LAST TIME OUT
- The Southwest Minnesota State women's basketball team (16-11, 14-8 NSIC) secured the fifth seed in the NSIC Tournament on Saturday afternoon, defeating the Wayne State Wildcats (10-18, 5-17 NSIC) 58-46 in Wayne, Neb.
- Audrey Swanson led the way for SMSU with 12 points and 10 rebounds for her third straight double double.
- Nicole Maenke and Brynn Busse each scored 11 points, shooting a combined 6 of 14 from 3-point range, and Kylan Gerads added 10 points and eight boards.
- SMSU shot 34 percent from the floor as a team (21 of 6) and 35 percent from deep (9 of 26). The Mustangs outrebounded WSC 44-30 (16-5 on the offensive glass), leading in steals 11-8, and forced 18 total Wildcat turnovers. WSC was led in scoring by Kylah vanDonkersgoed with 13 points, shooting 35 percent from the field (18 of 52) and 24 percent from deep (4 of 17).
HEAD COACH TOM WEBB
- TOM WEBB is in his 10th season as head coach at SMSU with a 140-130 record, including 105-103 in NSIC play.
- Webb is 231-253 overall in his 18th season as head coach at the Division II level after compiling a record of 91-123 in eight seasons (2008-16) as head coach at Cameron University (Okla.).
- In 2024-25, SMSU advanced to the NSIC championship, and the NCAA Central Region Championship, the first time for Coach Webb at SMSU.
- The team finished with 28 victories a season ago, the most in a single season in program history.
- SMSU also recorded a second place finish in the NSIC last season posting a 19-3 league mark, the programs most conference wins in a season.
MORE ON MINNESOTA CROOKSTON
- 2025-26 Record: 8-20 overall, 7-15 NSIC
- Head Coach: Natalie Moynihan, 3rd season (26-56)
- Senior guard Emma Miller leads the Golden Eagles averaging 19.5 ppg and 86 assists on the season. Miller became the NSIC's all-time leading scorer in women's basketball on Feb. 12, currently sitting at 1,692 points in NSIC games, and over 2,000 for her career. Miller has scored 25+ in seven games this season.
- Junior forward Rayna Klejeski averages 12.4 ppg for the Golden Eagles as well as 6.1 rpg, leading UMC. Klejeski, a 51 percent shooter from the floor, scored a career-high 21 points against Northern State on Feb. 5 and has scored in the double-digits for 10 consecutive games.
- Minnesota Crookston finished the NSIC season with a 7-15 record, one game ahead of Augustana and Bemidji State, and earning a 12 seed in the NSIC Tournament. This is UMC's third tournament appearance in the last four seasons.
- The Golden Eagles are 3-3 in their last six games, with wins over fellow tournament teams Minot State and Northern State. UMC has dropped their last three in a row, against UMary, Minnesota Duluth, and Bemidji State.
SERIES HISTORY
- SMSU and UMC will meet for the 42nd time on Wednesday, with the Mustangs holding a 28-13 advantage.
- With SMSU's win on Jan. 24, the Mustangs have won the last seven meetings, and have won the last five in the R/A Facility.
- Coach Webb holds an 8-2 record against Minnesota Crookston at SMSU.
MUSTANGS BY THE NUMBERS
- SMSU finished the regular season with four players averaging double figures in points, with Audrey Swanson leading the team averaging 17.9 ppg.
- Nicole Maenke with eight 20+ point games is second on the team with 14.0 ppg, while Natalie Nielsen averaged both 13.2 ppg and 8.7 rpg ,while shooting 54.5 percent from the field, and leading the team with 21 blocks. Nielsen however will miss the rest of the season due to injury.
- Sophomore Kylan Gerads has six games of 20+ points and averages 12.8 ppg.
- The Mustangs are shooting 44 percent from the field, 35 percent from 3-point shots, 81 percent from the free throw line and are +4.8 in the rebound margin. SMSU is averaging 72 ppg while opponents are averaging 69 ppg.
SMSU INSIDE THE R/A FACILITY
- The 2025-26 season marks the 30th year the R/A Facility has served as the home arena for SMSU women's basketball.
- SMSU has an all-time record of 213-174 (.551) in 387 games with 16 winning seasons.
GAME LINKS