SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – The Augustana women's basketball team closes the regular season with alumni weekend at the Sanford Pentagon against Northern State and UMary. Tip-off on Friday in against the Wolves is slated for 5:30 p.m., while Saturday's game at UMary is at 3:30 p.m. Prior to Saturday's game, Michaela Jewett, Kenzie Rensch, and Lauren Sees will be honored as part of the Vikings' senior day celebration
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 WOLVES
Northern State is 19-7 overall and 15-5 in the NSIC after sweeping Winona State and then-No. 14 Minnesota State last weekend, halting their 18 game win streak. The Wolves enter the game on a four-game win streak.
Madelyn Bragg leads the team with 18.3 points and 6.9 rebounds per game. Rianna Fillipi has been the do-it-all player for the Wolves, tying for the team lead with 6.9 rebounds, leading the team with 4.9 assists and 2.5 steals, and slotting second on the team with 12.3 points per game.
ABOUT THE MARAUDERS
UMary is 18-10 overall and 14-6 in the NSIC after splitting against Concordia-St. Paul and Minnesota Duluth. The Marauders have split back-to-back weekends following a four-game win streak.
Lexie Schneider averages 20.1 points and 9.3 rebounds per game while shooting 54.3 percent from the field, finding herself in the conference player of the year conversation. Megan Zander averages 13.1 points and 5.7 rebounds per game, while Mariah McKeever adds 11.9 points per game.
SENIOR SPOTLIGHT
Three Vikings will play a home game in an Augustana uniform for the final time on Saturday afternoon. Michaela Jewett has become as big of a threat from beyond the arc as anyone in the NSIC, knocking down 137 career threes and more than 50 3-pointers in each of the last two seasons. Kenzie Rensch has become a nightmare for opposing offenses, recording 215 career steals, the 11th most in program history. Lauren Sees has etched her name into the record books during her career, ranking in the top eight in program history in starts (106), points (1,615), and points per game (13.3).
OFFENSIVE OUTBURST
The Vikings knocked off Minnesota Crookston 103-71 on Friday night, the most points scored by AU since Jan. 19, 2018. Michaela Jewett scored a team-high 28 points and grabbed a career-high 16 rebounds while knocking down six 3-pointers and recording two blocks. Lauren Sees followed with 26 points, including 18 in the second half, while making five 3-pointers. Jennifer Aadland collected her second consecutive double-double with 20 points and 10 rebounds while adding a pair of blocks. The Vikings shot a scorching 16 of 31 from beyond the arc while limiting the Golden Eagles to just 4 of 18 from deep. AU also out-rebounded UMC 52-38 and outscored them 23-4 off the bench.
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 rebounds per game (8.0), third in defensive rebounds per game (6.1), and third in total rebounds (192). Jewett ranks sixth in defensive rebounds per game (6.0) and sixth in rebounds per game (7.1), while Phipps finds herself third among conference challengers in offensive rebounds (2.3). The Vikings are the only team in the NSIC to have a player in the top three for both offensive and defensive rebounds per game.
POURING IT IN
Michaela Jewett sits sixth in the NSIC with 15.5 points per game while Lauren Sees ranks tied for 11th with 14.5 points per game. The 30.0 combined points per game is the fourth most by a duo in the NSIC. They are also one of two sets of teammates to rank in the top 11 of the NSIC. Jewett has gotten it done from deep, ranking second in the NSIC with 2.33 3-pointers per game and third with 56 total 3-pointers.
MILESTONE TRACKER
The Vikings have a trio that is inching their was towards the top of the program record books. Jennifer Aadland currently holds the program record for career free throw percentage at 86.6 percent. She also has 109 career blocks, good for 10th in program history. Kenzie Rensch has been a thief in her time with AU, racking up 215 career steals, and is a pair of steals away from 10th on the all-time steals list. Lauren Sees is seventh on the all-time scoring list with 1,615 points and is sixth in career starts with 106. She is one of three players in program history to score at least 1,600 points and start at least 100 games.
SEES THE MOMENT
In her final season, Lauren Sees continues to climb the ranks in Augustana history. The fifth year guard from Avon, S.D., is second on the team with 14.5 points per game and leads the team with 2.6 assists per game. 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 1,615 points in her career, good for seventh in program history. That number is also good for 23rd among active career leaders in all of DII and is 20th with 593 made field goals.
BALL SECURITY
A common theme among the 2023-24 Vikings is their protection of offensive possessions. Augustana ranks 29th in the nation and second in the NSIC in fewest turnovers per game, coughing it up just 13.8 times per game. Two major reasons why are Kenzie Rensch and CJ Adamson. Both rank in the top ten in the conference in assist/turnover ratio, with Rensch averaging 1.85 and Adamson adding 1.74.
BRILLIANCE BEYOND THE ARC
The Vikings have made at least one three pointer in every single game since the 1999-2000 season, totaling 736 consecutive games with a make. In the same time frame, Augustana has made at least 10 three pointers in 178 games, including four times this season.
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 15.5 points per game and 56 made 3-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 42.0 percent from the field, 39.7 percent from three, and 87.2 percent from the free throw line. She also leads the team with 8.0 rebounds per game, 1.3 blocks per game, and seven double-doubles while scoring 11.2 points per game.
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.
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 25-23 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.
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