Bulldogs battle to end in Wyoming

CASPER, Wyo. — Mississippi Gulf Coast's first trip to the national stage in a long time ended in disappointment here Wednesday afternoon, but this final game is more of a first step for the Bulldogs program.

Gulf Coast lost 73-64 to Three Rivers, which was ranked 13^th in the final regular-season poll. The Bulldogs battled to the end and made a late run, but their legacy had already been cemented.

"I told them in the locker room, that y'all are MACCC champions, y'all are Region 23 champions," Gulf Coast coach Hope Adams said. They have set the standard for what this program will be in the future. We hadn't won a region championship in 47 years. We hadn't been at this stage in a long time, but we got here. Coach (Carla) Bartee and I are going back to the drawing board, and we're going to make sure we get back here next. And we want to win here."

The 22^nd-seed Bulldogs wrap up the season 23-5. Three Rivers, seeded 11^th, is 28-4 and will play six-seed Shelton State on Thursday.

Gulf Coast trailed 39-23 at halftime, but they ripped off a 9-1 run midway through the third quarter. Ja'Sharreah Hunt (So., Roxie/Franklin County) scored an and-1 to make it 48-40, and Je'Mya Evans (So., Gulfport/Harrison Central) had a putback at 3:22 to get it to 49-41.

Three Rivers pushed it back out to 14 by the end of the quarter, though. The Raiders lead got to 19 with six minutes left, but the Bulldogs ripped off a 15-4 run to get it down to eight with 1:57 left.

Evans just missed a double-double with 21 points and nine rebounds. Simaru Fields (So., Pass Christian/Gulfport) had 17 points, and Tytiana Buckley (So., Meridian/Meridian) added 13 points. Hunt finished with nine, all in the second half.

That group led Gulf Coast to its first MACCC title since 2000 and first region championship since 1977.

"I'm super proud of all these sophomores," Adams said. "They're going to be really hard to replace. I can't thank them enough for what they've done for this program." 

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