Division I University of St.Thomas. The Falcons trailed by just eight at halftime but struggled in the second half. River Falls fell 62-101. River Falls has a 0-3 record against St. Thomas, losing by over 20 points in all three games.
River Falls has dominated their opponents since losing in game one. They have won by an average of 12.6 points in their five wins.
The Falcons scored a season-high 82 points against Saint Benedict. Despite the potent offense, River Falls won by only seven, representing their closest win of the season.
Zoey Buchan currently leads the Falcons in scoring and scoring average. She has 74 points in six games and is averaging 12.3.
As a freshman last season, Buchan averaged 7.4 points and participated in all twenty-five regular season games.
Macy Nilsen has also been a critical part of the Falcon offense, averaging 11.3 points per game this year.
Last season, Nilsen represented a one-minded Falcon offense. She scored 361 points and averaged 14.4 per game. Right behind her was Kameri Meredith, who had 199 points and averaged 8.0 points per game.
So far this season, Nilsen has carried a smaller load. However, the Falcons are currently averaging 1.3 points more per game than last season.
The Falcons are currently fifth in the conference standings. However, all eight WIAC teams have yet to face each other.
Ten of the Falcon’s 11 losses last season came against WIAC opponents. They will hope to reverse that this season starting on January 3, 2024, when they begin a 14 game stretch against conference opponents.