2017 Polar North Volleyball All-Conference

Player Name	School	Grade
1  Teagan Carlstrom	Crookston	12
2  Rachel Hefta	Crookston	11
3  Livia Pesch	East Grand Forks	12
4  Julia Warmack	East Grand Forks	12
5  Julia Bernstein	Red Lake County Central	11
6  Jenna Pahlen	Red Lake County Central	10
7  Megan LaCrosse	Red Lake Falls	12
8  Emma Duden	Red Lake Falls	12
9  Ivy Edwards	Sacred Heart	10
10  Molly Hanson	Sacred Heart	12
11  Jessica Remer	Sacred Heart	11
12  Kylea Praska	Thief River Falls	12
13  Kendra Wiggs	Thief River Falls	12
14  Kaitlynn Johnson	WAO	12
2017 Honorable Mention
Player Name	School	Grade
1  Kylie Solheim	Crookston	11
2  Katelyn Wagner	Crookston	12
3  Natalie Carlstrom	East Grand Forks	12
4  Tyra Chupka	East Grand Forks	12
5  Hannah Kolstoe	Red Lake County Central	12
6  Calyssa Eskeli	Red Lake County Central	10
7  Madison Derosier	Red Lake Falls	12
8  Hannah Hollcraft	Sacred Heart	12
9  Maddi Mitzel	Sacred Heart	10
10  Katelyn Rudolph	Sacred Heart	12
11  Holly Steer	WAO	12

UND athletics accepts invites to Summit, MVFC Leagues

GRAND FORKS, N.D. - University of North Dakota President Mark Kennedy and Athletics Director Brian Faison announced today that the University of North Dakota has accepted an invitation to join The Summit League beginning with the 2018-19 academic year and the Missouri Valley Football Conference beginning with the 2020-2021 academic year.

“This is an important move for UND Athletics and for our fans,” Kennedy said. “We have appreciated our time in the Big Sky Conference and we thank our friends in that conference for their hospitality and the opportunity to have competed against some excellent teams.  But we are excited to renew long-treasured rivalries in joining many of our former conference companions in The Summit League and the Missouri Valley Football Conference.  We look forward to competitions that are closer to home, which will allow our fans to attend more away games, and we look forward to hosting our long-time rivals and their fans in Grand Forks.”

UND received formal invitations from The Summit League on Tuesday, Jan. 24 and the Missouri Valley Football Conference on Wednesday concluding a process that began when the presidents of those respective conference universities voted to invite UND to join their memberships.
“This is an important day for UND Athletics and the University as we announce new athletic conference affiliations," said Faison. "Both The Summit League and the Missouri Valley Football Conference are great fits for North Dakota geographically and competitively. Our fans are going to enjoy having past rivalries renewed, now in a league setting. And, both conferences will have a positive financial impact on the athletics department.”

Wednesday, President Kennedy formally announced to The Summit League Commissioner Tom Douple and Missouri Valley Football Conference Commissioner Patty Viverito that UND had accepted those invitations.

UND will officially join The Summit League on July 1, 2018, and Missouri Valley Football Conference July 1, 2020 but will begin working immediately with the current membership on scheduling, marketing, and other conference matters.

“On behalf of the President’s Council, I am pleased to announce the University of North Dakota as the newest member of The Summit League,” said Douple. “The university has a strong academic reputation and a history of successful athletics, which makes it a tremendous addition and fit for our league. This addition of UND clearly strengthens the quality and depth of The Summit League’s membership.”

UND teams that will compete in The Summit League are men’s and women’s basketball; men’s and women’s cross country, indoor track and field, outdoor track and field; men’s and women’s golf; soccer, softball, men’s and women’s swimming and diving; men’s and women’s tennis; and volleyball. 

Thursday’s additions bring the future Summit League to 10 members and the Missouri Valley Football Conference to 11 members. 
 “The addition of the University of North Dakota to the Missouri Valley Football Conference in 2020 will complete the league’s FCS footprint in the Midwest,” Viverito said. “This also will re-establish long-standing football rivalries in the Dakotas and open the way for equally satisfying new rivalries throughout the league.  Most importantly, UND brings yet another nationally competitive program to the MVFC which is already, arguably, the strongest FCS conference.”

North Dakota is the first institution to join The Summit League since Oral Roberts rejoined the conference on July 1, 2014.  North Dakota is the first institution to join the Missouri Valley Football Conference since South Dakota on July 1, 2012.

The MVFC will require a $300,000 initial membership fee, payable over several years, while The Summit League’s initial membership is $250,000. There is no monetary penalty for leaving the Big Sky Conference or the Western Athletic Conference (swimming and diving). The Fighting Hawk football team will play a Big Sky schedule as an independent for the 2018 and 2019 seasons and will not be eligible for the league’s NCAA Tournament automatic-qualifying bid. Last season, four Big Sky schools earned postseason berths into the 24-team Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) championships.

UND has spent the last five years in the Big Sky Conference with the men’s and women’s swimming and diving program in the Western Athletic Conference.  During the NCAA Division I reclassification UND competed in the Great West Conference.  Prior to that, UND had been a charter member of the now-defunct North Central Conference since 1922.

"There were a lot of moving parts in this conference realignment and I want to thank Big Sky Commissioner Andrea Williams, The Summit League Commissioner Tom Douple and Missouri Valley Football Conference Commissioner Patty Viverito for their engagement in this process," said Faison.

Founded in 1883, UND has built a well-respected tradition of athletics and academic excellence. UND athletics teams have won 12 NCAA championships, including eight in Division I men's ice hockey (second-most only to Michigan's nine), three in Division II women's basketball and one in Division II football, and 127 individual NCAA championships.

UND has also won 150 conference team championships in the Great West Conference, North Central Conference (NCC),  Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) and the National Collegiate Hockey Conference (NCHC). The long history of team success has resulted in national recognition for the well over 1,500 UND student-athletes who have garnered All-America honors.

Since making the transition to NCAA Division I competition in 2008-09, UND’s student-athletes have earned 25 Academic All-America honors, 10 NCAA Postgraduate Scholarships, and five prestigious NCAA academic awards.

Big Ten Announces Men’s Basketball Schedule

The Big Ten Conference announced Thursday evening the full men’s basketball conference schedule, including the Gophers’ 18-game slate. Game times and television broadcast information will be announced at a later date.

Minnesota will begin conference play on the road at Ohio State on Wednesday, December 30, before its home B1G opener on Saturday, January 2 against 2015 Final Four participant Michigan State, who the Gophers defeated in East Lansing last season in their lone matchup.  The Gophers alternate home-and-away for their next six games, with midweek road trips to Penn State (Jan. 5), Nebraska (Jan. 12) and Michigan (Jan. 20) each followed by Saturday home games against Northwestern (Jan. 9), Indiana (Jan. 16) and Illinois (Jan. 23). The following Wednesday, the Gophers host Purdue (Jan. 27) in their first two-game B1G homestand, before closing out January at Indiana (Jan. 30).

The only two-game road trip of the conference season, the Maroon and Gold remain on the road traveling to Northwestern on Thursday, February 4 before their first bye comes on the first weekend of the month. A home game against Michigan (Feb. 10) is followed by a Valentine’s Day trip to rival Iowa (Feb. 14), and back-to-back home games against Maryland (Feb. 18) and Rutgers (Feb. 23). The two contests against the conference’s new members are split up by Minnesota’s second bye of the season, also coming on a weekend.

Two of the Gophers’ final three games come on the road, as Minnesota travels to Illinois (Feb. 28) for the first time in three years. The final home game of the year comes on Wednesday, March 2 against rival Wisconsin, before closing out the regular season at Rutgers three days later (Mar. 5).

Minnesota will compete for the Big Ten Tournament title from March 9-13 at Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.

2015-16 Minnesota Men's Basketball Big Ten Conference Schedule (all game times TBA)

12/30/15	Wed.	at Ohio State
1/2/16	Sat.	Michigan State
1/5/16	Tue.	at Penn State
1/9/16	Sat.	Northwestern
1/12/16	Tue.	at Nebraska
1/16/16	Sat.	Indiana
1/20/16	Wed.	at Michigan
1/23/16	Sat.	Illinois
1/27/16	Wed.	Purdue
1/30/16	Sat.	at Indiana
2/4/16	Thu.	at Northwestern
2/10/16	Wed.	Michigan
2/14/16	Sun.	at Iowa
2/18/16	Thu.	Maryland
2/23/16	Tue.	Rutgers
2/28/16	Sun.	at Illinois
3/2/16	Wed.	Wisconsin
3/5/16	Sat.	at Rutgers
3/9/15-	Wed.-Sun.	Big Ten Tournament
3/13/15		(Bankers Life Fieldhouse, Indianapolis)

MN Lynx Maya Moore Named Western Conference Player of the Week

MINNEAPOLIS/ST. PAUL – The WNBA today named Minnesota Lynx forward Maya Moore the Western Conference Player of the Week for games played Aug. 10 through Aug. 16. The Player of the Week award is Moore’s fourth of the season and the 14th of her career.

Moore led the WNBA in scoring for the week with 26.7 points per game, ranked sixth in the West in rebounds with 7.0 rebounds per game and seventh in assists with 4.3 assists per game. Moore scored 24 of her then-season-high 32 points in the second half vs. San Antonio on Tuesday, adding a team-best nine rebounds and three steals to help the Lynx overcome an 11-point halftime deficit and clinch their fifth consecutive trip to the WNBA Playoffs.

The fifth-year pro from the University of Connecticut set a new season high by pouring in 36 points in Friday’s win at Atlanta, marking her third 30+ point effort of the season and the 17^th of her career. Minnesota spotted the Dream a 16-point advantage before rallying to a victory, equaling the second-largest deficit ever overcome to win a road game in franchise history and was also the Lynx’ league-leading sixth double-digit comeback win of the year. Moore sank the go-ahead three-pointer with 2:20 left as part of her 13-point fourth quarter.

She finished the week with 12 points and eight rebounds on Sunday at Washington, moving her to within 24 points of the 3,000 mark of her career. She ranks among the league’s top 10 in scoring (2^nd, 21.2 ppg), rebounds (8^th, 7.0 rpg), steals (4^th, 1.76 spg) and minutes (5^th, 33.3 mpg).

New York's Epiphanny Prince was named Eastern Conference Player of the Week.

The Lynx play next on Wednesday, August 16 when they host the Washington Mystics. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. CT and the game can be heard on BOB 106.1 FM.

NDSU’s Teschuk Named Summit League Athlete of the Week

ELMHURST, Ill. – Erin Teschuk of North Dakota State was named The Summit League’s Indoor Track & Field Athlete of the Week after clocking a mile time on Jan. 31 at the Jack Johnson Classic that ranks her eighth in the world this year.

Teschuk, a junior from Winnipeg, Manitoba, earns her second Summit League Track & Field Athlete of the Week award this year after running the fastest mile in the NCAA this season. She cut more than six seconds off her school record in the event on Saturday at the Jack Johnson Classic. Teschuk won the mile in 4:34.78, setting the meet record and University of Minnesota Fieldhouse record in the process.

Due to being run on a 200-meter flat track, her time converted to 4:32.09 for the top spot on the NCAA performance list. Teschuk’s time makes her the eighth-fastest woman in the world this year in the mile. Her previous best in the event was 4:41.19 on Jan. 17 of this season.

Teschuk’s time would have ranked No. 2 among all Canadian women last season, professionals included.

Sweep of LSSU lands UND three of four NCHC weekly awards

GRAND FORKS, N.D. – Three North Dakota skaters have been recognized by the National Collegiate Hockey Conference (NCHC) in the wake of top-ranked UND’s non-conference sweep of Lake Superior State.

The NCHC announced today that Jordan Schmaltz has been named NCHC Defenseman of the Week, Zane McIntyre has been named Goaltender of the Week and Tucker Poolman has been named Rookie of the Week.

Schmaltz racked up a goal and four assists against LSSU, with a league-best four of those points coming on the power play. The junior from Verona, Wis., collected three assists in Friday’s 7-4 victory and helped UND erase a 4-1 second-period deficit. The following night, Schmaltz assisted on Brendan O’Donnell’s power-play goal to open the scoring then scored a power-play goal of his own late in the third period to seal the 3-1 win. Schmaltz, the NCHC scoring leader among defensemen with 14 points in 17 games, helped UND’s special teams go 5-9 on the power play and 9-9 on the penalty kill in the series.

McIntyre came off the bench to stop 12 of 13 shots in Friday’s comeback win and came within five minutes of a shutout in Saturday’s series finale, stopping 16 of 17 shots for the game. On the weekend, McIntyre stopped 28 of 30 shots for a .933 save percentage while posting a 1.21 goals against average. His 12 wins tie him with Miami’s Jay Williams for most in the nation.

Poolman, forced to play forward on Friday due to injuries, keyed UND’s rally with a pair of power-play goals in the second period. His first goal at the 12:35 mark cut the LSSU lead to 4-2 and his second goal tied the game with 1:14 remaining in the period. Poolman also led all UND skaters with a career-high seven shots on goal. On Saturday, the East Grand Forks, Minn., native returned to his natural defense position and assisted on Jordan Schmaltz’s power-play goal late in the third period that clinched UND’s 3-1 win.

Miami senior forward Cody Murphy claimed Offensive Player of the Week honors.