DULUTH, Minn. (
csssaints.com) – The St. Scholastica women's basketball team heads to the University of Northwestern (Minn.) on Monday for the first round of the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) Tournament.
Where:
Ericksen Center – St. Paul, Minn.
When:
Monday at 7:30 p.m.
Live Video: https://portal.stretchinternet.com/unw/
Live Stats: http://unweagles.com/sports/2012/11/7/gen_1107121456.aspx
Social Media:
Twitter:
www.twitter.com/CSSWBBall
Instagram:
www.instagram.com/csssaints
Facebook:
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St. Scholastica Saints
Stats
Record: 14-11, 9-7 UMAC
Upper Midwest Athletic Conference: Standings | Stats
What You Need to Know about the Saints:
-The Saints wrapped up the regular season with a pair of wins over Northland College and Crown College last week.
-They have won four of their last five games.
-The 14 wins are the most since the 2014-15 season.
-That was also the last time the Saints made the UMAC Tournament.
-CSS has not won a postseason game since capturing the UMAC Tournament championship as the No. 4 seed in the 2012-13 season.
-Senior
Emelia Miner (Hutchinson, Minn./Hutchinson HS) has scored 10 points in each of the last two games.
-She had gone scoreless each of the previous five games.
-The Saints are led by juniors
Rashonna Thomas (Minneapolis, Minn./Columbia Heights HS (Anoka-Ramsey CC)) and
Michala Walther (Roseville, Minn./Concordia Academy).
-Thomas averages a team-best 10.9 points per game.
-In league play, Thomas averaged 2.0 3-point field goals per game, third-most in the conference.
-Walther currently sits on 800 career points, which tied for 20
th on the program's career scoring list.
-Walther has scored at least 200 points in each of her first three seasons.
-Senior
Holly VanKempen (Elbow Lake, Minn./West Central HS) led the conference with 39 blocked shots in league play.
-With two more blocks she can become only the second player in program history to record at least 50 blocks in a season.
-VanKempen is the only Saint to have played meaningful minutes in a postseason game.
What You Need to Know about Northwestern:
-The Eagles enter the tournament with a 13-12 overall record.
-They finished 9-7 in league play just like the Saints, but owned the tiebreaker by defeating Bethany Lutheran College.
-Northwestern finished 2-4 in its final six games, but one of those two wins was over the Saints at the Ericksen Center.
-The Eagles are 9-4 at home this season.
-UNW has the best scoring defense in the UMAC allowing only 54.6 points per game.
-Opponents shoot a league-low 34 percent against Northwestern.
-The Eagles lead the UMAC with 118 block shots.
-The Eagles average a league-low 9.2 offensive rebounds per game.
-Amy Berglund leads the team in scoring at 15.8 points per game.
-Berglund also averages a team-best 6.8 rebounds per game.
-She did not play against the Saints eight days ago in St. Paul.
-Andrea Zimpel is second in the conference with a 1.4 assist-to-turnover ratio.
-Taryn Tumbleson averaged 12.3 points per game in league play.
-Tumbleson leads the team with 35 blocked shots.
Series Record: CSS leads 44-40
(Last Meeting: 53-47 UNW – 2/10/2018)
Series History: The teams split the regular season series with each team winning on its home court … This will be the first postseason meeting between the two programs at Northwestern since 2001 when the Eagles won 53-52 … The last time the two teams met in the postseason was in 2014, when the Eagles defeated the Saints at The Reif … CSS is 5-4 in the postseason against the Eagles.
Looking Ahead: The winner of Monday's game advances to play top-seed University of Wisconsin-Superior on Wednesday in the UMAC Tournament semifinals.
