UMC Women’s BB Picked to Finish 12th in Poll

 

(via UMC Sports Information)

BURNSVILLE, Minn. – The University of Minnesota, Crookston women’s basketball team was picked to finish 12th in the league according to the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) Preseason Women’s Basketball Coaches’ Poll released this afternoon. The Golden Eagles were picked to finish sixth in the North Division. UMC had 70 points overall in the poll, ahead of Bemidji State University (56), Southwest Minnesota State University (47), Minot State University (37) and Upper Iowa University (20).

Augustana College (S.D.) was selected to finish first in the poll with 15 first-place votes and 225 points while University of Minnesota Duluth was second with 190 points and Wayne State College (Neb.) was third with 183 points. Augustana was picked to win the South Division while UMD was picked to win the North Division. Augustana six-foot forward Alex Fenney, who was an honorable mention All-America pick according to Division II Bulletin and WBCA, was named NSIC South Division Preseason Player of the Year. Katrina Newman, a 5-11 wing player for UMD, was picked as the NSIC North Division Preseason Player of the Year after averaging 14.4 points as a sophomore.

UMC’s Brittani Wiese was selected as a NSIC Player to Watch. Wiese was an All-NSIC Second Team pick as a junior. She is coming back from a knee injury which sidelined her for the conclusion of the 2011-12 season. The senior guard led the Golden Eagles in scoring a season ago averaging 15.2 points. Wiese started all 19 games she appeared in before her injury. In addition to leading the team in scoring, she also led the squad with 69 assists. Wiese was solid from long range as a junior as she was 26-of-66 from beyond the arc for a 39.4 percent clip. In addition, she shot 61-of-81 from the charity stripe. Her season high came with 24 points against Augustana Dec. 17. She tallied over 20 points on four occasions. Wiese notched a season-high eight assists versus Northern State Jan. 7.

The Golden Eagles will open their exhibition slate this Sunday, Oct. 28 as they head to Brookings, S.D. to face South Dakota State University at 2 p.m. at Frost Arena. The Jackrabbits are picked to repeat as Summit League Champions after winning the title last year to earn a berth in the NCAA Tournament where they lost in the first round. UMC will play another exhibition Thursday, Nov. 1 against North Dakota State University in Fargo, N.D., before opening up non-conference play versus Valley City State University in Valley City, N.D. Nov. 12.

For more information, visit the Golden Eagle Athletics Web site at www.goldeneaglesports.com.

Follow the Golden Eagles on Facebook at Golden Eagle Sports and on Twitter at @UMCAthletics.

The University of Minnesota, Crookston is an NCAA Division II Institution and a member of the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC). The Golden Eagle Equestrian team is a member of the Intercollegiate Horse Show Association (IHSA).

Overall Points

1. Augustana (15)......................... 225

2. Minnesota Duluth.................... 190

3. Wayne State............................. 183

4. Minnesota State....................... 177

5. University of Mary (1)............. 171

6. Winona State ........................... 160

7. Concordia-St. Paul................... 145

8. St. Cloud State ........................ 118

9. Sioux Falls................................ 110

10. Northern State ....................... 107

11. MSU Moorhead..................... 104

12. Minnesota, Crookston............. 70

13. Bemidji State ........................ 56

14. Southwest Minnesota State ... 47

15. Minot State ............................ 37

16. Upper Iowa ............................ 20

first place votes in ( )

North Division....................... Pts

1. Minnesota Duluth (5)........... 46

2. University of Mary (1)......... 41

3. St. Cloud State .................... 34

4. MSU Moorhead (1).............. 31

Northern State (1)................ 31

6. Minnesota, Crookston.......... 17

7. Bemidji State ....................... 15

8. Minot State ........................... 9

South Division........................ Pts

1. Augustana (7)...................... 49

2. Minnesota State (1)............. 38

3. Wayne State ...................... 35

4. Concordia- St. Paul............. 31

5. Winona State ...................... 30

6. Sioux Falls........................... 21

7. Southwest Minnesota State 13

8. Upper Iowa 7