Morningside at Northwestern

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Game Time... Northwestern plays host to Morningside Wednesday night in a key women's basketball conference match-up featuring ranked teams. The Red Raiders are ranked fourth in the NAIA with a 21-3 record and are currently in second place in the GPAC with a 12-2 mark. Morningside is ranked 12th with a 16-9 overall record and is fourth in the GPAC with a 9-5 record. Tipoff for the women's game is scheduled for 6:00pm. Watch/listen live to the games via the NWC webcast at the following link: Watch/Listen Now!

All-Time Series... Dating back to the 1976-77 season, Morningside leads the season series 35-21 and has won the last five match-ups. These two rivals have gone head-to-head four times in both the 2007-08 and 2008-09 seasons. In 2007-08, Northwestern won three of the four match-ups, including a 93-69 in in the Final Four en route to their national championship. Morningside swept all four meeting last season, including a 63-58 win in the Final Four on the way to their national championship. Earlier this year (Dec. 9), Morningside defeated Northwestern 81-75 in Sioux City.

Last Meeting... In a showdown of top-20 NAIA squads, the top-ranked Red Raider women’s basketball team lost to #18 Morningside 81-75 on Dec. 9 at the Ross Verdoorn Gymnasium in Sioux City. Kami Kuhlmann netted a career-high 28 points, going 10-for-21 from the field and a perfect 7-of-7 from the free throw line. Becca Hurley registered her second double-double of the season and seventh of her career with 15 points and a team-best 14 rebounds.

Both teams struggled to put points on the board early but the Raiders held its biggest lead, 13-6, with 11:40 left in the first half. Morningside tied the game at 15 and then outscored Northwestern 19-12 over the final eight minutes to take a 34-27 halftime lead. The Raiders shot 43% in the opening half and held the Mustangs to just 29%.

Morningside opened up a 44-35 lead early in the second half. The Raiders hung tough with a 7-0 run, capped off  by a Kami Kuhlmann lay-up to cut the Morningside lead to 44-42. The Mustangs went on another run to push the lead to 14 (59-45) but NWC battled back once again and after five straight points by Randa Hulstein, the Morningside lead was down to two, 61-59, with seven minutes left. Northwestern did not get any closer however and lost for the first time in eight games.

Randa Hulstein, playing in her first game of the season, netted 15 points and pulled down nine boards for NWC. The Raiders shot 47% for the game but just 24% from the three-point line. They outrebounded Morningside, 44-40, but committed 24 turnovers.

Morningside News and Notes... The Mustangs and head coach Jamie Sale have won four of their past five games, including an 80-72 win over top-ranked Hastings on Jan. 30. They also have wins over Dakota Wesleyan, Doane and USF with their only loss to Mount Marty, 74-73 on Jan. 27 in Yankton, S.D. Last Saturday (Feb.6), the Mustangs defeated USF in Sioux Falls, S.D., 72-57. Guards Chelsie Trask and Tanaeya Worden scored 20 points each and Brittany Williamson added 11 for the victorious Mustangs. They trailed by one (33-32) at the half but shot an impressive 65% in the second half while holding USF to just 28% from the field.

Morningside is among the highest scoring teams in the GPAC, averaging over 76 points per game. The Mustangs have made 207 three-pointers this season (8.3 per game), second best in the GPAC, and are shooting 34% from beyond the arc.

Six players return off last year's national championship squad, including two all-conference players, Brittany Williamson and Leslie Floral. Both seniors, Williamson earned second team all-GPAC honors last year and averages 9.6 points and five rebounds per game this year. Floral earned honorable mention all-GPAC accolades and averages 6.5 points and five boards per game. Seniors Laura Nelson and Roni Miller also return for their final season with the Mustangs. Nelson led the NAIA with 125 three-pointers last year and ranks third in the GPAC this season with 55. She averages over eight points per game. Miller comes off the bench and spells Williamson in the post averaging seven points and 4.4 rebounds per game. Newcomer Tanaeya Worden, a transfer from Christian Brothers University, ranks third in the GPAC and leads the Mustangs in scoring (17.5), assists (93) and leads the GPAC in steals (77). She has 48 three-pointers, shooting 35% from beyond the arc. Another newcomer, Chelsie Trask, who missed the 2008-09 season with an injury, starts along side Worden in the backcourt, averaging 11.5 points per game with 35 three-pointers. Brittney Alfredson (4.4 ppg), Katie Sponder (4.7) and Shelby Beaudette (3.7 ppg) are the other top players.

Red Raider Notes... Northwestern has won four straight games heading into Wednesday's game, recording wins over Midland Lutheran, Dordt, Mount Marty and Dana. The Red Raiders moved up to fourth in this week's NAIA D-II coaches' poll with a 21-3 overall record and are one of five GPAC teams in the top 25. Northwestern trails Hastings by one game in the GPAC standings with a 12-2 league record.

Last time out, Northwestern shot better than 60% from the field and recorded an impressive 91-48 road win over Dana last Saturday afternoon. Leading 39-24 at the half, Northwestern outscored Dana 27-8 at the start of the second half to take a commanding 66-34 lead with 10 minutes to go. The Raiders shot an impressive 66% in the second half and outscored the Vikings 54-16 in the paint. Three Red Raiders scored in double figures, led by Kendra DeJong and Becca Hurley with 14 points each. Randa Hulstein added 13 points while Mallory Cunard scored a career-high nine points off the Raider bench. Northwestern outrebounded Dana 39-24, led by Hurley (8) and Hulstein (7). Hurley dished out five assists and Hulstein and Allison Hulst dished out four each.

The Red Raiders are third in the NAIA in scoring, averaging 83ppg. They lead the NAIA in field goal percentage (48%), rank third in the GPAC in three-point percentage (36%) and also lead the GPAC in rebounding (+8) and field goal percentage defense (37%).

Northwestern features a balanced scoring attack, led by Becca Hurley and Kami Kuhlmann who both rank in the GPAC's top 10 in points per game. Hurley (15.3) ranks second on the team with 34 three-pointers and ranks second in the GPAC with 92 assists. Kuhlmann (14.7) is shooting a team-high 40% from beyond the arc and has scored 810 points in her career. Randa Hulstein averages 14 points and is one of the best rebounders in the GPAC at 8.3 boards per game. The senior is shooting 64% from the field and has 904 points and 659 rebounds in her career. Kendra DeJong is averaging 13.9 points per game, shooting 57% from the field. Val Kleinjan leads the team with 46 three-pointers, shooting 38% from the perimeter. Katie Nieuwsma (5.6) and Allison Hulst (4.6) are the top scorers off the bench.

Up Next... Northwestern travels to top-ranked Hastings this Saturday in the final road game of the regular season. Tip-off for the top five match-up will be at 2:00 pm.