SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – The Augustana women's basketball team continues its road trip with a Friday night contest at Bemidji State and a Saturday game at St. Cloud State. Friday's game with the Beavers is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. while Saturday's game in St. Cloud is slated for 3:30 p.m.
 
Complete action can be followed on GoAugie.com/Live and the GoAugie app, presented by The Original Pancake House. The app can be downloaded in the App Store or Google Play. 

ABOUT THE BEAVERS
Bemidji State is 3-11 overall and 0-10 in NSIC. They come off a home weekend in which they fell to Minnesota State and Winona State. They've dropped four in a row and are 3-6 at home this season. The Beavers were selected to finish 14th in the NSIC Preseason Poll.

Alyssa HIll averages 13.3 points per game on 51.3 percent shooting from the field to lead BSU. She adds 4.9 rebounds per game, ranking second on the team. Just behind Hill in both points and rebounds per game is Sam Pogatchnik who averages 9.9 and 4.8, respectively. 

ABOUT THE HUSKIES
St. Cloud State has opened the season 8-6 overall and 5-5 in the NSIC. They went 1-1 at home last week, falling to Concordia-St. Paul before a dominant victory over Minnesota Duluth. The Huskies are 6-2 at home, and were selected to finish fifth in the NSIC Preseason Poll. 

SCSU is led by Jada Eggebrecht, whose 12.9 points per game and 18 made 3-pointers are all team-bests. Ashley Sawicki ranks second on the team with 9.1 points per game and leads the Huskies with 6.9 rebounds per game and 18 blocks. 

VIKINGS SAIL PAST MARAUDERS
A big night from Michaela Jewett and Aby Phipps helped push the Augustana women's basketball team to a 68-62 victory over UMary last Friday. Jewett led the Vikings with 23 points on 8 of 15 shooting overall and grabbed eight rebounds. Phipps recorded her second double-double in as many games, scoring 16 points and grabbing 12 rebounds while dishing four assists. In total, AU had four in double figures as Lauren Sees added 13 points, five rebounds, and four assists, while Jennifer Aadland tallied 11 points and five rebounds.

CLEANING THE GLASS
The Vikings have earned key contributions from Jennifer Aadland, Michaela Jewett, and Aby Phipps in their efforts on the boards this season. Aadland ranks second in the NSIC in total rebounds (117) and rebounds per game (7.8), and ranks third in the conference in defensive rebounds per game (6.3). Jewett ranks in the top five in both rebounds per game (7.1) and defensive rebounds per game (5.9), and Phipps finds herself in second among conference challengers in offensive rebounds (2.4).

BALL SECURITY
A common theme among the 2023-24 Vikings is their protection of offensive possessions. Augustana ranks 15th in the nation and first in the NSIC in fewest turnovers per game, coughing it up 13.3 times per game. Two major reasons why are CJ Adamson and Kenzie Rensch. Adamson is fourth in the NSIC with a 2.13 assists/turnover ratio, while Rensch is eighth with 1.83 assists/turnover.

SEES THE MOMENT
Entering her fifth season, Lauren Sees continues to leave her mark. The fifth year guard from Avon, S.D., is second on the team with 13.7 points per game and leads the team with 38 total assists. After reaching the 1,000 career point milestone in the middle of last season, Sees has continued to climb up the Augustana rankings. She has now scored 1,473 points in her career, good for 12th in program history, and is 16 points away from cracking the top ten. That number is also good for 21st among active career leaders in all of DII and is 20th in made field goals. 

JEWETT'S JUMP
After seeing a jump in her role last season, Michaela Jewett has cemented herself as one of the NSIC's best. She leads the team with 15.9 points per game and 37 made three pointers. She also ranks second on the team with 7.1 rebounds per game. 

THE AADLAND EFFECT
Jennifer Aadland has been one of the most efficient shooters in the NSIC while causing havoc in the paint. She has shot 40.5 percent from the field, 35.9 percent from three, and 89.7 percent from the free throw line. She also leads the team with 7.8 rebounds per game, 1.6 blocks per game, and four double-doubles while scoring 10.9 points per game. 

NSIC LEADERS
In 13 NSIC conference games, Michaela Jewett and Lauren Sees have played at an extremely high level. Jewett is averaging 15.3 points per game, ninth in the conference, while Sees slots in at 10th scoring 13.7 points per game. Jennifer Aadland has grabbed 7.6 rebounds per game, good for sixth, Michaela Jewett is ninth with 7.3 rebounds per game, and Aby Phipps is 10th with 6.8 rebounds per game. Jewett is also second in the NSIC in both 3-point field goals (26) and 3-point field goals per game (2.4)

FUTURE VIKINGS
Augustana head coach Jillian Flores Bennett has added three future Vikings as part of the 2024 signing class. On National Signing Day, Olivia Kesti of Blaine, Minn., and Avery Yosten of Norfolk, Neb., signed their National Letter of Intent. Earlier this month, the class added Isabella Sanneh of Woodbury, Minn.

BRILLIANCE BEYOND THE ARC
The Vikings have made at least one three pointer in every single game since the 1999-2000 season, totaling 727 consecutive games with a make. In the same time frame, Augustana has made at least 10 three pointers in 176 games, including twice this season.

GOING WITH THE FLO
First-year head coach, Jillian Flores Bennett, earned her first victory in the Elmen Center on Nov. 21 in a 73-56 win over Sioux Falls. Coach Flo is 21-17 as a head coach at a four-year institution after spending 2021-22 with Our Lady of the Lake, where she went 20-11. She spent last season with Iowa Western, where she accumulated a 26-5 record and region championship appearance. 

SHINING STARS
Michaela Jewett and Lauren Sees were named to the NSIC Shining Five for games played Dec. 19-Jan 2. Jewett averaged 17.5 points per game in a pair of games, fourth best in the conference, and added an NSIC-best six three pointers and 9.5 rebounds per game. Her performances were highlighted by a 17 point, 13 rebound double-double against Northwestern (Iowa). Sees tied for the NSIC lead with 22.0 points per game while knocking down 12 of 27 from the field, 5 of 9 from three-point range, and 15 of 16 from the free-throw line. Against Northwest Missouri State, she scored 24 points, including 15 in the fourth quarter, on 8 of 13 shooting, 2 of 3 from deep, and 6 of 6 from the free throw line.
 

--GoAugie.com--