THIS WEEKEND
Following an impressive weekend at home, the University of Mary Women's Basketball team hits the road for more intradivisional action against two NSIC South teams January 13-14. The Marauders will play Augustana University Friday at 5:30 pm from the Sanford Pentagon. UMary will then head further south to Nebraska to play Wayne State College Saturday at 3:30 pm.
BRINGING THE JUICE
UMary enters the weekend 8-5 overall while sitting third in the NSIC North with a 7-3 conference record. The Marauders have won four of their past five games, beginning with a 59-54 comeback victory over rivals Minot State on December 17. Also in that stretch included their largest-margin victory on the season in an 84-52 routing of Bemidji State on December 30.
LAST TIME OUT
The Marauders kicked off the 2023 half of the season impressing the hometown crowd with a sweep on January 6th and 7th. Last weekend began with a thrilling matchup against a tough Southwest Minnesota State University. In a game that was up-tempo from beginning to end, the Marauders defeated the Mustangs 89-74, their highest-scoring game of the season thus far.
UMary followed up on Saturday in a close game with the University of Sioux Falls. While the Cougars were perpetually at their heels throughout the first 30 minutes, the Marauders were able to take control in the fourth quarter, winning 71-59.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Megan Zander continued her impressive senior season through last weekend. Helping lead the Marauders with 16 points in Friday's win over SMSU, Zander scored her career-high 25 points in Saturday's victory over Sioux Falls. The senior from Mandan, ND stands out as the no. 6 scorer in the Northern Sun averaging 16.4 points per game (213 total points in 13 games).
Moriku Hakim enters the weekend as the reigning NDPF UMary Female Athlete of the Week. Hakim shined last weekend with a 14-point, six-rebound performance Friday against SMSU. The sophomore from Fargo, ND followed this with a dominating game against Sioux Falls where she scored 12 points, grabbed nine rebounds, and blocked three shots. Hakim averages 9.2 points per game and leads the Marauders with 5.5 rebounds per game.
Entering this year as one of the biggest long-range threats in the Northern Sun, Megan Voit has further cemented her career as the second all-time highest three-point shooter in UMary Women's Basketball history. Voit moved up the record books after sinking her 187th career trey down the stretch against Sioux Falls. The senior from Sauk Rapids, MN averages 9.8 points per game and leads the Marauders with 35 made treys so far this season, a mark which ranks third in the NSIC.
Addison Rozell is coming off a nice weekend. The sophomore from Redfield, SD was a major factor in Friday's win over SMSU with a career-high 16 points, plus seven boards and three blocks. On Saturday, Rozell scored nine points and grabbed four rebounds and two steals in the win over Sioux Falls. Rozell currently averages 8.4 points per game, 4.5 rebounds per game, and 0.7 blocks per game.
Ryleigh Wacha has been a key asset in her sophomore season, starting every game and averaging 7.9 points per game, a team-high 2.9 assists per game, and 5.0 rebounds per game. The Fargo, ND native has been a huge defensive presence, sharing team-highs with Moriku Hakim in blocks per game (0.8) and steals per game (1.2).
Carly Kottsick has been another key starter for the Marauders, averaging 4.5 points per game, 2.7 assists per game, and 1.1 steals per game.
Reese Wishart has been a difference maker off the bench for UMary, appearing in every game and averaging 7.4 points per game.
Julia Fitterer provided two eight-point performances with big scores in each of last weekend's victories.
GETTING AN EDGE
The Marauders have the no. 5 offense in the NSIC, averaging 70.2 points per game. They still hold a winning margin of 5.4 points over their average of 64.8 points allowed per game (no. 11 in the NSIC).
OPPONENT BREAKDOWN - VIKINGS
Augustana University enters Friday 13-3 overall while sitting second in the NSIC South with a 7-3 record in the Northern Sun. Senior Forward Aislinn Duffy has led the Vikings through their impressive start averaging 15.8 points per game (no. 7 in the NSIC) and 7.9 rebounds per game (no. 4 in the NSIC), both team highs. Three other starters average at least double-digit points a game in Lauren Sees (14.1), Michaela Jewett (11.7), and Jennifer Aadland (10.6).
The Vikings currently have the 3rd highest-scoring offense in the NSIC, averaging 76.4 points per game while only allowing opponents to score an average of 61.4 points per game.
Augustana also is the second-highest-scoring team in the Northern Sun from beyond the arc, hitting an average of 8.4 three-pointers per game (134 in 16 games), and as a team shoots 37.2% from downtown.
The Vikings hold a career head-to-head record of 15-2 against the Marauders. The most recent matchup went in favor of Augustana, defeating UMary 83-75 on January 15, 2022, in the MAC. The last three matchups were all close games decided within single digits, a stretch that began with UMary's most recent win over Augustana 68-62 on February 2, 2019.
OPPONENT BREAKDOWN - WILDCATS
Wayne State enters the weekend 9-5 overall while sitting 4th in the NSIC South with a 5-5 record in the Northern Sun. The Wildcats will first play Minot State Friday night riding on a three-game losing streak. Point Guard Lauren Zacharias has had a superb start to her senior season, averaging 17.1 points per game (no. 4 in the NSIC) and sitting second in the NSIC in three-pointers made (39) and three-point shooting percentage (0.419).
Wayne State has the fourth-highest-scoring offense in the NSIC averaging 73.4 points per game. They also have allowed opponents to score an average of 71.3 points per game, ranking no. 15 in the NSIC.
The Wildcats hold a career head-to-head record of 12-5 against the Marauders. However, UMary has won three of the previous four matchups dating back to the 2018-19 season. The most previous meeting came on January 14, 2022, when a shorthanded Marauders squad ground out a 72-60 win in the MAC. Macy Williams led with 15 points, Reese Wishart scored a season-high 14, and Carly Kottsick and Addison Rozell both chipped in 11 points each.
THE STAFF
Rick Neumann enters his tenth season at the helm of UMary Women's Basketball. Through the years, Neumann has enjoyed many successful years as the Marauders fourth-winningest coach in program history with a career record of 155-138. Neumann joined his alma mater as an assistant coach in 2003, taking over the head coaching role in the 2012-2013 season, and has coached numerous All-Conference and All-American players.
Reigning Summit League Player of the Year Chloe Lamb enters her first season as the Marauders assistant coach. Lamb comes to UMary fresh after capping off a historic career at the University of South Dakota where she earned the 2022 Summit League Tournament MVP as the Coyotes won both Summit regular season and tournament titles. She is a four-time All-Summit League selection, earning 1st team honors in her last two seasons at USD.
Phydel Nwanze enters her first season as a Marauders assistant coach and graduate assistant. She played collegiately at St. Edwards University and earned a BA in kinesiology and exercise science.
DIAL INTO 710 AM FOX SPORTS
Listen to "Voice of the Marauders" Jesse Rostvedt call all Marauders Northern Sun games and select conference contests on 710 AM Fox Sports.
LIVE STATS AND WEBCASTS
Links to radio broadcasts, web streams, and live stats are found at www.GoUMary.com/coverage.
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