Mankato, Minn. - The Minnesota State women's basketball team will open up conference play on the road this weekend, as it will travel to Augustana and Wayne State. MSU will take on Augie at 6:00 p.m., on Friday, and WSC on Saturday, at 4:00 p.m.

First Win: The Mavericks earned their first win of the season over #16 Michigan Tech, 77-73, last Saturday at Taylor Center. MSU won in come-from-behind action as it was down 42-30 to MTU at halftime. The Mavericks came out of the break and quickly turned things around in the third quarter as they outscored the Huskies 25-12 to give them a 55-54 lead heading into the fourth quarter.

In the fourth quarter it was a back and forth from both teams as no team had a lead bigger than four points in the quarter. At the 2:54 mark, MSU and MTU were all tied up at 68-68, before the Huskies managed to go on a small 5-1 run to give MTU a 73-69 advantage with 2:06 left in regulation. 

After an MSU timeout, the Mavericks responded with a 5-0 run of their own to give MSU the lead once again at 74-73 with 1:06 left in the game. The Huskies never regained the lead from that point on as MSU won the contest 77-73.

The Mavericks finished the game shooting a 41% from the field, while the Huskies ended the game with a 48% field goal percentage, including 11 (11-21) made three pointers.

MSU owned the boards in the game as they outrebounded the Huskies 39-29 in the game and 21-10 in the second half alone. MSU finished with a 18-2 advantage in the second chance points and also posted a big advantage from the free-throw line. The Mavericks shot 25-of-34 from the line, while the Huskies went to the charity stripe only six times in the game.

Junior Britney Scherber posted a team-high 24 points in the upset win, including 18 second half points. The Bloomington, Minn., native also connected on 3-of-3 three-point attempts. Sophomore Claire Ziegler [Mankato, Minn.] set a new career-high 14 points along with seven rebounds in the win. Junior Sammie Delzotto [Eagan, Minn.] added 10 points and three steals, while sophomore Claire Jordann [Green Bay, Wis.] recorded career-high's with 10 points and six rebounds off the bench.

Concerning Augustana: The Vikings sit with a 5-1 overall record and a 0-1 record in NSIC play after a 70-58 loss to Wayne State earlier this season. Augie is coached by Dave Krauth who is currently in his 27th season at the school. During his tenure at Augustana, Krauth has racked up 535-239 overall record with Vikings. 

Friday's meeting will mark as the 70th all-time meeting between MSU and AU. The Mavericks own a 28-41 all-time record against the Vikings and have won the last three meetings in the series. MSU defeated the AU twice last season, as the Mavericks defeated the Vikings in the first meeting at Taylor Center, 92-80, before taking down the Vikings again later on in the season in Sioux Falls, S.D., 74-71.

Through six games, Augie is averaging 78 points a game which ranks fourth in the NSIC and is giving up 57 points a contest which is fifth best in the conference. AU is shooting 39% from the field and is holding its opponents to 33% which ranks third in the NSIC.

Also the Vikings currently sit atop the NSIC in turnover margin (+9.17), blocked shots per game (5.83 bpg), steals per game (13.33 spg) and three-point field goal percentage defense (19%).

Augie currently has seven players averaging seven points or more a game this season. Senior Nicole Kerkhoff leads the pack with 11.8 points a contest and sits second on the team with 6.7 boards a game. Senior Sophie Kenny ranks second on the team averaging 9.3 points a game and leads the Vikings with 3.2 assists and 25.3 minutes each game.

Sophomore Logan O'Farrell is also averaging 9.0 points a contest, while owning a team-leading 2.5 steals a game. Sophomore Paige Peterson is averaging 7.0 points and is grabbing a team best 7.3 rebounds each ball game.

Concerning Wayne State: The Wildcats enter the week with a 4-2 overall record and a 1-0 NSIC record, with their two losses coming against Rockhurst and Nebraska-Kearney. WSC is coached by Chris Kielsmeier who is in his eighth season at the helm.

Saturday's matchup will be the 20th all-time meeting between MSU and WSC, as the Mavericks sit with a 6-13 all-time record versus the Wildcats. Last season the teams met up twice and split the season series as each team won on its home court. The Mavericks defeated the Wildcats in the first meeting at Taylor Center, 72-65, before MSU fell to WSC later on in the season, 62-46, in Wayne, Neb.

The Wildcats are averaging 76 points a game and are holding their opponents to 61 points a contest. WSC is the second best rebounding team in the NSIC so far this season, as they are averaging 45.2 boards a game. The Wildcats also own the third best shooting percentage in the conference with 45% and their opponents are shooting 34% from the field which ranks as fourth best in the NSIC. WSC also dishes out 13.8 assists and turn the ball over 18 times a game.

The Wildcats are led by sophomore Paige Ballinger who is averaging a team-leading 18.8 points and 7.2 rebounds a game. Ballinger ranks third in the NSIC in scoring and leads the NSIC in field-goal percentage with 63% (41-65). 

WSC has one other player averaging double-figures in Maggie Schulte with 13.8 points and 6.8 rebounds a game. Schulte also leads the team with a 95% (21-22) free-throw percentage which is second best in the NSIC. Junior Haley Moore is averaging 8.2 points a game and leads the team with 10 (10-22) made three-pointers, while senior point guard Sadie Murren leads the Wildcats this season with 22 assists and 12 steals.
 
Leading Scorers: Through four games, the Mavericks have three players averaging 10 points or more in junior Britney Scherber and sophomore's Madison Lee [Coon Rapids, Minn.] and Claire Ziegler. Scherber tops the trio with 10.5 points game, while Lee falls right behind with 10.3 points and Ziegler averaging 10 points a game.

Rebounding Attack: Three Mavericks are averaging five or more rebounds a contest through four games this season. Sophomore Claire Ziegler and senior McKenzie Hoelmenn [Lakeville, Minn.] are each averaging 7.5 boards a game which places them in the top-ten of the NSIC. Rounding out the trio is junior transfer Karina Schroeder [Lake Crystal, Minn.] is averaging 5.5 rebounds a pop.

From the Charity Stripe: Senior McKenzie Hoelmenn leads MSU in free-throw percentage with 84% (16-19) this season, which places her seventh in the NSIC.