Completed Event: Women's Basketball versus No. 6 Washington on March 20, 2026 , Loss , 54, to, 72
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FINAL
Women's Basketball
54
vs No. 6 Washington
72
South Dakota State University Athletics
Jacks begin road swing at Southern Utah
1/8/2010 10:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
After suffering its first home Summit League loss, the South Dakota State University women's basketball team will attempt to get back on the winning track when it travels Saturday to Southern Utah.
Tipoff is scheduled for 5 p.m. Mountain Time (6 p.m. Central) at Centrum Arena on the Southern Utah University campus in Cedar City. The men's game will follow at 7:30 p.m. MT (8:30 p.m. CT).
The defending league champion Jackrabbits come into Saturday's matchup 7-7 overall and 3-1 in Summit League play. SDSU will be making its second trip to Utah in three weeks — the Jackrabbits dropped a 62-58 decision at the University of Utah Dec. 19 in Salt Lake City.
Southern Utah has posted a 3-11 overall record, including a 1-2 mark in Summit League action under first-year JR Payne. The Thunderbirds are coming off a 71-58 loss at UMKC Monday night.
THE SERIES: Saturday's game will mark the fifth meeting between South Dakota State and Oral Roberts in women's basketball, a series that began when the Jackrabbits joined The Summit League at the start of the 2007-08 season.
SDSU has won all four previous meetings, none of which has been decided by fewer than 37 points:
• SDSU 76, Southern Utah 35 — Jan. 19, 2008, at Frost Arena
• SDSU 82, Southern Utah 36 — Feb. 18, 2008, at Cedar City, Utah
• SDSU 87, Southern Utah 50 — Jan. 17, 2009, at Cedar City, Utah
• SDSU 87, Southern Utah 42 — Feb. 16, 2009, at Frost Arena
In the first meeting last season, the Jackrabbits led only by five at halftime, but outscored SUU 54-22 in the second half, shooting 75 percent (18-of-24) in the final 20 minutes, en route to the 87-50 victory.
Summit League Player of the Year Jennifer Warkenthien scored a game-high 28 points to lead the Jackrabbits, while Kristin Rotert added 12 and Ketty Cornemann and Jill Young each scored 10.
Anne Westwood-Higbee led SUU with 20 points. Caitlyn Sears added 13.
In the rematch at Frost Arena, the Jackrabbits completed a perfect home season with an 87-42 victory. All five starters scored in double figures, led by Warkenthien with 19 and Cornemann with 14. Rotert tallied 12 points, followed by 11 from Maria Boever and 10 by Macie Michelson.
Sears again led the Thunderbirds with 13 points. Dani Hosking chipped in with 11.
JACKRABBITS ONLINE: Audio and video coverage of Saturday's game is scheduled to be available via subscription service at GoJacks.com, the official website of SDSU athletics. Monthly subscriptions for the Jackrabbit Extra, which includes live audio and video streaming of most Jackrabbit basketball games, are available for $9.95 per month or $79.95 on a limited-time basis for an entire year of coverage. An audio-only subscription also is available for $4.95 per month, with programming consisting only of live radio broadcasts.
Local radio coverage begins at 5:30 p.m. Central Time on the Jackrabbit Radio Network, with Tyler Merriam calling the play-by-play. Brookings-based KJJQ 910 AM will serve as the flagship station of the network, with coverage of Saturday's game also available on WNAX 570 AM in Yankton and KRKI 99.5 FM in Rapid City.
JACKRABBIT INSIDER: Throughout the 2009-10 women's basketball season, head coach Aaron Johnston will be a guest on the “Jackrabbit Insider,” a weekly behind-the-scenes look at South Dakota State University athletics.
The half-hour television show which features highlights of SDSU athletic events, as well as interviews with Jackrabbit coaches and student-athletes, airs Sundays at 10:35 p.m., following KSFY ActionNews. The show also can be viewed online at GoJacks.com.
LAST WEEK: The Jackrabbits split a weekend home series, downing Centenary (La.) and falling to Oral Roberts (Okla.).
SDSU 82, Centenary 35
South Dakota State blitzed Centenary (La.) with runs of 20-0 and 18-0 in the first half, rolling to an 82-35 victory Jan. 2 at Frost Arena.
Four players scored in double figures for the Jackrabbits, who improved to 7-6 overall and remained unbeaten in league play at 3-0. Centenary dropped to 1-13 overall, 0-3 in The Summit League.
The Jackrabbits came out clicking offensively as they opened the game with an 8-0 run and made six of their first seven shots from the field. Centenary was 4-of-5 from the floor to start the game as the Ladies pulled to within 14-10 on a three-pointer by Michaela Berg four and a half minutes into the contest.
The rest of the half was all Jackrabbits. SDSU scored the next 20 points over a five-and-a-half-minute span. Kristin Rotert led the way with eight points in the spurt, including a pair of three-pointers.
Berg's second three-pointer of the opening frame, with 9 minutes and 17 seconds remaining, proved to be the Ladies' last field goal of the half. The Jackrabbits strung together their 18-0 run to go up 53-15 before Ashley Jackson's free throw with 28 seconds left in the stanza ended the drought.
SDSU, which did not commit a turnover until the eight-minute mark, ended the first half 21-of-33 from the field, 63.6 percent, including 5-for-7 from three-point range. Nine different players scored, led by Ketty Cornemann and Maria Boever, who each reached double figures before intermission with 11 and 10 points, respectively.
The Jackrabbits built their lead to 40 points early in the second half and maintained that margin for most of the remainder of the game. The final spread of 47 points was SDSU's largest of the evening.
Rotert led all scorers with 15 points as she made a team-best three three-pointers for the seventh time this season. Boever finished with 12 points, while Ashley Eide came off the bench to score a dozen. Cornemann ended the game with 11. Boever also tallied a game-high eight rebounds to lead the Jackrabbits' 37-25 advantage on the boards.
SDSU ended the game 31-of-56 from the field, 55.4 percent, including 7-of-15 from three-point range. The Jackrabbits' worst shooting performance of the night came from the free throw line, where they went 13-of-25, 52 percent.
Centenary was led by Berg's eight points off the bench. Anne Farrell and Sarah Weiler each recorded four rebounds.
The Ladies made only six field goals in each half, finishing the game 12-of-43 from the field, 27.9 percent, including 3-for-11 on three-pointers. Centenary fared better at the line, making 8-of-10 attempts.
SDSU committed a season-low 10 turnovers, compared to 23 by Centenary.
Oral Roberts 81, SDSU 72
Oral Roberts built a 19-point halftime lead and never allowed South Dakota State to gain any meaningful traction, handing the Jackrabbits their first Summit League home loss, 81-72, Jan. 4 at Frost Arena.
Jaci Bigham scored a game-high 34 points and added eight assists for Oral Roberts, which improved to 9-6 overall and 3-1 in The Summit League. SDSU dropped to 7-7 overall and 3-1 in league play.
ORU, which never trailed in the game, came out blazing by connecting on 11 of its first 14 shots from the field as it built an early seven-point point.
SDSU put together a 9-2 run, including back-to-back three-pointers by Jill Young, to tie the game for the final time at 17-all on a three-point play by Jennie Sunnarborg with 14 minutes remaining in the front half.
The Jackrabbits turned the ball over 14 times in the opening 20 minutes and went nearly six minutes on either side of the halfway point without a field goal as ORU went on a 13-1 run to build a 15-point lead, 35-20. SDSU got back to within 10, 39-29, on a three-pointer by Kristin Rotert, but the Golden Eagles closed the half with 13-4 spurt, capped by a Bigham layup in the closing seconds.
ORU shot 64.5 percent from the field in the first half, 20-of-31, including 7-for-10 from three-point range.
In the second half, every time the Jackrabbits appeared on the verge of making a run, ORU slammed the door shut. More times than not, Bigham was the one doing the damage. A freshman guard, Bigham made 5-of-6 shots in the second half and 13-of-17 for the game, while adding eight assists and eight rebounds.
The Jackrabbits closed the gap with a late 11-2 spurt, but it was too little, too late as SDSU dropped its first Summit League home game in 20 outings since joining the league at the start of the 2007-08 season.
ORU ended the game 31-of-61 from the field, 50.8 percent, including 10-for-23 from long range. At the line, the Golden Eagles made 9-of-10 attempts.
Kevi Luper added 20 points and five steals for ORU, while Jordan Pyle contributed 14 points and a game-high nine rebounds as the Golden Eagles held a 34-32 advantage on the boards.
The Jackrabbits finished 25-of-56 from the floor, 44.6 percent, with a 6-for-18 effort from three-point range. SDSU also went 16-of-24 at the stripe, 66.7 percent.
Maria Boever tied her season high with 21 points, followed by 14 points from Ketty Cornemann and 12 by Young, who canned four three-pointers in the contest. Boever and reserve Ashley Eide each grabbed seven rebounds to lead SDSU.
OFFENSIVE EFFICIENCY: As the calendar turned from November, the Jackrabbit offense has heated up.
SDSU began the month of December by shooting 50 percent or better from the field in three consecutive games, including a 62 percent (31-of-50) performance against Middle Tennessee State on Dec. 13 that stands as the best shooting effort in the Division I era.
Combined, the Jackrabbits have gone 213-of-436, 48.9 percent, over the last eight games, including 56-of-132, 42.4 percent, from three-point range. SDSU has averaged 74.8 points per game in posting a 5-3 record since Dec. 1, while also cutting its turnover average by 4.3 per game from the first month of the season.
The Jackrabbits enter Saturday's game leading The Summit League in overall field goal percentage (45.2 percent) and three-point percentage (39.3 percent).
SUMMIT LEAGUE DOMINANCE: South Dakota State has built an impressive Summit League résumé as it plays its third season in the 10-team conference.
In its two-plus seasons as a league member, the Jackrabbits have compiled a 36-4 record in Summit League regular season games en route to consecutive outright league titles with records of 16-2 in 2007-08 and 17-1 during the 2008-09 season. SDSU has gone 19-1 at home and has won at least one game on every other Summit League member's home court.
SDSU also is 3-0 in Summit League postseason tournament games after winning the 2009 championship in its first year of eligibility. The Summit League Championship returns to Sioux Falls March 6-9, 2010.
PRESEASON FAVORITES: The South Dakota State University women's basketball team is a near-unanimous pick to repeat as Summit League champions, as selected by the annual preseason poll of league coaches, sports information directors and media, which was released in October.
The Jackrabbits, who return four starters, received 25 of the 27 first-place votes to tally 419 points. Oakland University (Mich.), which lost to SDSU in the Summit League Championship last season, earned one first-place vote and finished second in the poll with 365 points. North Dakota State was third with 318 points, while Oral Roberts (Okla.) picked up the other first-place vote to finish fourth with 289 points.
PRESEASON HONORS: Although South Dakota State does not have a player on the preseason all-Summit League First Team, four Jackrabbit players received preseason accolades by being named to the all-league second team: senior forwards Maria Boever and Ketty Cornemann, junior guard/forward Kristin Rotert and sophomore guard Jill Young.
Boever, a 6-foot-1 senior forward from Worthington, Minn., earned honorable mention all-Summit League honors last season after averaging 10.0 points and 6.0 rebounds per game. She scored in double figures 14 times and added a pair of double-digit rebounding performances.
A 5-11 senior forward, Cornemann earned all-Summit League second-team recognition during the 2008-09 season. One of only two Jackrabbits to start all 35 games, she reached double figures 13 times en route to averaging 8.2 points and 3.1 rebounds per game.
Rotert, a 6-foot junior wing, was another honorable mention all-league performer after averaging 10.1 points and 3.0 rebounds per game. She ranked second on the team with 60 three-pointers and had the tendency to rise to the occasion in big games, posting double figures for scoring 17 times.
Young, a 5-7 sophomore guard, earned Summit League Sixth Woman of the Year honors and a spot on the Summit League All-Newcomer Team after ranking second on the team in scoring at 10.2 points per game. The Mitchell native established a Jackrabbit freshman record with 82 three-pointers.
UMKC guard Chazny Morris was named the Preseason Player of the Year. She was joined on the first team by North Dakota State guard Inger Hodgson, IPFW guard Chelsey Jackson, Oakland guard Melissa Jeltema, Oral Roberts guard/forward Janae Voelker and IUPUI center Julia Whitted.
DIFFICULT SCHEDULE: The Jackrabbit women's basketball team wrapped up a difficult slate of non-conference games with the Dec. 28 victory over Northern Iowa.
Of SDSU's 10 non-conference games, eight were against an opponent that played in the postseason a year ago. Seven of those games were against fellow NCAA Tournament teams as the Jackrabbits met Virginia in the second round of the Junkanoo Jam in The Bahamas.
Two of SDSU's opponents are ranked in either of the top 25 of this week's Associated Press or ESPN/USA Today coaches' polls: Virginia (21/19) and Arizona State (RV/24). Gonzaga (Wash.) received votes in both polls, while Middle Tennessee State received a vote in the AP poll.
DEPTH AND BALANCE: The Jackrabbits have had at least two players score in double figures in all 14 games so far this season, and nine different players have tallied double digits for scoring.
Senior forward Maria Boever has led or shared top-scoring honors six times this season, while Kristin Rotert has paced the Jackrabbits four times, including a season-high 24 points — the most by an SDSU player this season — Dec. 28 against Northern Iowa.
A list of double-figure scoring games follows:
Gonzaga • Maria Boever (21), Jill Young (15), Leah Dietel (12), Ketty Cornemann (10)
Arizona State • Kristin Rotert (14), Jennie Sunnarborg (11)
Illinois State • Boever (17), Rotert (15), Sunnarborg (12), Macie Michelson (10)
Western Kentucky • Rotert (16), Michelson (13), Boever (11), Cornemann (10)
Charlotte • Boever (18), Rotert (13), Young (10)
Virginia • Boever (14), Steph Paluch (14), Rotert (14)
Western Illinois • Boever (14), Cornemann (14), Rotert (13)
IUPUI • Cornemann (18), Boever (14), Sunnarborg (13), Young (11)
Middle Tennesee State • Ashley Eide (17), Boever (13), Rotert (13), Sunnarborg (12), Young (11)
Utah • Rotert (13), Boever (10), Michelson (10)
Iowa • Young (16), Cornemann (14), Boever (13)
Northern Iowa • Rotert (24), Young (10)
Centenary • Rotert (15), Boever (12), Eide (12), Cornemann (11)
Oral Roberts • Boever (21), Cornemann (14), Young (12)
YOUTHFUL BENCH: While the Jackrabbits return four of their five regular starters from a year ago, SDSU will rely on a number of underclassmen to fill reserve roles this season.
Of the 15 players on the roster, five are true freshmen, one is a redshirt freshman, threeare sophomores, three are juniors and three are seniors.
With reigning Summit League Sixth Woman of the Year Jill Young settling into a starting role, the next top returning scorer off the bench is sophomore Jennie Sunnarborg, who
averaged 3.3 points per game during the 2008-09 campaign, but has nearly doubled her scoring output to 6.3 points per game so far this season.
The Jackrabbits will look for an expanded role for sophomore guard Vanessa Johnson, who missed nearly half the 2008-09 season due to injury. Johnson averaged only 0.6 points per game during the 2008-09 season, but provides the Jackrabbits with another perimeter shooting threat.
Other returning bench players include senior point guard Alison Anderson and junior forward Jennifer Schuttloffel.
Of the six players in the freshman class, four are from the state of South Dakota. Ashley Eide (Sioux Falls), Tara Heiser (Watertown) and Steph Paluch (Pierre) will fill guard slots, while Katie Lingle (Pierre) will back up in the post. Heiser is expected to redshirt this season.
Rounding out the freshman class are Jordan, Minn., native Leah Dietel at forward and redshirt freshman post player Cala Westergard. A native of Charles City, Iowa, Westergard played in her first official game since her junior year of high school in the Nov. 15 matchup at Arizona State. Westergard missed her senior year of high school due to injury.
Despite its youth, the Jackrabbit reserves have outscored their counterparts in nine of the 14 games this season. Ashley Eide has been the top scorer off the bench in four of SDSU's last six games.
FOR STARTERS: Despite returning four regular starters from last year's squad, the Jackrabbit women's basketball team has shaken up the starting lineup this season. Through the first 14 games, SDSU has used three different starting lineups, with seven players cracking the starting five.
Maria Boever, Macie Michelson and Kristin Rotert have started all 14 games so far this season. The trio have teamed with Ketty Cornemann and Jill Young to start the last eight games, during which the Jackrabbits have posted a 5-3 record.
• Gonzaga: Cornemann, Sunnarborg, Boever, Michelson, Rotert
• at Arizona State: Cornemann, Sunnarborg, Boever, Michelson, Rotert
• at Illinois State: Dietel, Boever, Michelson, Young, Rotert
• Western Kentucky: Dietel, Boever, Michelson, Young, Rotert
• vs. Charlotte: Dietel, Boever, Michelson, Young, Rotert
• vs. Virginia: Dietel, Boever, Michelson, Young, Rotert
• at Western Illinois: Cornemann, Boever, Michelson, Young, Rotert
• at IUPUI: Cornemann, Boever, Michelson, Young, Rotert
• Middle Tennessee: Cornemann, Boever, Michelson, Young, Rotert
• Utah: Cornemann, Boever, Michelson, Young, Rotert
• Iowa: Cornemann, Boever, Michelson, Young, Rotert
• Northern Iowa: Cornemann, Boever, Michelson, Young, Rotert
• Centenary: Cornemann, Boever, Michelson, Young, Rotert
100 D-I WINS: Since moving up to the NCAA Division I ranks at the start of the 2004-05 season, the Jackrabbits have posted a winning record against D-I opponents. In its five-plus seasons competing at the Division I level, SDSU has compiled a 109-39 mark (.736 winning percentage) versus D-I opposition. The Jackrabbits have posted victories over 50 different Division I teams representing 18 conferences plus independents.
750 WINS: The Jackrabbits' victory over Oakland in the 2009 Summit League championship game was the 750th in the women's basketball program's history. Since the modern era of women's basketball at South Dakota State University began with a 6-0 mark during the 1966-67 season, the Jacks have gone on to compile an overall record of 758-337 (.692 winning percentage).
SDSU has a streak of 23 consecutive winning seasons.The Jackrabbits' last losing season was an 11-16 campaign during the 1985-86 season.
OPENING SUCCESS: The Jackrabbits' 75-71 overtime victory against Gonzaga in the 2009-10 season opener on Nov. 13 marked the 17th consecutive season SDSU opened with a win.
The last time the Jackrabbits lost a season opener was during the 1992-93 season, when they fell 74-72 to Moorhead State (Minn.).
TOUGH AT HOME: For the first time since Aaron Johnston's first full season as head coach — 2000-01 — the Jackrabbit women's basketball team has lost more than one home game.
In his tenure as Jackrabbit head coach, Johnston has led the Jackrabbits to a 120-14 record (.896 winning percentage) at Frost Arena, including a 65-6 mark at home during the Division I era. The Jackrabbits have put together winning streaks of 15, 15 and 22 in the process.
Since the start of the 2001-02 season, SDSU has a 109-9 home record, losing an average of just one game at Frost Arena each full season. The Jackrabbits capped the 2008-09 regular season with a 14-0 record — a mark that stands as the first undefeated home season in school history.
A loss to Western Kentucky earlier this season snapped a 35-game regular season home winning streak, as well as a 15-game overall winning streak that began after the Jackrabbits lost to Creighton (Neb.) in the opening round of the 2008 Women's NIT.
SDSU's loss to Oral Roberts on Jan. 4 marked its first home loss to a Summit League opponent. The Jackrabbits are 19-1 at Frost Arena against Summit League foes since joining the league in 2007-08.
BOEVER TOPS 1,000: South Dakota State senior forward Maria Boever became the 27th member of the Jackrabbit 1,000-Point Club, accomplishing the feat Dec. 7 at IUPUI.
With 14 points in the game, Boever upped her career total to 1,010 points. She has since gone on to tally 1,085 career points in 105 career games as she moved past Sarita DeBoer (1,003 points from 2002-05) for 26th place. Next on the career scoring list is Dawn Hull, who scored 1,125 points from 1993-96.
A senior from Worthington, Minn., Boever finished as the team's second-leading scorer during her sophomore season in 2007-08 with an average of 12.2 points per game, then ranked fourth last year on a balanced Jackrabbit team with 10 points per game.
Two other Jackrabbit players could reach the 1,000-point plateau later this season: senior Ketty Cornemann and junior Kristin Rotert. Cornemann has tallied 817 career points, while Rotert has 811 career points.
100 GAMES: Jackrabbit seniors and three-year starters Maria Boever and Ketty Cornemann each played in their 100th career game Dec. 13 against Middle Tennessee State.
During their three-plus seasons with the Jackrabbits, SDSU has posted a combined record of 87-23, while both Boever and Cornemann have played in 105 career games.
SDSU's third member of the senior class, Alison Anderson, has played in 98 games in a Jackrabbit uniform.
DOUBLE DUTY: Maria Boever has posted a pair of double-doubles for points and rebounds while leading the team in both categories — 13.9 ppg and 6.9 rpg — through 14 games.
Boever began the season with 21 points and 11 rebounds in the season-opening overtime victory over Gonzaga, then added 11 points and 10 boards in a home loss to Western Kentucky.
THREE-POINT PROWESS: As a team, the Jackrabbits ranked fifth among Division I women's basketball teams by making an average of 8.5 three-pointers per game last season.
SDSU tied school and NCAA Tournament single-game records with 16 trifectas in its opening-round win over Texas Christian. The Jackrabbits made 10 or more three-pointers in a game nine times.
The Jackrabbits' 291 three-pointers as a team set SDSU and Summit League single-records, surpasing the school-record mark of 288 set by the 2001-02 squad, which was the first Jackrabbit team to qualify for the NCAA Division II Elite Eight.
Through 14 games this season, the Jackrabbits have made 102 three-pointers, an average of 7.29 per game, while shooting a Summit League-best 38.9 percent (102-of-262) from beyond the arc. SDSU's opponents are 60-of-196 from behind the arc, 30.6 percent.
YOUNG FOR 3: Sophomore guard Jill Young will attempt to build on a strong showing from behind the three-point arc during her first season in a Jackrabbit uniform.
The Mitchell native ranked third among NCAA Division I players during the 2008-09 season by shooting at a 46.1 percent (82-of-178) clip from three-point range. Young's 82 made three-pointers also set a Jackrabbit freshman record, eclipsing the mark of 58 set by Kristin Rotert during the 2007-08 campaign.
Young comes into Saturday's matchup against Southern Utah with 110 career three-pointers, topping the 100 mark with three triples Dec. 13 against Middle Tennessee State. She has made at least one three-pointer in 13 of the 14 games this season, including a season-best four three-pointers Jan. 4 against Oral Roberts.
For her career, Young is shooting 43.8 percent from three-point range, 110-of-251.
ROTERT CRACKS TOP 10: Junior wing Kristin Rotert joined the Jackrabbit career top 10 this season and is on pace to move up a few more spots this season.
The Salem native leads the team with 30 three-pointers after making three three-pointers in a game seven different times this season. She upped her career total to 148 with one trifecta Jan. 4 against Oral Roberts. Next on the list is Andrea Verdegan, whose eighth-place total of 152 three-pointers was accumulated from 2005-08.
Rotert set a then-freshman record with 58 three-pointers during the 2007-08 season and ranked second on the team with 60 treys last season.
100 3's TIMES THREE: Senior forward Ketty Cornemann enters Saturday's game four three-pointers away from becoming the third current Jackrabbit player to sink 100 career three-pointers. The Yankton native leads The Summit League in three-point shooting percentage this season, shooting at a 43.2 percent (16-of-37) clip from long range.
JOHNSON JOINS THE CROWD: Sophomore guard Vanessa Johnson became the 12th Jackrabbit player this season to make a three-pointer, when she canned a trifecta from the right wing in the first half of the Jan. 2 game against Centenary. Johnson finished the game with a career-high five points.
RUNNING THE POINT: Junior point guard Macie Michelson has added to her team-leading assist total with a combined 15 assists and only five turnovers in the last three games.
Michelson leads the team with 53 assists and ranks third in The Summit League with an average of 3.79 assists per game.
EIDE OFF THE BENCH: Freshman wing Ashley Eide has given the Jackrabbits a boost off the bench in recent weeks. In the recently completed weekend Summit League set, Eide led Jackrabbit reserves in scoring each game. She was a perfect 5-for-5 from the field en route to 12 points against Centenary (La.) on Jan. 2, then scored eight points and grabbed a career-high seven rebounds Jan. 4 versus Oral Roberts.
Eide scored a career-high 17 points against Middle Tennessee State on Dec. 13.
BATTLE OF THE BOARDS: The Jackrabbit women's basketball team had its streak of winning 36 consecutive games in which it has held a rebounding advantage end in the 81-74 loss Nov. 22 to Western Kentucky. SDSU won the last 10 games of the 2007-08 season, all 25 during the 2008-09 season and the first game of the 2009-10 season in which it held an edge on the boards.
Previously, the last time SDSU lost a game it won the battle of the boards was a 67-60 defeat at Western Illinois on Jan. 14, 2008.
The Jackrabbits' victory over Northern Iowa on Dec. 28 marked the first time this season SDSU won a game in which it was out-rebounded.
COACH AARON JOHNSTON: Now in his 10th season as head coach of the South Dakota State University women's basketball team, Aaron Johnston has taken the Jackrabbit program to the top of NCAA Division II and is leading SDSU to national prominence at the Division I level.
Johnston, who coached his 300th game Dec. 19 at Utah, has compiled a career record of 232-72 (.763 winning percentage), ranking second on the SDSU career victories list behind his predecessor, Nancy Neiber, who compiled a 301-140 record in 16 seasons from 1985-2000. Johnston posted his 200th career victory on Dec. 4, 2008, when the Jackrabbits defeated Centenary (La.) His career totals have included a 36-4 record (.900 winning percentage) in Summit League regular season games and a 16-5 mark (.762 winning percentage) in postseason games.
The Summit League Coach of the Year in each of the Jackrabbits' first two seasons in the 10-team league, Johnston was named a finalist for the 2009 Naismith Award as the nation's top coach. SDSU tied a school record for victories in a season with 32 during the 2008-09 campaign and gained national attention by vaulting into the top 25 in December after non-conference victories over the likes of Wisconsin, Utah, Minnesota and Gonzaga (Wash.). The Jackrabbits were ranked in the final 13 USAToday/ESPN regular season coaches' polls, climbing as high as 14th in the coaches' poll and 16th in the Associated Press poll. SDSU finished the 2008-09 season ranked 19th in the coaches' poll.
Along the way to a 32-3 overall record, the Jackrabbits received national media coverage from CBS Sports, USA Today, ESPN.com, Sports Illustrated and The New York Times.
THE ROSTER: The 2009-10 SDSU women's basketball roster features 15 players from three different states. Of the 15 players, nine are from South Dakota, five are from Minnesota and one is from Iowa. By class, three are seniors, three are juniors, three are sophomores, one is a redshirt freshman and five are incoming freshmen.
A LOOK AHEAD: After Saturday's game, the Jackrabbits will head to UMKC for a Jan. 11 matchup in Kansas City. Monday's game time is set for 7 p.m. at Swinney Recreation Center on the UMKC campus.
The Jackrabbits complete a three-game road swing Jan. 16 at North Dakota State.
SDSU's next home game is Jan. 23, when the Jackrabbits host a doubleheader against Oakland. Tipoff of the women's game is 5 p.m. at Frost Arena, followed by the men's game at 7:30 p.m.
Tipoff is scheduled for 5 p.m. Mountain Time (6 p.m. Central) at Centrum Arena on the Southern Utah University campus in Cedar City. The men's game will follow at 7:30 p.m. MT (8:30 p.m. CT).
The defending league champion Jackrabbits come into Saturday's matchup 7-7 overall and 3-1 in Summit League play. SDSU will be making its second trip to Utah in three weeks — the Jackrabbits dropped a 62-58 decision at the University of Utah Dec. 19 in Salt Lake City.
Southern Utah has posted a 3-11 overall record, including a 1-2 mark in Summit League action under first-year JR Payne. The Thunderbirds are coming off a 71-58 loss at UMKC Monday night.
THE SERIES: Saturday's game will mark the fifth meeting between South Dakota State and Oral Roberts in women's basketball, a series that began when the Jackrabbits joined The Summit League at the start of the 2007-08 season.
SDSU has won all four previous meetings, none of which has been decided by fewer than 37 points:
• SDSU 76, Southern Utah 35 — Jan. 19, 2008, at Frost Arena
• SDSU 82, Southern Utah 36 — Feb. 18, 2008, at Cedar City, Utah
• SDSU 87, Southern Utah 50 — Jan. 17, 2009, at Cedar City, Utah
• SDSU 87, Southern Utah 42 — Feb. 16, 2009, at Frost Arena
In the first meeting last season, the Jackrabbits led only by five at halftime, but outscored SUU 54-22 in the second half, shooting 75 percent (18-of-24) in the final 20 minutes, en route to the 87-50 victory.
Summit League Player of the Year Jennifer Warkenthien scored a game-high 28 points to lead the Jackrabbits, while Kristin Rotert added 12 and Ketty Cornemann and Jill Young each scored 10.
Anne Westwood-Higbee led SUU with 20 points. Caitlyn Sears added 13.
In the rematch at Frost Arena, the Jackrabbits completed a perfect home season with an 87-42 victory. All five starters scored in double figures, led by Warkenthien with 19 and Cornemann with 14. Rotert tallied 12 points, followed by 11 from Maria Boever and 10 by Macie Michelson.
Sears again led the Thunderbirds with 13 points. Dani Hosking chipped in with 11.
JACKRABBITS ONLINE: Audio and video coverage of Saturday's game is scheduled to be available via subscription service at GoJacks.com, the official website of SDSU athletics. Monthly subscriptions for the Jackrabbit Extra, which includes live audio and video streaming of most Jackrabbit basketball games, are available for $9.95 per month or $79.95 on a limited-time basis for an entire year of coverage. An audio-only subscription also is available for $4.95 per month, with programming consisting only of live radio broadcasts.
Local radio coverage begins at 5:30 p.m. Central Time on the Jackrabbit Radio Network, with Tyler Merriam calling the play-by-play. Brookings-based KJJQ 910 AM will serve as the flagship station of the network, with coverage of Saturday's game also available on WNAX 570 AM in Yankton and KRKI 99.5 FM in Rapid City.
JACKRABBIT INSIDER: Throughout the 2009-10 women's basketball season, head coach Aaron Johnston will be a guest on the “Jackrabbit Insider,” a weekly behind-the-scenes look at South Dakota State University athletics.
The half-hour television show which features highlights of SDSU athletic events, as well as interviews with Jackrabbit coaches and student-athletes, airs Sundays at 10:35 p.m., following KSFY ActionNews. The show also can be viewed online at GoJacks.com.
LAST WEEK: The Jackrabbits split a weekend home series, downing Centenary (La.) and falling to Oral Roberts (Okla.).
SDSU 82, Centenary 35
South Dakota State blitzed Centenary (La.) with runs of 20-0 and 18-0 in the first half, rolling to an 82-35 victory Jan. 2 at Frost Arena.
Four players scored in double figures for the Jackrabbits, who improved to 7-6 overall and remained unbeaten in league play at 3-0. Centenary dropped to 1-13 overall, 0-3 in The Summit League.
The Jackrabbits came out clicking offensively as they opened the game with an 8-0 run and made six of their first seven shots from the field. Centenary was 4-of-5 from the floor to start the game as the Ladies pulled to within 14-10 on a three-pointer by Michaela Berg four and a half minutes into the contest.
The rest of the half was all Jackrabbits. SDSU scored the next 20 points over a five-and-a-half-minute span. Kristin Rotert led the way with eight points in the spurt, including a pair of three-pointers.
Berg's second three-pointer of the opening frame, with 9 minutes and 17 seconds remaining, proved to be the Ladies' last field goal of the half. The Jackrabbits strung together their 18-0 run to go up 53-15 before Ashley Jackson's free throw with 28 seconds left in the stanza ended the drought.
SDSU, which did not commit a turnover until the eight-minute mark, ended the first half 21-of-33 from the field, 63.6 percent, including 5-for-7 from three-point range. Nine different players scored, led by Ketty Cornemann and Maria Boever, who each reached double figures before intermission with 11 and 10 points, respectively.
The Jackrabbits built their lead to 40 points early in the second half and maintained that margin for most of the remainder of the game. The final spread of 47 points was SDSU's largest of the evening.
Rotert led all scorers with 15 points as she made a team-best three three-pointers for the seventh time this season. Boever finished with 12 points, while Ashley Eide came off the bench to score a dozen. Cornemann ended the game with 11. Boever also tallied a game-high eight rebounds to lead the Jackrabbits' 37-25 advantage on the boards.
SDSU ended the game 31-of-56 from the field, 55.4 percent, including 7-of-15 from three-point range. The Jackrabbits' worst shooting performance of the night came from the free throw line, where they went 13-of-25, 52 percent.
Centenary was led by Berg's eight points off the bench. Anne Farrell and Sarah Weiler each recorded four rebounds.
The Ladies made only six field goals in each half, finishing the game 12-of-43 from the field, 27.9 percent, including 3-for-11 on three-pointers. Centenary fared better at the line, making 8-of-10 attempts.
SDSU committed a season-low 10 turnovers, compared to 23 by Centenary.
Oral Roberts 81, SDSU 72
Oral Roberts built a 19-point halftime lead and never allowed South Dakota State to gain any meaningful traction, handing the Jackrabbits their first Summit League home loss, 81-72, Jan. 4 at Frost Arena.
Jaci Bigham scored a game-high 34 points and added eight assists for Oral Roberts, which improved to 9-6 overall and 3-1 in The Summit League. SDSU dropped to 7-7 overall and 3-1 in league play.
ORU, which never trailed in the game, came out blazing by connecting on 11 of its first 14 shots from the field as it built an early seven-point point.
SDSU put together a 9-2 run, including back-to-back three-pointers by Jill Young, to tie the game for the final time at 17-all on a three-point play by Jennie Sunnarborg with 14 minutes remaining in the front half.
The Jackrabbits turned the ball over 14 times in the opening 20 minutes and went nearly six minutes on either side of the halfway point without a field goal as ORU went on a 13-1 run to build a 15-point lead, 35-20. SDSU got back to within 10, 39-29, on a three-pointer by Kristin Rotert, but the Golden Eagles closed the half with 13-4 spurt, capped by a Bigham layup in the closing seconds.
ORU shot 64.5 percent from the field in the first half, 20-of-31, including 7-for-10 from three-point range.
In the second half, every time the Jackrabbits appeared on the verge of making a run, ORU slammed the door shut. More times than not, Bigham was the one doing the damage. A freshman guard, Bigham made 5-of-6 shots in the second half and 13-of-17 for the game, while adding eight assists and eight rebounds.
The Jackrabbits closed the gap with a late 11-2 spurt, but it was too little, too late as SDSU dropped its first Summit League home game in 20 outings since joining the league at the start of the 2007-08 season.
ORU ended the game 31-of-61 from the field, 50.8 percent, including 10-for-23 from long range. At the line, the Golden Eagles made 9-of-10 attempts.
Kevi Luper added 20 points and five steals for ORU, while Jordan Pyle contributed 14 points and a game-high nine rebounds as the Golden Eagles held a 34-32 advantage on the boards.
The Jackrabbits finished 25-of-56 from the floor, 44.6 percent, with a 6-for-18 effort from three-point range. SDSU also went 16-of-24 at the stripe, 66.7 percent.
Maria Boever tied her season high with 21 points, followed by 14 points from Ketty Cornemann and 12 by Young, who canned four three-pointers in the contest. Boever and reserve Ashley Eide each grabbed seven rebounds to lead SDSU.
OFFENSIVE EFFICIENCY: As the calendar turned from November, the Jackrabbit offense has heated up.
SDSU began the month of December by shooting 50 percent or better from the field in three consecutive games, including a 62 percent (31-of-50) performance against Middle Tennessee State on Dec. 13 that stands as the best shooting effort in the Division I era.
Combined, the Jackrabbits have gone 213-of-436, 48.9 percent, over the last eight games, including 56-of-132, 42.4 percent, from three-point range. SDSU has averaged 74.8 points per game in posting a 5-3 record since Dec. 1, while also cutting its turnover average by 4.3 per game from the first month of the season.
The Jackrabbits enter Saturday's game leading The Summit League in overall field goal percentage (45.2 percent) and three-point percentage (39.3 percent).
SUMMIT LEAGUE DOMINANCE: South Dakota State has built an impressive Summit League résumé as it plays its third season in the 10-team conference.
In its two-plus seasons as a league member, the Jackrabbits have compiled a 36-4 record in Summit League regular season games en route to consecutive outright league titles with records of 16-2 in 2007-08 and 17-1 during the 2008-09 season. SDSU has gone 19-1 at home and has won at least one game on every other Summit League member's home court.
SDSU also is 3-0 in Summit League postseason tournament games after winning the 2009 championship in its first year of eligibility. The Summit League Championship returns to Sioux Falls March 6-9, 2010.
PRESEASON FAVORITES: The South Dakota State University women's basketball team is a near-unanimous pick to repeat as Summit League champions, as selected by the annual preseason poll of league coaches, sports information directors and media, which was released in October.
The Jackrabbits, who return four starters, received 25 of the 27 first-place votes to tally 419 points. Oakland University (Mich.), which lost to SDSU in the Summit League Championship last season, earned one first-place vote and finished second in the poll with 365 points. North Dakota State was third with 318 points, while Oral Roberts (Okla.) picked up the other first-place vote to finish fourth with 289 points.
PRESEASON HONORS: Although South Dakota State does not have a player on the preseason all-Summit League First Team, four Jackrabbit players received preseason accolades by being named to the all-league second team: senior forwards Maria Boever and Ketty Cornemann, junior guard/forward Kristin Rotert and sophomore guard Jill Young.
Boever, a 6-foot-1 senior forward from Worthington, Minn., earned honorable mention all-Summit League honors last season after averaging 10.0 points and 6.0 rebounds per game. She scored in double figures 14 times and added a pair of double-digit rebounding performances.
A 5-11 senior forward, Cornemann earned all-Summit League second-team recognition during the 2008-09 season. One of only two Jackrabbits to start all 35 games, she reached double figures 13 times en route to averaging 8.2 points and 3.1 rebounds per game.
Rotert, a 6-foot junior wing, was another honorable mention all-league performer after averaging 10.1 points and 3.0 rebounds per game. She ranked second on the team with 60 three-pointers and had the tendency to rise to the occasion in big games, posting double figures for scoring 17 times.
Young, a 5-7 sophomore guard, earned Summit League Sixth Woman of the Year honors and a spot on the Summit League All-Newcomer Team after ranking second on the team in scoring at 10.2 points per game. The Mitchell native established a Jackrabbit freshman record with 82 three-pointers.
UMKC guard Chazny Morris was named the Preseason Player of the Year. She was joined on the first team by North Dakota State guard Inger Hodgson, IPFW guard Chelsey Jackson, Oakland guard Melissa Jeltema, Oral Roberts guard/forward Janae Voelker and IUPUI center Julia Whitted.
DIFFICULT SCHEDULE: The Jackrabbit women's basketball team wrapped up a difficult slate of non-conference games with the Dec. 28 victory over Northern Iowa.
Of SDSU's 10 non-conference games, eight were against an opponent that played in the postseason a year ago. Seven of those games were against fellow NCAA Tournament teams as the Jackrabbits met Virginia in the second round of the Junkanoo Jam in The Bahamas.
Two of SDSU's opponents are ranked in either of the top 25 of this week's Associated Press or ESPN/USA Today coaches' polls: Virginia (21/19) and Arizona State (RV/24). Gonzaga (Wash.) received votes in both polls, while Middle Tennessee State received a vote in the AP poll.
DEPTH AND BALANCE: The Jackrabbits have had at least two players score in double figures in all 14 games so far this season, and nine different players have tallied double digits for scoring.
Senior forward Maria Boever has led or shared top-scoring honors six times this season, while Kristin Rotert has paced the Jackrabbits four times, including a season-high 24 points — the most by an SDSU player this season — Dec. 28 against Northern Iowa.
A list of double-figure scoring games follows:
Gonzaga • Maria Boever (21), Jill Young (15), Leah Dietel (12), Ketty Cornemann (10)
Arizona State • Kristin Rotert (14), Jennie Sunnarborg (11)
Illinois State • Boever (17), Rotert (15), Sunnarborg (12), Macie Michelson (10)
Western Kentucky • Rotert (16), Michelson (13), Boever (11), Cornemann (10)
Charlotte • Boever (18), Rotert (13), Young (10)
Virginia • Boever (14), Steph Paluch (14), Rotert (14)
Western Illinois • Boever (14), Cornemann (14), Rotert (13)
IUPUI • Cornemann (18), Boever (14), Sunnarborg (13), Young (11)
Middle Tennesee State • Ashley Eide (17), Boever (13), Rotert (13), Sunnarborg (12), Young (11)
Utah • Rotert (13), Boever (10), Michelson (10)
Iowa • Young (16), Cornemann (14), Boever (13)
Northern Iowa • Rotert (24), Young (10)
Centenary • Rotert (15), Boever (12), Eide (12), Cornemann (11)
Oral Roberts • Boever (21), Cornemann (14), Young (12)
YOUTHFUL BENCH: While the Jackrabbits return four of their five regular starters from a year ago, SDSU will rely on a number of underclassmen to fill reserve roles this season.
Of the 15 players on the roster, five are true freshmen, one is a redshirt freshman, threeare sophomores, three are juniors and three are seniors.
With reigning Summit League Sixth Woman of the Year Jill Young settling into a starting role, the next top returning scorer off the bench is sophomore Jennie Sunnarborg, who
averaged 3.3 points per game during the 2008-09 campaign, but has nearly doubled her scoring output to 6.3 points per game so far this season.
The Jackrabbits will look for an expanded role for sophomore guard Vanessa Johnson, who missed nearly half the 2008-09 season due to injury. Johnson averaged only 0.6 points per game during the 2008-09 season, but provides the Jackrabbits with another perimeter shooting threat.
Other returning bench players include senior point guard Alison Anderson and junior forward Jennifer Schuttloffel.
Of the six players in the freshman class, four are from the state of South Dakota. Ashley Eide (Sioux Falls), Tara Heiser (Watertown) and Steph Paluch (Pierre) will fill guard slots, while Katie Lingle (Pierre) will back up in the post. Heiser is expected to redshirt this season.
Rounding out the freshman class are Jordan, Minn., native Leah Dietel at forward and redshirt freshman post player Cala Westergard. A native of Charles City, Iowa, Westergard played in her first official game since her junior year of high school in the Nov. 15 matchup at Arizona State. Westergard missed her senior year of high school due to injury.
Despite its youth, the Jackrabbit reserves have outscored their counterparts in nine of the 14 games this season. Ashley Eide has been the top scorer off the bench in four of SDSU's last six games.
FOR STARTERS: Despite returning four regular starters from last year's squad, the Jackrabbit women's basketball team has shaken up the starting lineup this season. Through the first 14 games, SDSU has used three different starting lineups, with seven players cracking the starting five.
Maria Boever, Macie Michelson and Kristin Rotert have started all 14 games so far this season. The trio have teamed with Ketty Cornemann and Jill Young to start the last eight games, during which the Jackrabbits have posted a 5-3 record.
• Gonzaga: Cornemann, Sunnarborg, Boever, Michelson, Rotert
• at Arizona State: Cornemann, Sunnarborg, Boever, Michelson, Rotert
• at Illinois State: Dietel, Boever, Michelson, Young, Rotert
• Western Kentucky: Dietel, Boever, Michelson, Young, Rotert
• vs. Charlotte: Dietel, Boever, Michelson, Young, Rotert
• vs. Virginia: Dietel, Boever, Michelson, Young, Rotert
• at Western Illinois: Cornemann, Boever, Michelson, Young, Rotert
• at IUPUI: Cornemann, Boever, Michelson, Young, Rotert
• Middle Tennessee: Cornemann, Boever, Michelson, Young, Rotert
• Utah: Cornemann, Boever, Michelson, Young, Rotert
• Iowa: Cornemann, Boever, Michelson, Young, Rotert
• Northern Iowa: Cornemann, Boever, Michelson, Young, Rotert
• Centenary: Cornemann, Boever, Michelson, Young, Rotert
100 D-I WINS: Since moving up to the NCAA Division I ranks at the start of the 2004-05 season, the Jackrabbits have posted a winning record against D-I opponents. In its five-plus seasons competing at the Division I level, SDSU has compiled a 109-39 mark (.736 winning percentage) versus D-I opposition. The Jackrabbits have posted victories over 50 different Division I teams representing 18 conferences plus independents.
750 WINS: The Jackrabbits' victory over Oakland in the 2009 Summit League championship game was the 750th in the women's basketball program's history. Since the modern era of women's basketball at South Dakota State University began with a 6-0 mark during the 1966-67 season, the Jacks have gone on to compile an overall record of 758-337 (.692 winning percentage).
SDSU has a streak of 23 consecutive winning seasons.The Jackrabbits' last losing season was an 11-16 campaign during the 1985-86 season.
OPENING SUCCESS: The Jackrabbits' 75-71 overtime victory against Gonzaga in the 2009-10 season opener on Nov. 13 marked the 17th consecutive season SDSU opened with a win.
The last time the Jackrabbits lost a season opener was during the 1992-93 season, when they fell 74-72 to Moorhead State (Minn.).
TOUGH AT HOME: For the first time since Aaron Johnston's first full season as head coach — 2000-01 — the Jackrabbit women's basketball team has lost more than one home game.
In his tenure as Jackrabbit head coach, Johnston has led the Jackrabbits to a 120-14 record (.896 winning percentage) at Frost Arena, including a 65-6 mark at home during the Division I era. The Jackrabbits have put together winning streaks of 15, 15 and 22 in the process.
Since the start of the 2001-02 season, SDSU has a 109-9 home record, losing an average of just one game at Frost Arena each full season. The Jackrabbits capped the 2008-09 regular season with a 14-0 record — a mark that stands as the first undefeated home season in school history.
A loss to Western Kentucky earlier this season snapped a 35-game regular season home winning streak, as well as a 15-game overall winning streak that began after the Jackrabbits lost to Creighton (Neb.) in the opening round of the 2008 Women's NIT.
SDSU's loss to Oral Roberts on Jan. 4 marked its first home loss to a Summit League opponent. The Jackrabbits are 19-1 at Frost Arena against Summit League foes since joining the league in 2007-08.
BOEVER TOPS 1,000: South Dakota State senior forward Maria Boever became the 27th member of the Jackrabbit 1,000-Point Club, accomplishing the feat Dec. 7 at IUPUI.
With 14 points in the game, Boever upped her career total to 1,010 points. She has since gone on to tally 1,085 career points in 105 career games as she moved past Sarita DeBoer (1,003 points from 2002-05) for 26th place. Next on the career scoring list is Dawn Hull, who scored 1,125 points from 1993-96.
A senior from Worthington, Minn., Boever finished as the team's second-leading scorer during her sophomore season in 2007-08 with an average of 12.2 points per game, then ranked fourth last year on a balanced Jackrabbit team with 10 points per game.
Two other Jackrabbit players could reach the 1,000-point plateau later this season: senior Ketty Cornemann and junior Kristin Rotert. Cornemann has tallied 817 career points, while Rotert has 811 career points.
100 GAMES: Jackrabbit seniors and three-year starters Maria Boever and Ketty Cornemann each played in their 100th career game Dec. 13 against Middle Tennessee State.
During their three-plus seasons with the Jackrabbits, SDSU has posted a combined record of 87-23, while both Boever and Cornemann have played in 105 career games.
SDSU's third member of the senior class, Alison Anderson, has played in 98 games in a Jackrabbit uniform.
DOUBLE DUTY: Maria Boever has posted a pair of double-doubles for points and rebounds while leading the team in both categories — 13.9 ppg and 6.9 rpg — through 14 games.
Boever began the season with 21 points and 11 rebounds in the season-opening overtime victory over Gonzaga, then added 11 points and 10 boards in a home loss to Western Kentucky.
THREE-POINT PROWESS: As a team, the Jackrabbits ranked fifth among Division I women's basketball teams by making an average of 8.5 three-pointers per game last season.
SDSU tied school and NCAA Tournament single-game records with 16 trifectas in its opening-round win over Texas Christian. The Jackrabbits made 10 or more three-pointers in a game nine times.
The Jackrabbits' 291 three-pointers as a team set SDSU and Summit League single-records, surpasing the school-record mark of 288 set by the 2001-02 squad, which was the first Jackrabbit team to qualify for the NCAA Division II Elite Eight.
Through 14 games this season, the Jackrabbits have made 102 three-pointers, an average of 7.29 per game, while shooting a Summit League-best 38.9 percent (102-of-262) from beyond the arc. SDSU's opponents are 60-of-196 from behind the arc, 30.6 percent.
YOUNG FOR 3: Sophomore guard Jill Young will attempt to build on a strong showing from behind the three-point arc during her first season in a Jackrabbit uniform.
The Mitchell native ranked third among NCAA Division I players during the 2008-09 season by shooting at a 46.1 percent (82-of-178) clip from three-point range. Young's 82 made three-pointers also set a Jackrabbit freshman record, eclipsing the mark of 58 set by Kristin Rotert during the 2007-08 campaign.
Young comes into Saturday's matchup against Southern Utah with 110 career three-pointers, topping the 100 mark with three triples Dec. 13 against Middle Tennessee State. She has made at least one three-pointer in 13 of the 14 games this season, including a season-best four three-pointers Jan. 4 against Oral Roberts.
For her career, Young is shooting 43.8 percent from three-point range, 110-of-251.
ROTERT CRACKS TOP 10: Junior wing Kristin Rotert joined the Jackrabbit career top 10 this season and is on pace to move up a few more spots this season.
The Salem native leads the team with 30 three-pointers after making three three-pointers in a game seven different times this season. She upped her career total to 148 with one trifecta Jan. 4 against Oral Roberts. Next on the list is Andrea Verdegan, whose eighth-place total of 152 three-pointers was accumulated from 2005-08.
Rotert set a then-freshman record with 58 three-pointers during the 2007-08 season and ranked second on the team with 60 treys last season.
100 3's TIMES THREE: Senior forward Ketty Cornemann enters Saturday's game four three-pointers away from becoming the third current Jackrabbit player to sink 100 career three-pointers. The Yankton native leads The Summit League in three-point shooting percentage this season, shooting at a 43.2 percent (16-of-37) clip from long range.
JOHNSON JOINS THE CROWD: Sophomore guard Vanessa Johnson became the 12th Jackrabbit player this season to make a three-pointer, when she canned a trifecta from the right wing in the first half of the Jan. 2 game against Centenary. Johnson finished the game with a career-high five points.
RUNNING THE POINT: Junior point guard Macie Michelson has added to her team-leading assist total with a combined 15 assists and only five turnovers in the last three games.
Michelson leads the team with 53 assists and ranks third in The Summit League with an average of 3.79 assists per game.
EIDE OFF THE BENCH: Freshman wing Ashley Eide has given the Jackrabbits a boost off the bench in recent weeks. In the recently completed weekend Summit League set, Eide led Jackrabbit reserves in scoring each game. She was a perfect 5-for-5 from the field en route to 12 points against Centenary (La.) on Jan. 2, then scored eight points and grabbed a career-high seven rebounds Jan. 4 versus Oral Roberts.
Eide scored a career-high 17 points against Middle Tennessee State on Dec. 13.
BATTLE OF THE BOARDS: The Jackrabbit women's basketball team had its streak of winning 36 consecutive games in which it has held a rebounding advantage end in the 81-74 loss Nov. 22 to Western Kentucky. SDSU won the last 10 games of the 2007-08 season, all 25 during the 2008-09 season and the first game of the 2009-10 season in which it held an edge on the boards.
Previously, the last time SDSU lost a game it won the battle of the boards was a 67-60 defeat at Western Illinois on Jan. 14, 2008.
The Jackrabbits' victory over Northern Iowa on Dec. 28 marked the first time this season SDSU won a game in which it was out-rebounded.
COACH AARON JOHNSTON: Now in his 10th season as head coach of the South Dakota State University women's basketball team, Aaron Johnston has taken the Jackrabbit program to the top of NCAA Division II and is leading SDSU to national prominence at the Division I level.
Johnston, who coached his 300th game Dec. 19 at Utah, has compiled a career record of 232-72 (.763 winning percentage), ranking second on the SDSU career victories list behind his predecessor, Nancy Neiber, who compiled a 301-140 record in 16 seasons from 1985-2000. Johnston posted his 200th career victory on Dec. 4, 2008, when the Jackrabbits defeated Centenary (La.) His career totals have included a 36-4 record (.900 winning percentage) in Summit League regular season games and a 16-5 mark (.762 winning percentage) in postseason games.
The Summit League Coach of the Year in each of the Jackrabbits' first two seasons in the 10-team league, Johnston was named a finalist for the 2009 Naismith Award as the nation's top coach. SDSU tied a school record for victories in a season with 32 during the 2008-09 campaign and gained national attention by vaulting into the top 25 in December after non-conference victories over the likes of Wisconsin, Utah, Minnesota and Gonzaga (Wash.). The Jackrabbits were ranked in the final 13 USAToday/ESPN regular season coaches' polls, climbing as high as 14th in the coaches' poll and 16th in the Associated Press poll. SDSU finished the 2008-09 season ranked 19th in the coaches' poll.
Along the way to a 32-3 overall record, the Jackrabbits received national media coverage from CBS Sports, USA Today, ESPN.com, Sports Illustrated and The New York Times.
THE ROSTER: The 2009-10 SDSU women's basketball roster features 15 players from three different states. Of the 15 players, nine are from South Dakota, five are from Minnesota and one is from Iowa. By class, three are seniors, three are juniors, three are sophomores, one is a redshirt freshman and five are incoming freshmen.
A LOOK AHEAD: After Saturday's game, the Jackrabbits will head to UMKC for a Jan. 11 matchup in Kansas City. Monday's game time is set for 7 p.m. at Swinney Recreation Center on the UMKC campus.
The Jackrabbits complete a three-game road swing Jan. 16 at North Dakota State.
SDSU's next home game is Jan. 23, when the Jackrabbits host a doubleheader against Oakland. Tipoff of the women's game is 5 p.m. at Frost Arena, followed by the men's game at 7:30 p.m.
Players Mentioned
PLAYER
/ Women's Cross Country
F
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's Basketball
C
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's Basketball
G/F
/ Women's Basketball
F
/ Women's Basketball
F
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's BasketballSaturday, March 21
Friday, March 20
Monday, March 09
Monday, March 09