ST. PAUL, Minn. - The No. 24 Concordia-St. Paul women's basketball team (13-2, 7-2 NSIC) hosts the first home event of 2025 vs. St. Cloud State (8-5, 5-3 NSIC) on Wednesday, Jan. 8 at 5:30 p.m.
LAST TIME OUT
CSP went 1-1 over the weekend, opening it with a 78-54 victory vs. MSU Moorhead. The Golden Bears led 24-8 after the opening quarter where they shot 8-12 (66.7%) from the field and 6-6 (100%) from behind the arc.
Leah Dengerud and Julia Bengtson combined for 32 points shooting 11-11 from the field. Dengerud shot 5-5 from the field, 3-3 from behind the arc and 3-3 from the free-throw line. Bengtson shot 6-6 from the field, 2-2 from behind the arc and 2-2 from the free-throw line.
The Golden Bears finished the game shooting a season-high 28-53 (52.8%). Junior guard Lydia Haack scored 10 points with two assists and two steals. Megan Gamble added nine points while grabbing six rebounds. Mikayla Kanenwisher, Ashley Schuelke and Emma Mommsen each scored six points.
Concordia-St. Paul suffered its second loss of the season on Saturday against Northern State. CSP's first half was the complete opposite of the MSU Moorhead game as the team shot 7-27 (25.9%) from the field to trail 33-22 at the half.
The Golden Bears were able to cut the lead down to two points twice in the second half, but couldn't quite tie the game. Northern State held the Golden Bears scoreless for 3:15 in the fourth quarter to pull away.
Haack led CSP with 19 points and five rebounds. Bengtson scored 14 points with two steals. Lindsey Becher finished with 14 and a team-high nine rebounds while blocking two shots. Dengerud added nine points and a season-high five assists.
SEASON LEADERS
Haack continues to lead the Golden Bears in points per game averaging 15.7, ranking seventh in the NSIC. Her 4.7 assists per game and 1.8 assist/turnover ratio each rank second in the NSIC. She's also averaging 5.7 rebounds and 1.5 steals per game.
Becher is averaging 13.5 points per game, ranking 13th in the conference. She's also averaging 8.3 rebounds per game which ranks fourth in the NSIC. Her 2.5 blocks per game ranks second in the NSIC and 11th nationally.
Dengerud moved back up into the double-digit points per game average at 10.1 She's also second on the team in assists averaging 2.5 per game while stealing the ball 1.2 times per game.
Bengtson is averaging 8.5 points per game while adding 1.3 assists per game. Schuelke is averaging 6.9 points per game. Gamble is averaging 5.2 points per game while grabbing 7.3 rebounds per game. She ranks sixth in the NSIC in rebounds per game.
The Golden Bears are third in offense in the NSIC averaging 74.4 points per game. CSP jumped up to No. 1 defensively in the league giving up 61.3 points per game. The 13.1 margin ranks third in the conference.
CSP allows the lowest opposing field goal percentage in the league at 36.3%. The Golden Bears are shooting 42.3% this season, fourth in the NSIC. Concordia is shooting 35.3% from behind the arc this season which is second in the conference. CSP's 78.4% free-throw percentage leads the NSIC.
The Golden Bears are averaging 41.7 rebounds per game, which is third in the conference. CSP is second in the league in turnover margin at +1.93 and first in assist/turnover ratio at 1.10. That ranks 26th nationally.
Concordia is averaging 5.07 blocked shots per game, ranking second in the league and seventh in the nation. CSP's 16.20 assists per game is second in the conference and 35th in the nation. The Golden Bears average 9.4 steals per game as a team, which is also second in the NSIC.
RECORD WATCH
After blocking five shots this past weekend, Becher has 264 blocks in her career. This tied Kionda Nicks from 2012-16 for the most blocks in a Concordia career. With her next blocked shot, Becher will stand alone at the top with 265 career blocks.
IN THE NSIC STANDINGS
The Golden Bears remain in second place at 7-2 in conference play. This is one win ahead of No. 25 Southwest Minnesota State (13-2, 7-2 NSIC) and Northern State (9-5, 6-2 NSIC). UMary (8-4, 5-3 NSIC) and St. Cloud State (8-5, 5-3 NSIC).
No. 11 Minnesota State (13-2, 9-0 NSIC) has a two-game lead over the Golden Bears in second place. The Mavericks have won nine straight games and are the reigning NSIC Champions and National Champions.
ST. CLOUD STATE SERIES HISTORY
Series Record: SCSU 21, CSP 19
The Golden Bears have a 5-5 record in the last 10 matchups vs. St. Cloud State. CSP enters the game on a two-game winning streak after the Huskies won four straight from 2020-23.
Concordia's longest win streak was four games from 2012-15. St. Cloud's longest win streak in the series is five games twice from 1978-2000 and 2005-06. CSP is 12-8 all-time in NSIC play and 9-5 all-time at home.
LAST MEETING WITH THE HUSKIES
The Golden Bears went 2-0 last season against St. Cloud State, with the final win closing out the regular season on senior day. In the first matchup on Jan. 10, 2024, CSP used a 24-2 run in the second and third quarters to get the 64-55 win.
Ally Gietzel led the Golden Bears with 25 points, which was her seventh game of the season with 20 or more points. She shot 9-14 (64.2%) from the field and grabbed a team-high seven rebounds with a team-high three assists.
Lauren Wilson added 12 points and four rebounds off the bench. Gamble scored nine points and Becher tallied eight points as they each shot 4-7 (57.1%) from the field. Kanenwisher scored six points draining two 3-pointers.
St. Cloud State was led by Jada Eggebrect with 16 points and five rebounds. Ashley Sawicki added 12 points, four rebounds and two steals. Dru Henning added six points.
In the second game on Feb. 2, 2024, CSP held St. Cloud State scoreless for the final six minutes to win 57-51 on senior day. The Golden Bears outscored the Huskies 16-4 in the final quarter, holding SCSU to 1-13 shooting in the final quarter.
CSP had four scorers in double digits with Dengerud and Becher leading the team, each with 13 points. Wilson added 12 points and Gietzel scored 11 points in her final win as a Golden Bear. Kanenwisher added eight points. Those five players were the only ones to score in the game.
The Golden Bears blocked 11 shots in the contest, led by Becher with six blocked shots. Kanenwisher blocked a career-high four shots. Dengerud stole the ball five times, Wilson four times and Kanenwisher three times.
Jasmine Litt led the Huskies with 21 points shooting 7-12 (58.3%) from the field and 3-5 (60%) from behind the arc. Sawicki and Alana Zarneke each added eight points. Henning led the Huskies in rebounds with 10.
ABOUT THE HUSKIES
St. Cloud State enters Wednesday's contest on a two-game win streak after victories over Augustana and Wayne State this past weekend. The Huskies defeated the Vikings 81-70 and the Wildcats 68-65 at home in Halenbeck Hall.
The Huskies lost their final two games of 2023 to UMary and Bemidji State. St. Cloud State lost to MSU Moorhead, but is one of two teams to beat Northern State in conference play with a 75-72 win. The Huskies went 3-2 in nonconference play, sweeping MIAA foes Central Oklahoma and Washburn (Kan.).
Eggebrecht is back for her junior campaign averaging 14.2 points per game and 2.2 assists per game. She is 11th in the NSIC in points per game. Her 39.7% field goal percentage ranks 12th in the NSIC.
Zarneke is averaging 10.1 points per game and two assists per game during her sophomore season. Sophomore forward Abigail O'Reilly is averaging 10.4 points per game and 5.9 rebounds per game, but did not play this past weekend.
Sawicki has not played since the third game of the season. In her absence, sophomore forward Paige Lambe is averaging 8.3 points per game. Freshman guard Reagan Briggs has also emerged averaging 4.6 points and 4.4 rebounds per game. Junior guard Alyssa Stamer is also averaging 5.5 points per game.
As a team, St. Cloud State ranks ninth offensively scoring 67 points per game, and sixth defensively allowing 65.8 points per game. This 1.2 margin ranks seventh in the NSIC.
SCSU is shooting 41.5% from the field which is fifth in the conference, but they are allowing opponents to shoot 43.3% ranking 14th. The Huskies allow the second-lowest combined opponent rebounds at 33.7 per game.
They also have the third-best turnover margin in the NSIC at +1.38 and average the most assists in the league at 16.69 per game. This helps the Huskies tie for the second-best assist/turnover ratio in the conference at 1.09.
Lori Fish is in her 17th season at the helm for the Huskies. Fish has led her teams to four 20-win seasons, three conference championships, five NCAA tournament appearances and one NCAA Sweet 16 in her career. She has a 332-231 record as a head coach and a 270-178 record at St. Cloud State.
