ST. PAUL, Minn. – The Concordia-St. Paul women's basketball team is set to host their first conference games of the season this weekend on December 6^th and 7^th at the Gangelhoff Center. They will take on Sioux Falls (7-0, 1-0 NSIC) on Friday night at 5:30 p.m. before facing off against Southwest Minnesota State (5-1, 0-1 NSIC) on Saturday afternoon at 3:30 p.m.
 
LAST TIME OUT
The Golden Bears defeated the University of Jamestown on November 30^th after outscoring the Jimmies 86-73 at home. The victory gives Concordia a five-game winning streak over Jamestown since their first match up in 2013.
 
As a team, Concordia shot 49.2% overall, 41.7% from the three-point line, and 66.7% from the free throw line after finishing 18 out of 27. They held the Jimmies to a 39.3% shooting percentage and 20% from beyond the arc. The Bears scored 14 points off Jimmie turnovers and 16 points off of fast breaks.
 
Danielle Schaub was the top scorer with a career high of 19 points. The junior guard collected four assists and three steals with a .500 shooting percentage (6-12 FG, 4-8 3PT). Junior Sidney Wentland was another solid performer scoring 14 points to go along with eight assists, four rebounds, and three steals.
 
USF SERIES HISTORY
The Golden Bears head into Friday's night meeting with Sioux Falls with a record of 10-5 record against the Cougars. The two teams have a tight record as USF has taken five of the last nine games played. Concordia is 5-2 against the Cougars at the Gangelhoff Center.
 
LAST TIME AGAINST USF
 
In the second half of the 2018-19 season, the Golden Bears defeated the Cougars 69-64 when they collected the most offensive rebounds in a game since 2015 with 20 grabs. Overall, CSP rebounded USF 47-38 in the last match up.
 
The two teams went head to head until the second half when the Golden Bears took a 52-50 lead at the end of the third quarter. Concordia's lead fluctuated between three and five points for much of the fourth quarter but they were able to secure the win with a set of clutch free throws late in the game.
 
In the game last January, Riley Wheatcraft ended in double figures with 14 points after draining four three pointers. As a team, the Bears shot 38.1% from the field and 40% from the three- point line. The Cougars were 39.7% in the paint and 35% from beyond the arc. USF was led by returning senior Mariah Szymanski as she scored 14 points along with five rebounds and three assists.
 
ABOUT THE COUGARS
 The Cougars are traveling to St. Paul with a great deal of momentum after starting the season with a 7-0 winning streak. They are 1-0 in the conference against SMSU, defeating the Mustangs 100-77 on November 22^nd.
 
The team is coming off an out of state trip to Honolulu, Hawaii where they competed in the Malika Sports Oahu Thanksgiving Classic. The tournament launched them into their 7-0 record after they went undefeated in the three non-conference matchups.
 
USF was picked to finish second in the NSIC preseason coaches' poll and first in the NSIC South Division. Most recently, the Cougars are ranked 11^th in the WBCA Top 25 poll, which is their highest ranking in program history.
 
Senior guard Kaely Hummel is the go-to scorer for the Cougars averaging a team-high of 18.6 points a game. Anna Goodhope joins her in double figures with 13.1 points a game to go along with the six-foot forward's 4.4 rebounds. Mariah Szymanski is scoring 11.7 points each night while leading the team in efficiency with a .520 field-goal percentage.
 
SMSU SERIES HISTORY
CSP has a 40-16 all-time record against the Mustangs, and has had a lot of success in recent years. Concordia has won the last 15 matchups between the two teams, and has also been victorious in 35 of the last 38 games in the series. Concordia is 22-3 against SMSU at home. Until their last meeting in January of during the 2018-19 season, the final score of the last five games were within five points of each other.
 
LAST MEETING VS. SMSU
In their last face off, the Golden Bears defeated the Mustangs 86-65 at home after all five starters scored in double digits.
 
Sidney Wentland had a big game for the Golden Bears, leading all scorers with 22 points. Wentland shot 9-16 from the floor (3-4 from three) also collecting eight rebounds and five assists. She contributed to a .508 FG%, a .583 3PT%, and a .650 FT% for the Golden Bears.
 
The Mustangs were held to 32.3% shooting on the game. Sadie Stelter (14 pts), Meleah Reinhart (13 pts), and Caleigh Rodning (12 pts), all returners, were the top contributors for SMSU.
 
ABOUT THE MUSTANGS
The Mustangs are now 5-1 this season and were 3-0 before their match up with Sioux Falls where they fell in their first conference game 77-100.
 
SMSU is coming off a pair of wins after defeating Concordia University (Ore.) and Western Oregon last weekend. The Mustangs came out on top in the game against CU after going back and forth for majority of the game with Sadie Stelter leading the squad with 19 points. SMSU was behind by ten in the third quarter against Western Oregon until the team drained a three and hit a couple free-throws to take the lead and earn another victory.
 
Meleah Reinhart is the top-scorer for the Mustangs averaging 17.7 points per game along with four rebounds. In their last game against Western Oregon, Reinhart scored 24 points and went 10-11 from the free-throw line. Caleigh Rodning is the leader on the boards with 7.5 rebounds a game and 9.3 points.
 
In the NSIC Preseason Coaches' Poll, Southwest Minnesota State was picked to finish ninth overall and sixth in the south division after receiving 21 votes. Rodning was named a "Player to Watch" after leading the team with 13.5 ppg and 6.9 rpg last season.
 
NSIC/NCAA LEADERS
Going in the first weekend of conference games this season, the Concordia-St. Paul women's basketball team has proven their ability to drown the three-pointers. The Golden Bears are ranked number one in the NSIC and 19^th in the nation in three-point field goal percentage with .383.
 
Danielle Schaub is the leader for CSP from beyond the arc shooting 47.2% and ranks third in the NSIC and 41^st in the nation. Schaub is also ranked third in three-points made per game with 2.8 per game which also ties her for 67^th in the nation.
 
Meghan DuBois and Sidney Wentland are also among high rankings in the NSIC. DuBois is leading the NSIC with her 36.5 minutes each game. The sophomore ranks eight in the conference in steals with 2.2 per game and 11^th in scoring with 14 points per game. Wentland is fifth in both assists and blocks per game with 3.7 apg and 1.5 bpg.