Jackrabbits jump on Badgers

Led by a first-half shooting percentage of nearly 73 percent, South Dakota State spoiled the season opener for the Wisconsin women's basketball team on Monday night. The Jackrabbits (2-0) jumped on the Badgers, winning 64-44 in front of 2,812 fans in Frost Arena. "That's a really good team," said UW coach Lisa Stone of SDSU. "It's a team we're going to face in a similar talent level within our league. " The Badgers (0-1) were led by sophomore Alyssa Karel with 11 points and five rebounds. Freshman Anya Covington chipped in eight points and four rebounds. Sophomore Tara Steinbauer added seven points. To read more please click here.

Northwestern Women's Basketball Program Signs Two

Wildcats add West Coast flavor with Orekhova and Diamant EVANSTON, Ill.-Northwestern women's basketball head coach Joe McKeown announced today the signing of two players to National Letters of Intent. This year's class will includes two highly sought-after prospects-Inga Orekhova (La Jolla, Calif./ The Bishops), ranked 40th overall by ESPN's Hoopgurlz.com and Dannielle Diamant (Las Vegas, Nev./Bishop Gorman), ranked 20th at her position by ESPN's Hoopgurlz.com. All-Star Girls Report (AGSR) tabbed this year's class the 24th-best in the nation. "My staff did an outstanding job with our first recruiting class at Northwestern," McKeown said. "We brought in student-athletes we think will have a positive impact on our program over the next four years. I am looking forward to seeing both Dannielle and Inga in a Wildcat uniform." Orekhova, a 6-foot-3 forward from La Jolla, Calif., is one of this year's most highly-touted recruits. The San Diego area standout is ranked 40th overall by ESPN's Hoopgurlz.com and 28th in the nation by AGSR. Despite missing more than half her junior season due to injury, Orekhova still averaged 15.9 ppg, 8.0 rpg and 3.2 apg, and is projected to be a top contributor to her team as a senior. The team captain was an All-Coastal League Selection in 2007 and led The Bishops to the Division IV CIF Sand Diego Finals. The native Austrian is a two-time Austrian champion (AWBL) and was an Austrian Cup winner and MVP in 2007. To read more please click here.

Lady Lions Add Nikki Greene to Nationally-Ranked Recruiting Class

Greene, the 19th-ranked by HoopGurlz/ESPN.com, joins Bentley, Studevent, Wolfe in 2009 class UNIVERSITY PARK, PA.; November 17, 2008 — Penn State women's basketball head coach Coquese Washington announced the addition of Nikki Greene (Diboll, Texas/Diboll) to the 2009 recruiting class, which is ranked No. 7 by Blue Star Basketball and No. 13 by the All Star Girls Report. Greene joins a class that includes Alex Bentley (Indianapolis, Ind./Ben Davis), Gizelle Studevent (La Jolla, Calif./The Bishop's School) and Marisa Wolfe (Ford City, Pa./Ford City) who signed National Letters of Intent (NLI) last week. Greene, the 19th-ranked player by HoopGurlz/ESPN.com, comes to the Happy Valley from Diboll High School where she is a two-time All-State honoree. The 6-4 center averaged a double-double with 14.6 points and 11.3 rebounds per game as a junior. She also eclipsed the 1,000-point (1,317) and 1,000-rebound (1,194) mark last season and has 495 career blocks. Greene led the Lady Jacks to back-to-back district championships, which included a 28-9 record last year. Greene was tabbed as District MVP in 2008, following accolades as the Defensive District Player of the Year in 2007 and the Freshman of the Year in 2006. Greene has earned first team All-District honors each of her three seasons at Diboll High School. "Nikki Greene's potential is off the charts," Washington said. "She's got incredible athleticism. She runs as fast as any of the guards and she can literally defend all five positions on the floor. She's got the power and the presence inside that will help us contend with the big post players in the Big Ten. She hasn't even begun to scratch the potential of how good she can be. She's going to make us very versatile on both sides of the floor, in particular defensively; she is a shot blocker and a good rebounder. She is going to have an incredibly high impact on this program." To read more please click here.

Iowa WBB Travels to Kansas, Game Televised on ESPN

THE SETTING The Iowa Hawkeyes (1-0) return to action Tuesday when they travel to Lawrence, KS, to face the Kansas Jayhawks (1-0). Tip-off is slated for 11:05 a.m. inside Allen Fieldhouse. ON THE TUBE Tuesday's game will be televised to a national cable audience on ESPN. Beth Mowins and Kara Lawson will call the action. ON THE RADIO Brent Balbinot and former Hawkeye Abby Emmert will call Tuesday morning's game for the Hawkeye Radio Network. Hawkeye fans can listen to the contest on KXIC 800-AM in Iowa City and WMT in Cedar Rapids. Balbinot is in his fifth season as Iowa's play-by-play voice, while Till is in her fourth providing analysis. Hawkeye fans can also follow the game via live stats (gametracker). The 'GT' link can be accessed under the 'Calender' tab on the front page of hawkeyesports.com or on the women's basketball schedule page.

Wildwood Lodge Tip-Off Time Changes

Nov. 17– ST. PAUL, Minn. – Game times for the women's basketball Wildwood Lodge Tip-Off Classic at Concordia University this weekend have been adjusted due to the Golden Bears hosting the Central Region Volleyball Tournament.  The game times have been moved to noon and 2:00 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 21 and 1:00 and 3:00 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 22. The schedule has also been adjusted, with Bemidji State hosting UW-La Crosse at noon on Friday and Concordia opening the home schedule against Metro State at 2:00 pm. Bemidji State faces off with Metro State on Saturday at 1:00 and the Golden Bears play UW-La Crosse at 3:00 on Saturday. For more information please click here.

Buffs Open With 86-59 Win Over UCF

BOULDER - Brittany Spears had a game-high 23 points to lead Colorado to an 86-59 win over UCF Sunday afternoon at the Coors Events Center in the season opener for both teams. Spears, just one off her career high of 24 points, set last season against Missouri, was 9-of-17 from the field with three 3-pointers and added six rebounds and three steals. She scored 15 of CU's first 21 points as the Buffaloes built a 21-11 lead in the first 8:09 of the game. Spears totaled 18 points in the first half, a career-high for one period, as Colorado led 41-28 after the first 20 minutes. To read more please click here.

Wolverines Continue Road Swing at Akron on Monday Night

• Weekly Release (PDF) Next Game Monday, Nov. 17, 7 p.m. -- at Akron (Akron, Ohio) Live Stats | Live Audio | Akron Site The University of Michigan women's basketball team continues its two-game season-opening road swing with a 7 p.m. contest against Akron on Monday (Nov. 17) at James A. Rhodes Arena in Akron, Ohio. Fans can follow the action on WTKA AM 1050 with Matt Park calling the action and can get live stats and live audio through the worldwide web at MGoBlue.com. Monday's game marks the second consecutive road game for the Wolverines. The last time Michigan played two non-neutral road games to open a season was the 1999-2000 season when the Wolverines opened with a 69-65 win at Colorado State and then defeated Colorado, 77-63, en route to opening the season 7-0. To read more click here or on the Weekly Release link above.

Defense Leads Lady Lions to 56-42 Season-Opening Win Over South Carolina

Grant leads the Lions with 17 points; PSU allows fewest points since 2005 UNIVERSITY PARK, PA.; November 16, 2008 — The Penn State Lady Lions (1-0) used a dominating defensive performance to post a 56-42 victory over South Carolina (0-1) in the season opener for both teams on Sunday afternoon at the Bryce Jordan Center. The Lady Lions held the Gamecocks to 25.5% shooting on the game and forced 20 turnovers in the win. The 42 points allowed are the fewest given up by Penn State since a 76-41 win over Illinois on Jan. 13, 2005.   Junior guard Tyra Grant (Youngstown, Ohio) led the Lady Lions on both sides of the ball as she had a game-high 17 points to go along with three rebounds and a steal. She also forced the Gamecocks into committing four offensive fouls. Senior guard Brianne O'Rourke (Pittsburgh, Pa.) added eight points, five assists and four rebounds, while sophomore post Janessa Wolff (Park Rapids, Minn.) contributed eight points and five boards off the bench. Sophomore posts Evelyn Lewis (Hampton, Va.) and Julia Trogele (Devon, Pa.) chipped in seven points apiece for the Lady Lions. It was a career-best scoring night for Lewis. Senior guard Mashea Williams (Erie, Pa.) had a quite, but effective night for the Blue & White with six points, five rebounds and five assists. To read more please click here.

No. 23 Purdue Rolls Past IUPUI, 80-44

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. (AP) -- Lindsay Wisdom-Hylton had 16 points and 11 rebounds to help No. 23 Purdue beat IUPUI 80-44 in the Boilermakers' season-opener Sunday. FahKara Malone added 12 points and Jodi Howell and Brittany Rayburn each had 11 for Purdue. The Boilermakers improved to 33-1 all-time in home openers and 12-0 against teams from the Summit League. Jernisha Cann had 17 points, 13 rebounds and three steals for the Jaguars (1-1), who shot 24 percent from the field and went nearly 10 minutes in the second half without scoring a point. Purdue used a 23-2 run after halftime to open a commanding 68-25 advantage with 8 minutes left. IUPUI got a Julia Whitted jumper less than three minutes into the second half and didn't score again until Cann's basket with 7:43 left. To read more please click here.

Hawkeyes dominate season-opener

by Richie Zawistowski IOWA CITY, Iowa -- If defense wins championships, the University of Iowa women's basketball team may very well have a great season ahead of it. The Hawkeyes provided stout defense and crisp offense and were able to open their regular season with a win against Texas State, 87-45, this afternoon inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena Iowa controlled both aspects of the game with quick defensive rotations in zone sets, and magnetic-like man-to-man defense, holding Texas St to 23.4-percent shooting, and forcing the Bobcats into 19 turnovers. Iowa was equally crisp on the offensive side of the ball, shooting a productive 55.9-percent from the floor during the victory. "I thought this was a really good start to our season," said UI head coach Lisa Bluder. "This was a really nice team win. I thought everybody did a really good job of contributing. It's nice to get the first one down, and now the season is underway." To read more please click here.

U-M’s Courtney Boylan Scores 18 to Lead U-M to Season-Opening Win at Kentucky

Site: Lexington, Ky. (Memorial Coliseum) Score: Michigan 70, Kentucky 60 Records: U-M (1-0), Kentucky (0-1) Next U-M Event: Monday, Nov. 17 -- at Akron (Akron, Ohio), 7 p.m. LEXINGTON, Ky. -- The University of Michigan women's basketball had four players score in double figures, led by 18 points from freshman Courtney Boylan (Minnetonka, Minn./Chaska HS), in a season-opening 70-60 win at Kentucky this afternoon (Saturday, Nov. 15) at Memorial Coliseum. In her collegiate debut, Boylan tallied 18 points on 6-of-7 shooting from the floor, including 4-of-4 from three-point range. Melinda Queen (Oak Forest, Ill./Carl Sandburg HS), who made her first start since the 2005-06 season, tallied a career-high 15 points as she hit 3-of-9 from the field and added career bests for free throws made (nine) and attempted (11). Other U-M players in double figures included Queen with 15 points, junior Krista Phillips (Saskatoon, Saskatchewan/Aden Bowman Collegiate) with 11 and senior Jessica Minnfield (Toledo, Ohio/Central Catholic) with 10. To read more please click here.

Buffaloes Open 35th Season Of Women's Basketball Sunday

THE GAME: The 35th season of intercollegiate women’s basketball at the University of Colorado offi cially begins Sunday, Nov. 16, as the Buffaloes host the University of Central Florida Knights at 2:30p.m. at the Coors Events/Conference Center

BROADCAST: All Colorado women’s basketball games can be heard live on KKZN AM 760. Mark Johnson will deliver play-by-play of Sunday’s game with Carol Callan of USA Basketball providing color commentary. CU’s Journalism School will be providing a television broadcast of Sunday’s game to the campus cable network and their brodcast will also be streamed live on BuffsTV, the premium subscription package offered through CU Athletics’ offi cial website, www.CUBuffs.com. Live internet audio of all CU basketball games is available through Yahoo! Sports.

BUFFS NET WIN OVER REGIS IN EXHIBITION: Five CU players scored in double-digits as the Buffaloes defeated Regis University 86-44 in an exhibition contest Nov. 9 at the Coors Events Center.

To read more please click here.

U-M Opens 2008-09 Regular Season at Kentucky

The University of Michigan women's basketball team hits the road to officially open the 2008-09 season with a game against Kentucky at Memorial Coliseum on Saturday (Nov. 15). Fans can follow the action on WLBY AM 1290 with Matt Park calling the action. The game can also be heard worldwide on the internet at MGoBlue.com.   The Wolverines played an exhibition tuneup against Northwood on Nov. 8 in Crisler Arena.  U-M pulled out a 71-66 win over the sharpshooting Timberwolves in front of 1,304 fans. Senior forward Carly Benson (Carney, Mich./Carney-Nadeau Public School) posted a double-double to lead the Wolverines with 15 points and 11 rebounds. Senior Jessica Minnfield (Toledo, Ohio/Central Catholic) was U-M next leading scorer with 14 points while Veronica Hicks (Chicago, Ill./Thornwood HS) and Krista Phillips (Saskatoon, Saskatchewan/Aden Bowman Collegiate) contributed 10 points each.   Michigan enters the 2008-09 season with several new faces. The Wolverines welcome four freshmen to the squad this season in guard Courtney Boylan (Minnetonka, Minn./Chaska HS), guard/forward Jamillya Hardley (Grand Rapids, Mich./Grand Rapids Christian), guard/forward Carmen Reynolds (Hilliard, Ohio/Davidson HS) and Janell Smith (Kalamazoo, Mich./Loy Norrix HS). U-M also added Colorado State transfer, Lauren Young (Edina, Minn./Edina HS). Michigan returns 10 letterwinners and three starters from last year's team that posted a 19-14 record in head coach Kevin Borseth's first season. The Wolverines also return their top three scorers from a year ago in junior Krista Phillips(Saskatoon, Saskatchewan/Aden Bowman Collegiate) (10.3 ppg), senior Jessica Minnfield(Toledo, Ohio/Central Catholic) (10.0 ppg) and senior Carly Benson (Carney, Mich./Carney-Nadeau Public School) (9.6 ppg). Phillips also led the team in rebounds last season with 5.8 per game.   To read more please click here.

The Summit League Weekly Notes

The following is from The Summit Leagus weekly press release.  To read the complete document please click here. CENTENARY The Ladies return 90 percent of their points and rebounds from last season in Cierra Bush, Anne Farrell and Ashley Jackson ... With Bush back from a season ending knee injury, Centenary welcomes back all five starters ... NCAA Final Four participant LSU makes an appearance at the Gold Dome on Dec. 20, while the Ladies also travel to Alabama and Oklahoma State in non-league action. IUPUI The Jaguars return two-time Defensive Player of the Year Jernisha Cann ... Cann is only the second player to win the award in consecutive years and needs just 18 rebounds to become IUPUI's all-time leader ... Julia Whitted also returns after being one of the nation's most improved players, jumping from 3.4 to 14.4 ppg ... Cann is closing in on becoming the first player in school history to record 1,000 point and 1,000 rebounds in a career. IPFW The Mastodons graduated three players, including the league's leading scorer Johnna Lewis-Carlisle (19.5 ppg) ... IPFW plays four teams that made postseason play last year in Miami (Ohio), Oral Roberts, Iowa State and Illinois ... Returnee Jordan Zuppe tied for ninth place overall in three-point field goal percentage (43.3%) in the NCAA and was the top freshman on the list. UMKC The Kangaroos lost five seniors due to graduation but return all-league selection Chazny Morris ... Morris led the team with 17.6 ppg last season and earned Newcomer of the Year honors during her freshman campaign ... UMKC faces a challenging non-league road schedule with trips to Iowa State, Colorado, Air Force and the Cal Poly Thanksgiving Tournament. NORTH DAKOTA STATE The Bison look to replace their top three scorers from last season, including Player of the Year Lisa Bue ... Jerri Penley is the top returnee for NDSU after averaging 8.5 points, 5.6 rebounds and 2.8 blocks per game last season ... Carolyn DeHoff takes over the reigns of the Bison program following the retirement of Hall of Fame coach Amy Ruley, who guided NDSU for 29 years and compiled a 671-198 (.772) career record. OAKLAND The Golden Grizzlies return all fi ve primary starters from last season, including Summit League Preseason Player of the Year Jessica Pike ... Pike averaged 16.3 ppg and 2.9 apg last season, while Melissa Jeltema (13.4 ppg, 8.0 rpg) and Hanna Reising (11.8 ppg, 4.4 rpg) are two other top returnees ... OU faces a challenging non-league schedule traveling to Purdue and hosting Georgia and Marquette at the O'Rena. ORAL ROBERTS The Golden Eagles advanced to their second straight NCAA Tournament last season and third in four years after winning The Summit League Championship as the No. 4 seed last season ... Three starters return for ORU, including second team all-league selection Mariana Carmargo (13.3 ppg, 5.0 apg) and honorable mention member Janae Voelker (11.4 ppg, 8.4 rpg). SOUTH DAKOTA STATE The Jackrabbits return four starters from their regular season championship team, including leading scorer Jennifer Warkenthien (13.9 ppg) ... Also returning for SDSU is Maria Boever (12.2 ppg, 5.7 rpg) and Sixth Woman of the Year Kristin Rotert (10.0 ppg) ... The Jacks have posted 22 consecutive winning season, including a dozen 20-win seasons ... SDSU has won 20 or more games in seven of the last eight years. SOUTHERN UTAH The Thunderbirds return leading scorer Anne Westwood-Higbee (10.5 ppg, 8.1 rpg) as the only senior on the squad ... Three other starters returning are Caitlyn Sears (7.5 ppg), Challis Pascucci (6.3 ppg, 5.4 rpg) and Kaila Goff (3.6 ppg) ... The T-Birds are one of the youngest teams in the league as 11 of the 14 members are either freshmen or sophomores. WESTERN ILLINOIS The Westerwinds return six letterwinners from last season, including starters Amanda Walker (8.4 ppg) and Jordon O'Brien (6.8 ppg) ... WIU has five players on the roster that are at least 6-2 ... Head coach Leslie Crane returns for her 11th season at the helm of the program her 105 league wins is tops among the current Summit League coaches.

Wurtz signs National Letter of Intent with Badgers

MADISON, Wis. – Taylor Wurtz, a 6-0 guard from Brandon, Wis., has signed a National Letter of Intent to attend the University of Wisconsin in 2009-10, Coach Lisa Stone announced today.

"She is by far, in our opinion, the best player in the state of Wisconsin in her class," said Stone at a news conference today. "She is a player that can play a number of positions. She is strong, physical, (has a) great Big Ten body. She handles the ball very, very well. She has the capability of putting up very big numbers. We're thrilled that she said yes to being a Badger."

Wurtz earned Associated Press first-team all-state honors as a junior and was a second-team all-state honoree as a sophomore. She is the three-time Eastern Valley Conference Player of Year, leading Ripon High School to three consecutive conference titles. The Tigers were 59-10 in three years, with Wurtz starting all 69 games, and 40-2 in conference games under Coach Bill Peters.

As a junior, Wurtz averaged 21.4 points, six rebounds, four assists and four steals per game. She is ranked No. 86 in the class of 2009 by ESPN HoopGurlz.As a junior, Wurtz averaged 21.4 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists and 4 steals per game. Wurtz, who plays her club ball with the Wisconsin Fastbreak, is ranked No. 86 in the class of 2009 by ESPN HoopGurlz.As a junior, Wurtz averaged 21.4 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists and 4 steals per game. Wurtz, who plays her club ball with the Wisconsin Fastbreak, is ranked No. 86 in the class of 2009 by ESPN HoopGurlz.

In only three years, Wurtz is already Ripon's all-time leading scorer with 1,343 points, averaging 19.4 points per game. She also holds school records for total assists with 280 (4.0 per game), steals with 277 (4.0 per game) and 3 pointers with 151 (2.2 per game). Wurtz is also the Tigers' season record holder for scoring, assists and steals and ranks in the top 10 for career rebounds. She has a career free throw percentage of 75.3.

Wurtz also competes on the Wisconsin Fastbreak Select AAU team under Coach Paul Biddick, the same team that gave the Badgers Mariah Dunham, Caitlin Gibson and Lin Zastrow.

In addition to basketball, Wurtz also competes in track and tennis. She earned all-conference honors in track as a freshman and sophomore on the 3200-meter relay and second-team all-conference honors in tennis as a junior.

Wurtz ranks among the top-10 students in her class and has earned high honors every quarter of high school. She is also a member of the National Honor Society.

An archive of Stone's news conference today regarding Wurtz can be found at http://www.uwbadgers.com/video/Default.aspx?mid=2720

HAWKEYES INK FOUR TALENTED RECRUITS

IOWA CITY -- University of Iowa Women's Basketball Coach Lisa Bluder announced today that Morgan Johnson, Gabby Machado, Jaime Printy and Theairra Taylor have signed National Letters of Intent to attend the University of Iowa.

"I am very happy with our recruiting class this year," said Bluder. "It is a strong class and I believe each player has an incredible upside. They are very good players now, but they can all become great players."

Printy, who became the youngest player (15) ever to verbally commit to the Iowa women's basketball program, is a two-time consensus all-state, all-conference and all-metro selection playing for Coach Bluder's alma mater, Linn-Mar High School. A two-time team captain, she was named to the all-tournament team at the Iowa state tournament her junior season. The 5-11 guard averaged 18.2 points, 4.6 assists, 3.5 rebounds and 2.4 steals during her high school career. She is a 90 percent free throw shooter and has converted over 43 percent of her 3-point field goal attempts. The guard is ranked 78th on the ESPNU HoopGurlz Top 100 list.

The native of Marion, IA, suffered a season-ending injury, in the fourth game, her sophomore year. She helped guide Linn-Mar to a 20-4 record and a state tournament appearance as a freshman and a 22-3 record, and a berth in the state tournament final four her junior campaign. Printy also played basketball for the IBCA Select AAU squad in 2008. She also excels in the classroom, boasting a perfect 4.0 GPA and a National Honor Society member. Her mother, Kelly, ran track at the University of Iowa.

"Finally! It was three years ago when we received her commitment," Bluder said. "It's great to have her officially become a Hawkeye. Jaime is one of the best players in the state of Iowa and can play the point or off-guard position. She is a scoring guard that can distribute and knows the game so well. Jaime grew up two doors away from the house that I grew up in. I feel we have a great bond after having so many similar experiences."

To read more please click here.

North Dakota State Women's Basketball Signs Five During NCAA Early Signing Period

North Dakota State University head women's basketball coach Carolyn DeHoff announced today her first recruiting class, a five-member class comprised of some of the best local talent: 6-foot-5 center Janae Burich (Roseville, Minn./Roseville H.S.), 5-10 guard Danielle DeGagne (Brandon, Manitoba/Crocus Plains Regional Secondary School), 6-2 center Paige Beck (Sioux Falls, S.D./Roosevelt H.S.), 5-11 guard Hannah Linz (Watkins, Minn./Eden Valley-Watkins H.S.), and 6-foot forward Rachelle Eckmann (St. James, Minn./St. James H.S.) -- who have signed national letters of intent to play basketball and continue their education at NDSU.

"I commend our staff for doing an unbelievable job in recruiting these student-athletes to North Dakota State University. Our appreciation goes out to Coach (Amy) Ruley and her staff for generating the interest in these incredible players last fall," said DeHoff.

"The signing of these five talented players has addressed our immediate needs for our continued success at the Division I level. We signed tremendous size and unwavering work ethics in our 6-foot-5, 6-foot-2 and 6-foot bigs, an astonishing knock down shooter, who also happens to be a south paw, and an intuitive, versatile Canadian guard. We are thrilled that they have chosen NDSU to further both their educational and athletic careers. These student athletes will continue to enrich the tradition that exists in women's basketball and Bison Athletics."

Burich was an all-conference player and St. Paul Pioneer Press all-state honorable mention performer for Roseville Area High School as a junior.

"A big reason I chose NDSU is because it's pretty close to home. I wanted to go to a school where my parents would be able to come watch me play. Also, North Dakota State University has all the educational opportunities I was looking for," said Burich.

Janae Burich, Roseville averaged 12.2 points, 8.2 rebounds and 2.3 blocked shots in 27 games played. She hit 54.7 percent from the field and 69.7 percent from the foul line.

In addition to being a force on the basketball court, Burich was also named honorable mention all-conference in volleyball and placed third at the 2008 state meet in the shot put.

DeGagne averaged 18.6 points, 9.8 rebounds, 5.4 assists and 5.7 steals per game for Crocus Plains Regional Secondary School in Manitoba. She was tabbed as the No. 2-ranked high school player by the the Winnipeg Sun.

"I chose NDSU because everything just felt right when I went there; I liked the style of play at the camp and the coaches were great. The tradition of women's basketball at NDSU is fantastic," said DeGagne.

DeGagne's single game highs are impressive as she has: scored 41 points, pulled down 16 rebounds, dished out 16 assists, and created 13 steals. All single-game highs were against ranked opponents.

Beck has been a contributor in the post for the Roosevelt High School over the past four seasons, which included a Class AA State Championship run in 2005-2006.

"I think I've always known I would end up at North Dakota State. I love how welcoming the campus is and the enthusiasm Fargo has for Bison sports," said Beck.

Paige Beck missed the majority of her junior year at Sioux Falls Roosevelt with a knee injury.

The left-handed Linz has been a starter for Eden Valley-Watkins High School since the eigth grade. Last season, she averaged 27.6 points, 6.9 rebounds, 3.8 assists, and 3.9 steals per game. Linz surpassed the 1,000 point mark during her freshman season and has scored 2,683 points to date.

"The NDSU women's basketball staff are a group of women who are excited for their new task and will do anything it takes to make a winning program. I can't wait for my college experience at North Dakota State because I know it will be the time of my life, playing the game I love," said Linz.

An Associated Press All-State selection, Linz is an excellent passer and fires with deadly accuracy from beyond the arc: she has made 239 of 577 attempts for a career percentage of 41 percent.

A three-year captain, Eckmann has been an all-conference selection and honorable mention all-state since her freshman year at St. James High School.

"NDSU was always the school I wanted to go to. I wanted to be a Bison the moment I saw the girls play, and I'm looking forward to finally becoming one," said Eckmann.

Eckmann also holds the St. James High School record for 3-point field goal percentage at a deadly 45.3 percent. She has already surpassed the 1,000 point mark before her senior season begins.

North Dakota State opens the regular season and looks to "Pack the House" at home against the University of Northern Iowa at 7 p.m. Friday, Nov. 14 in the Bison Sports Arena.

Golden Bears Top Regional Poll As Playoffs Loom

Concordia has secured the NSIC regular season title and looks ahead to the regional tournament

ST. PAUL, Minn. - The Concordia University volleyball team remains in the top spot of the North Central Region poll as teams go into their final week of regular season play. A field of the top eight teams in the region will be selected this Sunday evening to advance to the NCAA Tournament.

The Northern Sun Conference continues to dominate the regional rankings, taking up six of the top eight positions. With a 21-0 regional record and 30-1 overall mark, the Golden Bears are the strong favorite as playoffs approach. Southwest Minnesota State has an 18-4 region record and is is second place in the poll. Nebraska-Kearney, a member of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) is the top-seeded non-NSIC program at third place.

The Golden Bears wrap up the regular season this Saturday, hosting St. Cloud State at 4:00 pm. They have made a bid to host the North Central Regional tournament, which will be held Nov. 20-22. Official word for the tournament site will be released with the final field of eight this Sunday evening. Log onto www.ncaa.com to watch the selection show, which starts around 7:00 pm.

Central Region

Overall Record In-Region Record

1. Concordia-St. Paul 30-1 21-0

2. Southwest Minnesota State 25-5 18-4

3. Nebraska-Kearney 31-2 27-2

4. Minnesota Duluth 22-8 19-7

5. Wayne State (Nebraska) 22-8 18-7

6. Minnesota State Mankato 18-11 16-8

7. Augustana (South Dakota) 21-10 15-9

8. Metropolitan State 18-8 17-6

9. Western New Mexico 20-7 17-5

10. Regis (Colorado) 16-11 13-9

Iowa Opens Season Sunday vs. Texas State

THE SETTING
The Iowa Hawkeyes (0-0) open the 2008-09 season Sunday with a home game against Texas State (0-0). Tip-off is slated for 2:05 p.m. inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Tickets are $9 for adults, $5 for youths, while UI students are admitted free.

PROMOTIONS
Present your Penn State or Purdue football stub at the ticket window for one free admission to Sunday’s contest vs. Texas State. There will also be a pre-game Kids Fun Zone on the north concourse and post-game player autographs.

PRE-GAME CEREMONIES
Senior Kristi Smith will be honored with a souvenir basketball to commemorate her 1,000th career point. She scored it last March against Purdue in the Big Ten Tournament in Indianapolis. Also, the Hawkeyes will unveil their Big Ten championship and NCAA Tournament banner, which is located in the rafters in the southwest corner of Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

IOWA IN SEASON OPENERS
Iowa is a perfect 8-0 in season openers under Head Coach Lisa Bluder. Sunday will mark the seventh time in the last eight years the Hawkeyes will open the season at home. The Black and Gold boast a +17.9 margin of victory in the last eight season openers.

IOWA WINS ITS TWO EXHIBITION GAMES
Iowa beat Quincy (88-57) and Upper Iowa (74-54) in its two exhibition games. Senior Wendy Ausdemore averaged 17.5 points and 3.0 assists, senior Megan Skouby averaged 15.5 points and 11 rebounds and freshman Kamille Wahlin averaged 10 points, five rebounds and five assists in the two games. Junior JoAnn Hamlin, who did not play in the first exhibition contest due to injury, played 19 minutes against Upper Iowa. She collected 10 points, six rebounds and four assists. In the two games, Iowa shot 33-43 (.767) from the charity stripe and averaged 21.5 assists.

SCOUTING TEXAS STATE
Texas State will open its season at Drake (Friday) before traveling to Iowa City. The Bobcats return 13 letterwinners, including two starters from a team that went 21-11 a year ago, including a 14-2 first place finish in the Southland Conference. Texas State’s 15-player roster features junior Megan Homan, who hails from Remsen, IA. Homan transferred to Texas State this year after playing two seasons at Des Moines Area CC. There are five seniors on the Maroon and Gold’s 2008-09 roster. The Bobcats’ top returnees include juniors Aimee Hilburn and Victoria Davis and senior Ashley Cole. Davis averaged 7.4 points, Hilburn averaged 7.1 points and 6.2 rebounds, and Cole averaged 11.4 points and 4.0 boards. Sophomore Gabriell Mattox will likely start Sunday at forward, seeing game action for the first time in two years after transferring from the University of Texas. Last year, Texas State had one of the best 3-point threats in the nation. Joyce Ekworomadu, who was a senior last year, made 82-188 (.436) to rank seventh nationally in percentage. Iowa’s Wendy Ausdemore, who was a junior last season, ranked third (78-171, .456). Texas State is coached by Suzanne Fox, who enters her 17th year (259-201, .563) as a head coach and her 12th (142-168, .458) with the Bobcats.

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PURDUE WOMEN’S BASKETBALL SIGNS HOUSER, OSTARELLO AND WILSON

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Purdue head women's basketball coach Sharon Versyp announced Wednesday that the Boilermakers have secured another outstanding group of prospective student-athletes. Three of the country's top high school players have signed a National Letter of Intent to attend Purdue beginning in the fall of 2009.

Michaela “KK” Houser, a 5-foot-7 guard from Lincoln, Neb., (Southeast High School), Sam Ostarello, a 6-foot-2 forward from Fort Pierre, S.D., (Stanley County High School) and Ashley Wilson, a 6-foot forward from Wheeling, Ill., (Wheeling High School) all made their official commitments to the Boilermakers during the early signing period, which began Wednesday and continues through Nov. 21.

All three student-athletes are rated among the top 100 players in the country by the All-Star Collegiate Girls Basketball Report and the signing class is ranked No. 13 nationally.

“These three girls are a very versatile group, they bring with them energy, competitiveness and the ability to play multiple positions,” coach Versyp said. “We’re very excited about them being a top-13 recruiting class.”

Purdue is ranked 23rd in the Associated Press Top 25 poll with 11 letter winners and four returning starters back from the 2007-08 campaign. The Boilermakers are coming off a 19-15 record in 2007-08 that included a third place finish in the Big Ten Conference, a Big Ten Tournament championship and a trip to the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Purdue also welcomes back All-American candidate Lindsay Wisdom-Hylton who missed last season after ACL surgery and junior Jodi Howell who sat out last year after undergoing two surgeries on her shoulder.

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