Mankato, Minn. --- The Minnesota State women's basketball team returns to Taylor Center this weekend, as it will play host to Wayne State and Augustana. The Mavericks will square off with the WSC on Friday at 6:00 p.m., before they take on Augie on Saturday at 4:00 p.m.
From Last Week: MSU began the New Year with a road trip to St. Cloud State and Minnesota Duluth and was able to split the pair of road games last weekend. The Mavericks first took on SCSU and fell to the Huskies 62-57. MSU struggled to find its shot from the beyond the arc the whole game, as the Mavericks connected on 2-of-18 of their attempts. Turnovers also hampered the Mavericks in the loss, as they coughed the ball up 17 times, which turned into 18 points off turnovers for the Huskies.
Sophomore forward Claire Ziegler [Mankato, Minn.] led MSU in scoring with 18 points, as she shot 8-of-12 from the field. Ziegler also pulled down nine rebounds, as did senior center McKenzie Hoelmenn [Lakeville, Minn.] who tallied 12 points as well. Sophomore Logan Anderson [Clear Lake, Iowa] and junior Karina Schroeder [Lake Crystal, Minn.] gave the Mavericks a spark off the bench, as Anderson added eight points, including two three-pointers, while Schroeder tallied seven rebounds, five points and three assists.
The Mavericks rebounded nicely the next day as they defeated the Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs, 71-67. The game saw 13 lead changes and six ties, as the Mavericks' largest lead in the game was seven, 20-13, at the 5:40 mark in the second quarter, while the Bulldogs largest lead was at the 7:57 mark in the first quarter with a four point lead, 4-0.
Heading into the fourth quarter, UMD was leading 52-51 over MSU and the Mavericks quickly retook the lead, 54-52, after a made jumper from junior Sammie Delzotto [Eagan, Minn.] at the 8:20 mark. The Bulldogs were never able to retake the lead in the game, as MSU continued to build its lead up to five, 68-63, with 1:27 left to play. However, UMD did make things interesting, as it scored the next four points in the quarter to cut MSU's lead to 68-67 with 14 seconds left in the game. After a time out by the Bulldogs, Delzotto went to the free-throw line and sunk both of her shots to give MSU a 70-67 lead with 13 seconds left to play. MSU was able to hold off for the win, as UMD missed a game tying three-pointer with less than 10 seconds left to play.
Freshman Taylor Paulsrud [Rogers, Minn.] had a great showing in the road win, as she led the Mavericks in scoring with a new career-high of 17 points, including a 3-of-4 showing from beyond the arc. Junior Karina Schroeder also set a new career-high in the road win with 12 points and fell just shy of recording a double-double with nine rebounds, along with a team-high two blocks.
Junior point guard Britney Scherber [Bloomington, Minn.] added 14 points of her own for the Mavericks, along with five rebounds, three assists and two steals. Delzotto and Claire Ziegler each collected eight points, as Delzotto scored seven of her eight points in the fourth quarter alone. Ziegler grabbed seven rebounds and three steals as well.
Concerning Wayne State: The Wildcats own a 7-6 overall record and a 4-4 NSIC record, after defeating Southwest Minnesota State and Sioux Falls this past weekend in Wayne, Neb. WSC in coached by Chris Kielsmeier who is in his eighth season at the helm.
Friday's contest will mark as the 21st all-time meeting between the Mavericks and Wildcats. MSU owns a 6-14 all-time record against WSC, as the Wildcats took down the Mavericks, 89-70, in Wayne, Neb., earlier this season. In the game, MSU turnover the ball over 25 times and WSC was able to take advantage of it, as it scored 31 points off turnovers. The Wildcats were also able to get to the free-throw line more often than the Mavericks, as WSC shot 23-of-32 from the charity stripe, while MSU connected on 12-of-23 of its attempts.
Claire Ziegler led MSU with 14 points, five rebounds, two blocks and two steals in the game, while Britney Scherber and McKenzie Hoelmenn each added 12 points in the loss. Hoelmenn also added a team-high seven boards, while Karina Schroeder also finished in double-digits with 11 points, along with six rebounds and two steals. Sammie Delzotto also added a team-high six assists.
So far this season, WSC owns the second best field-goal percentage in the NSIC with 43% and average 74 points a game which ranks sixth best in the conference. Opponents are shooting 38% on the Wildcats and are averaging 65 points a game on them. The Wildcats rank third in the NSIC from beyond the arc with a 34% three-point percentage and sit 13th in the NSIC in free-throw percentage with 69%.
WSC ranks fourth in the NSIC rebounds per game with 42 and own a +3.8 rebounding margin. The Wildcats turn the ball over 17 times a game and hold a -0.69 turnover margin. WSC ranks as the third best shot blocking team in the NSIC with 5.1 a game and the Wildcats also find their hands in the passing lanes quite often as they average 10 steals a game which ranks second in the NSIC.
Sophomore forward Paige Ballinger leads WSC this season in scoring with 16.2 points per game, which is fourth best in the NSIC. Ballinger also leads the Wildcats in rebounding with 7.2 per game, total blocks with 22 and field-goal percentage. Ballinger currently owns the third best field-goal percentage in the NSIC with a 52%. Sophomore forward Maggie Schulte is also averaging double-figures with 14.8 points a game which places her seventh in the NSIC. The reigning South Division Player of the Week also averages 6.1 rebounds, a 47% field-goal percentage and is shooting 89% from the charity stripe which is third best in the NSIC. Senior point guard Sadie Murren is tied for a NSIC best 5.3 assists a game and leads the team with 30.6 minutes a game.
Concerning Augustana: The Vikings enter the week with an 11-3 overall record and a 5-3 record in NSIC play after winning three of their last four games. Augie is coached by Dave Krauth who is currently in his 27th season at the school.
Saturday's matchup will mark as the 71st all-time meeting between the Mavericks and Vikings. MSU owns a 28-42 all-time record against AU. Earlier this season the Vikings defeated the Mavericks, 96-93, in a double overtime thriller in Sioux Falls, S.D. The game saw 14 lead changes and 14 ties, as both teams combined to take 69 three-point attempts and make 27 of them in the high scoring affair.
Britney Scherber tallied 26 points and a new career-high 11 assists in the loss, while McKenzie Hoelmenn and Claire Ziegler each collected double-doubles. Hoelmenn tallied 11 points and 14 rebounds, along with four blocks and three steals, while Ziegler added 10 points, 12 rebounds and four assists. Sophomore Claire Jordan [Green Bay, Wis.] also set a new career-high in the game with 12 points, while Sammie Delzotto did a little bit of everything in the game as she finished with six points, seven rebounds, three assists and three steals.
The Vikings this season are averaging 75 points a game which ranks second in the NSIC and are shooting 38% from the field which is 13th best in the conference. Augie holds its opponents to 62 points a game and own the third best field-goal percentage defense in the NSIC with 35%. From beyond the arc, Augie is shooting 29%, while its opponents are shooting slightly worse with 28%. The Vikings are also shooting 75% from the charity stripe which ranks fifth best in the NSIC.
Augustana ranks as the best rebounding team in the NSIC with 45 boards a game and holds a +2.1 rebounding margin, which places it 10th in the NSIC. The Vikings also own a +7.07 turnover margin which is a NSIC best, as they average a conference best 12 steals a game. Lastly, Augie also leads the NSIC in blocks per game with 6.36 and rank second in the NSIC in assists per game with 16.
The Vikings have six players averaging seven points or more this season, which is led by senior Nicole Kerkoff, who is averaging 10.9 points and 6.7 rebounds a game. Kerkoff also leads the Vikings with an 82% free-throw percentage. Senior guard Sophie Kenney is averaging 10.6 points and 4.3 assists a game. Kenney ranks third in the NSIC in assists per game and owns the second best assist/turnover ratio in the conference with +3.0. Sophomore guard Logan O'Farrell also averages double-figures with 10.2 points a pop, along with 6.7 rebounds and 39 total steals on the year, which tops the NSIC. Junior guard Sydney Rome is averaging 9.3 points a game and leads the team with 28 made three-pointers this season. Rounding out the bunch is freshman Lynsey Prosser who is averaging 7.4 points a game, while sophomore center Paige Peterson puts up 7.1 points and 5.6 rebounds a game.
Coming Thru the Clutch: In MSU's 71-67 road win over UMD, Sammie Delzotto scored seven of her eight points in the fourth quarter, including a pair of made free throws to give the Mavericks a 70-67 lead with 13 seconds left in the ball game.
Leading Scorers: Through 11 games, the Mavericks have four players averaging 10 points or more in junior Britney Scherber and sophomore Claire Ziegler. Scherber leads the team with 14.4 points a contest and ranks 10th in the NSIC in scoring. Ziegler is averaging 12.1 points a game and has tallied double-figures in eight games this season.
Rebounding Attack: Three Mavericks are averaging five or more rebounds a contest through 11 games this season. Sophomore Claire Ziegler leads the team with 8.2 rebounds a game and ranks fifth in the NSIC. Senior McKenzie Hoelmenn sits second on the team with 8.1 rebounds each game, which places her sixth in the NSIC. Rounding out the trio is junior Karina Schroeder [Lake Crystal, Minn.] as she is averaging 6.8 per contest and ranks 15th in the NSIC.
