Bison Women Host Green Bay in Weekend Set

Saturday, December 5

Fargo, N.D.

1 p.m.

North Dakota State Athletics

Green Bay

Photo by: Zachary Lucy

Bison Women Host Green Bay in Weekend Set

12/4/2020 1:04:00 PM | Women's Basketball

NDSU Notes Green Bay Notes Game Program Live Streams

Scene Setter
The North Dakota State women's basketball team returns to action for a pair of games this weekend against Green Bay. Tipoff is set for 1 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday at the Scheels Center inside the Sanford Health Athletic Complex in Fargo, N.D. Brian Shawn (Play-By-Play) and Greg Stemen (Analyst) will have the call on MidcoSN2 and ESPN3 for Saturday's game. Sunday's game will be available via live stream on GoBison.com. Keith Brake and Katie (Lorenz) Johnson ('06) will be on the radio on Bison 1660 for both games.

Green Bay Series History
The Bison and Phoenix have met five times previously, with Green Bay winning all five games. Saturday will be the first meeting since a 72-37 Green Bay victory on Dec. 18, 2012 in Green Bay. The two teams have met in Fargo twice, with Green Bay winning 82-59 on Nov. 11, 2011 and 81-70 on Feb. 7, 2006 in the first meeting between the two teams.

Bison Notes

North Dakota State improved to 34-21 all-time in season openers with an 85-68 win over Northern Iowa on Wednesday. The Bison have won the opener four of the last five years, falling at Northern Iowa 95-63 in the season opener last year.
Four Bison scored in double figures, led by 20 points each from redshirt sophomore Heaven Hamling and senior Emily Dietz.
Dietz led the Bison with a game-high eight rebounds, while Hamling added six boards.
NDSU returns three starters from last year in seniors Dietz and Michelle Gaislerova, along with sophomore Ryan Cobbins. Olivia Skibiel comes off the bench for the Bison as the only remaining player that stepped on the court last season. NDSU welcomes five newcomers and three players that redshirted last season.
The Bison were picked to finish fifth in the Summit League preseason poll. It was the highest preseason selection for the Bison since being picked fourth in 2012.

Scouting Green Bay

The Phoenix are ranked 10th in the latest CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top 25.
Green Bay opened the season last Saturday with a 69-61 victory over Drake. The two games this weekend will be the final scheduled non-conference games of the year for Green Bay.
Caitlyn Hibner led the Phoenix with 24 points and 12 rebounds in the victory over the Bulldogs. Jasmine Kondrakiewicz and Lyndsey Robson added 15 and 12 points respectively.
Green Bay has finished in the top two of the Horizon League every year since the 1997-98 season. During that 23 year run, the Phoenix won 20 conference titles and advanced to the NCAA Tournament 17 times.

Young and Ready to Run
                The Bison enter the 2020-21 season as one of the youngest teams in America. The Bison average 19.769 years old (year only), which ranks as the 11th youngest team in the country. Oral Roberts, LaSalle, Incarnate Word and Montana State all average 19.3 years.

Experience on the Fly
                Seniors Emily Dietz and Michelle Gaislerova are the only two players on the NDSU roster with more than two years experience playing at the NCAA Division I level. With 84.6 percent of the NDSU roster having two years or less experience, the Bison rank 16th in the country. Murray State, Ole Miss and Indiana State all have a roster complete with players with two or less years of NCAA Division I experience.

Gaislerova, Cobbins Honored by The Summit League
                Michelle Gaislerova and Ryan Cobbins were honored by the Summit League last year. Gaislerova earned a spot on the All-Summit League Honorable Mention team, while Cobbins was named to the Summit League All-Newcomer Team.
                Gaislerova led the Bison with 13.1 points per game in league play, ranking 10th in the league. She ranked seventh in the league in 3-point percentage at 39.4, while leading the Summit League in free throw percentage at 97.4 percent. Her 28 3-pointers were the sixth most in the league.
                Cobbins averaged 10.1 points per game in league play, ranking third among newcomers to the league. She also averaged 3.1 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game in league play. Cobbins ranked 10th in the league in free throw percentage at 78 percent.

Gaislerova Joins 1,000 Point Club
                Junior Michelle Gaislerova scored 18 points against Purdue Fort Wayne on Feb. 13, becoming the 34th member of the 1,000 point club. Needing just one point to start the game, Gaislerova scored the opening basket of the game. She is the seventh player to have done so with all years being played during the NCAA Division I era.

A New 3-Point Streak
                The Bison went 0-of-14 from 3-point range against Valparaiso last year, ending a streak of 113-straight games with at least two 3-pointers. The last time NDSU didn't hit a 3-pointer in a game was Nov. 29, 2015 against Delaware. Since the game against Valparaiso, the Bison have hit at least two in each of the last 28 games.

Gaislerova Makes NCAA History
                With her third made free throw against Purdue Fort Wayne on Feb. 13, junior Michelle Gaislerova broke the NCAA Division I women's record for most consecutive free throws made with 71. Gaislerova extended the streak to 75 before missing her second attempt against North Dakota on Feb. 23. Her total is the third longest streak in all NCAA women's divisions.

Last Time Against Green Bay
                The Green Bay women's basketball team raced out to a 17-0 start and never looked back, topping North Dakota State 72-37 in a non-conference game at the Kress Center on Tuesday, December 18, 2012.
                NDSU (3-8) struggled from the floor, shooting 13-for-56 (23.2 percent) on the game and 2-for-20 (10 percent) from beyond the arc. Green Bay (7-2) shot 56 percent and led by as many as 25 points in the first half and 40 in the second half. The Phoenix were ranked No. 25 in the nation to open the season.
                Sarah Eichler scored 20 points, pulled down six rebounds, and dished out five assists to lead Green Bay. Senior guard Katie Birkel led the Bison in scoring with 12 points. Dani DeGagne recorded a career-high 11 rebounds.
                Green Bay outscored NDSU 46-16 in the paint and 21-0 in bench scoring. The Bison did not register their first points until a Jamie Van Kirk jumper halted Green Bay's 17-0 opening run with 10:03 to play in the first half.
                NDSU trimmed the deficit to 16 points at 33-17 on a three-point play by Van Kirk with 3:19 remaining in the first half.

Last Time Out
                The second season of the Jory Collins' era opened with a bang Wednesday night, as the North Dakota State women's basketball team beat Northern Iowa 85-68 at the Scheels Center.
                NDSU improved to 1-0 on the year, while the Panthers dropped to 1-2. The two teams met in the season opener last year in Cedar Falls, with the Panthers coming away with a 95-63 victory.
                Heaven Hamling and Emily Dietz each scored 20 points, a career-high for Hamling in her first game as a Bison after sitting out last season due to NCAA Transfer rules. Last year at Northern Iowa, Dietz was 1-of-8 with two points in the opener. Ryan Cobbins and Reneya Hopkins each added 11 points. Dietz had eight rebounds, while Hamling tied a career-high with six boards. Hamling and Hopkins each had four assists, while Hopkins added two steals.
                The Bison shot were 30-of-57 (52.6%) from the field and 5-of-10 from downtown. Northern Iowa was 23-of-62 (37.1%) from the floor and 5-of-21 (23.8%) from 3-point range. NDSU was 20-of-26 (76.9%) at the free throw line, while the Panthers were 17-of-27 (63%). NDSU led for 36:16 of the 40 minutes.
                NDSU led 25-15 after the first quarter and extended the lead to 42-26 at the half. The Bison were 7-of-8 (87.5%) from the field in the fourth quarter, while attempting 17 free throws in the final frame.

NDSU Women's Basketball Picked Fifth In Summit League Preseason Poll
                The North Dakota State Bison women's basketball team was voted fifth in the Summit League preseason poll. This is the first time NDSU has been picked inside the top five since being projected for fourth in 2012. Defending champion South Dakota was tabbed the preseason favorite with 25 first-place votes, while South Dakota State was picked second with 11 first-place votes. Western Illinois was picked for third, while Oral Roberts was tabbed fourth. NDSU was picked for fifth, followed by Kansas City and Denver. North Dakota and Omaha round out the poll in eighth and ninth, respectively. The Bison received 371 points, sitting just five behind Oral Roberts for fourth. Kansas City, the defending WAC Champion who returns to the league this year, had 323 points.

Bison Add Four on National Signing Day
                The North Dakota State women's basketball team has announced four additions to the roster, beginning in the 2021-22 season. Ellie Dague, a 5-10 guard from Henning, Minn., Katie Hildebrandt, a 6-2 forward from McFarland, Wis., Abbey Kubas, a 5-11 forward from Dickinson, N.D. and Sophie Olson, a 5-10 guard/forward from El Dorado Hills, Calif. are all set to join the Bison.
                Dague is ranked the fifth-best guard in Minnesota and the 13th best player overall. She was named to the Minnesota 1A All-State team while averaging 20.7 points and 5.3 rebounds as a junior.
                Hildebrandt is ranked the 18th best player and second-best small forward in Wisconsin. She averaged 14.5 points and 9.6 rebounds per game as a junior.
                Kubas is ranked the 12th best player and fourth-best small forward in North Dakota. She hit the 1,000 point mark as a junior, while averaging 20 points and 11 rebounds per game.
                Olson is ranked the 10th best shooting guard and 43rd player overall in California. She led Oak Ridge High School to the state tournament in 2018 and 2020. Olson is the younger sister of Bison redshirt-sophomore Marie Olson.

On The Horizon
                The Bison will hit the road for the first time next week, as they travel to 23rd-ranked Iowa State on Saturday, Dec. 12. Tipoff is set for 12 p.m. at Hilton Coliseum in Ames, Iowa.