Northwestern at Hastings

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Game Time... Fourth-ranked Northwestern will play its final road game of the regulars season as they travel to top-ranked Hastings tomorrow to play the Broncos in a key GPAC women's basketball game. Tip-off for the top-five showdown is scheduled for 2:00pm.  The Red Raiders have won five straight games and are in second place in the GPAC with a 13-2 record, 22-3 overall. Top-ranked Hastings holds a one-game lead over Northwestern with a 14-1 GPAC record and is 24-3 overall. Watch/listen live to the top 25 match-up via the Hastings webcast at the following link: Watch/Listen Now! This weekend also marks the Coaches vs Cancer Awareness Day, sponsored by the NABC. To read more, click on the  following link: Coaches vs Cancer Awareness

All-Time Series... Dating back to the 1991-92 season, Hastings holds a 14-24 advantage in the season series. In the last 10 match-ups, however, Northwestern is 5-5 and has won the last three game vs the Broncos.

Scouting Hastings...The Broncos enter Saturday's game with a 14-1 GPAC record, 24-3 overall. With a win over the Raiders, the Broncos clinch their first GPAC regular season championship since they tied for the title in the 2006-07 season. Hastings moved into the top spot in the NAIA D-II women's basketball poll on Feb. 1 and has been ranked in the top four all season. They are on a three-game win streak with victories over ranked teams (Concordia and Briar Cliff) along with a home win over Doane on Feb. 10. Their last loss was to Morningside (80-72) on Jan. 30.

Last time out, Hastings rolled to a 79-40 win over Doane on Feb. 10. The Broncos opened the game with a 14-0 run and held Doane without a field goal for the first nine minutes. Hastings led 44-17 at the half and held the Tigers to 21% from the field. All-American Lindsay Ducey led the Broncos with 18 points and 12 rebounds.

Head Coach Jeff Dittman is in his second year at Hastings and returns four starters and seven letter winners off last year's team that finished fifth in the GPAC with a 12-6 mark, 27-8 overall. The Broncos were seeded fifth in the 32-team national tournament and won four straight games before falling in the national championship game to Morningside, 68-63. Coach Dittman came to Hastings after a very successful career as the head coach at Dakota State. He took over Tony Hobson, who guided the Broncos to eight straight national tournaments, five Final Fours and three national championships.

Hastings is fourth in the NAIA in scoring (79ppg), fourth in field goal percentage (47%) and leads the nation in three-point percentage (41%). Defensively, the Broncos lead the GPAC in scoring defense (61ppg), rank first in blocked shots (117) and are the third best rebounding team in the GPAC at +5.

Individually, the Broncos are led by four-year starters Lindsay Ducey and Rachel Isherwood. A 6-1 senior, Ducey is a two-time All-American and has scored over 1,000 points in her career. She is averaging over 19 points and nine rebounds per game this season, ranking second in the GPAC in both stat categories. Ducey is shooting better than 52% from the field and ranks fourth in the GPAC with 41 blocked shots. Isherwood, a 5-10 senior forward, averages nine points and three rebounds per game to go with 56 steals, ninth best in the league. Two more seniors, Heather McKeon and Kim Faimon, also return after starting last season and serving in a reserve role their first two years. A 5-9 guard, McKeon is one of the premier perimeter shooters in the nation with 76 three-pointers, making 43% from beyond the arc. The two-time honorable mention all-GPAC guard averages 10.4 points and 3.2 boards per game. Faimon, a 5-5 guard, runs the point for the Broncos and averages 9.3 points per game. An honorable mention all-GPAC pick in 2007-08, Faimon has 30 three-pointers this season and leads the team with 88 assists. Alicia Statler, a 6-1 sophomore, rounds out the starting line-up and averages 11 points and 7.7 rebounds per game. A top reserve last year, Statler is shooting 60% from the floor and leads the team with 49 blocks. Becky Tesch (9ppg) and Sophia McDermott (6.7) provide the scoring off the Broncos' bench with 18 and 30 three-pointers, respectively.

Red Raider Notes... Since their 85-75 road loss to Briar Cliff on Jan. 20, Northwestern has won five straight games to get within a game of Hastings in the race for the GPAC regular season title. The Red Raiders are 13-2 in the GPAC, 22-3 overall and held the fourth spot in the Feb.8 NAIA D-II women's basketball poll. They knocked off Midland Lutheran, Dordt, Mount Marty, Dana and 12th-ranked Morningside.

Last time out, the Red Raiders defeated Morningside 87-83 on Feb. 10 in a match-up of ranked teams. Becca Hurley recorded her fifth double-double of the season with a season-high 31 points to go with 10 boards in leading NWC. She also dished out seven assists. Kendra DeJong registered her third double-double of the season with 20 points and 10 rebounds. Two other Raider players, Val Kleinjan and Randa Hulstein, were also in double figures with 15 and 10 points, respectively. Northwestern shot 53% for the game, including 62% in the second half, and held a 47-41 advantage on the glass.

Much like the host Broncos, the Red Raiders are one of the highest scoring teams in the NAIA, averaging over 83ppg (third best in the nation). They lead the NAIA in field goal percentage (48%), rank third in the GPAC in three-point percentage (35%) and are the best rebounding team in the GPAC at +8. Defensively, Northwestern leads the GPAC in field goal percentage (37%) and is giving up 66 points per game.

Northwestern features a balanced offense with four players scoring in double figures. Becca Hurley, a 2008-09 NAIA All-American, averages 16 points per game with 36 three-pointers and a team-high 99 assists. The junior leads the GPAC in assist/turnover ratio. Kami Kuhlmann ranks ninth in the conference in scoring (14.4ppg) with 31 three-pointers, shooting 39% from beyond the arc. Kendra DeJong averages 14.2 points and 6.4 rebounds per game, shooting 56% from the field. Randa Hulstein ranks second in the GPAC in field goal percentage (65%) and averages 13.8 points and a team-best 8.3 boards per game. Val Kleinjan is the top perimeter threat for Coach Woudstra's squad, shooting 40% from beyond the arc with 49 three-pointers. The Raiders bench contributes nearly 20 points and nine rebounds per game, led by Katie Nieuwsma and Allison Hulst.

Up Next... Northwestern will host Dakota Wesleyan on Wednesday, Feb. 17 at 6:00pm.