Women's Basketball | 2/3/2025 4:11:00 PM

• THE MINNESOTA CROOKSTON women's basketball team comes into the week with a 7-15 (5-11 NSIC) mark. The Golden Eagles come into the week on a three-game losing streak. Minnesota Crookston is set to face Bemidji State University Tuesday, February 4 at 7:30 p.m., and Thursday, February 6 at 7:30 p.m. Minnesota Crookston comes in averaging 67.0 points per game, and allowing 74.2 to their foes. The Golden Eagles are shooting 39.0 percent from the field, and 30.4 percent from distance. The Golden Eagles are a 77.0 percent free throw shooting team. Minnesota Crookston is being outrebounded 41.1-36.0. They are tallying 11.4 assists, and 14.6 turnovers per tilt entering Tuesday's game with Bemidji State. Minnesota Crookston is tied for 11th in the NSIC standings, and is finding for the last two spots in the NSIC Tournament. The Golden Eagles are tied with Winona State, and Minnesota Duluth. 

• SERIES HISTORY.  Minnesota Crookston captured a 69-63 win earlier this season, at home. The Golden Eagles are 4-1 in their last five match-ups with the Golden Eagles. Minnesota Crookston is 2-1 in their last three meetings in Bemidji. Northern State has won the last two tilts in the series. Minnesota Crookston last won at home against Northern State 69-68 December 16, 2023 in Lysaker Gymnasium. The Wolves won the game 69-60 earlier this season in Aberdeen, S.D. 

• BLOCK PARTY.  Nicole Hernandez (R-Sr., F/C, Oak Creek, Wis.) comes into the weekend with 63 blocks during her senior campaign. Hernandez is fourth in the nation for blocks, and blocks per game. She trails Mahogany Collins of Shaw, Alisha Little of CSU Pueblo, and Danielle Hippner of Molloy. She leads Concordia-St. Paul's Lindsey Becher by six blocks. Hernandez needs just 10 blocked shots to surpass Isieoma Odor for the school record. She needs just two blocked shots to set the 
single-season record held by Jessica Forsline. Hernandez has 485 career rebounds, she needs three boards to break into the Top 10 all-time, surpassing Forsline. Hernandez is averaging 2.9 blocks per game. 

• HALLE FROM CROOKSTON.  Minnesota Crookston guard Halle Winjum has started 11 out of 21 games. Winjum is averaging 3.0 points, and 1.7 rebounds per game. Winjum is shooting 42.6 percent from the field, and 46.2 percent from beyond the arc. Winjum tied her season-high with 10 points against UMary on 2-of-2 from the field, and 4-of-4 from the stripe. Winjum also had 10 points December 20 versus Northern State. 

• A LITTLE HOPE. Redshirt sophomore guard Hope Dudycha, a native of Austin, Minn., had a good first year on the court for the Golden Eagles. Dudycha comes in averaging 8.0 points per game. She had an outstanding weekend the last time out dishing out the ball, as she notched five assists per game against Wayne State, and Augustana. Dudycha tallied seven points, and five helpers against Wayne State. She comes in shooting 38.9 percent from the field, and 31.2 percent from beyond the arc. Dudycha had 21 points against Winona State, and 20 versus Southwest Minnesota State. 

• ROUND BALL RILEY. Riley Jenkins (R-So., G/F, Galesburg, Ill.) has been coming into her own on the court for the Golden Eagles. Jenkins first arrived in 2023-24, recovering from an injury and has continued to improve and become a bigger piece for the Golden Eagles. Jenkins comes into the week averaging 10.7 points, and 6.6 boards per game. She is shooting 41.0 percent from the field. Jenkins has five double-doubles during the 2024-25 season. She had 10 points, and 11 boards last week against Minot State. She had three-consecutive games against Wayne State, Augustana, and Minot State, where she notched double-double performances. 

• LOCAL FLAVOR. The Golden Eagles have strong connections to the local area in their incoming class. Minnesota Crookston has Crookston-native Halle Winjum (Fr., G) on the roster. In addition, Brynlea Mahlen (Fr., G, Fosston, Minn.), comes down the road from 45 minutes away in Fosston. She has deep connections to the program as her father Nate Mahlen was a long-time women's basketball assistant coach and is currently an Assistant Athletic Director for the Golden Eagles. Willow Thiel (Fr., F, Perham, Minn.) is from the region in Perham, but her mother Lacey Thiel is originally from Crookston.

• MILLER TIME. Minnesota Crookston junior guard Emma Miller had a strong first two seasons for Minnesota Crookston. Miller is a two-time All-NSIC selection, earning All-NSIC First Team as a freshman, and All-NSIC Second Team as a sophomore. She is the first player since Katrina Nordick and Alexa Thielman in 2014-15 and 2015-16 to earn back-to-back All-NSIC accolades. She became the 13th player to score 1,000 points in Minnesota Crookston history. Miller is in the Top 10 all-time for scoring for the Golden Eagles. She comes into the week with 1,499 career points. Miller ranks fifth all-time in scoring for 
Minnesota Crookston. She recently surpassed Alexa Thielman in the rankings. Miller had 29 points against UMary, and 25 versus Minot State. Miller needs 27 points to move past Isieoma Odor for fourth all-time. She is 226 points from breaking the record currently held by Jamie Zelinsky. With her current average of 22.4 points per game, Miller should surpass the mark in just over 10 games. 

• WILLOW. Freshman forward Willow Thiel is coming off a good game against Northern State. She notched seven points, and six boards versus UMary last Saturday. Thiel enters the week notching 6.4 points, and 3.8 boards per tilt. 

BEMIDJI STATE. Bemidji State University enters the week with a 5-15 (3-13 NSIC) record. The Beavers were 1-1 last week, with a win over St. Cloud State, and a loss to UMary. Bemidji State is being outrebounded by 6.6 boards per game. They are committing 16.1 turnovers per game, and being outscored by 10.8 points per game by their foes. The Beavers are shooting 39.0 percent from the field, 28.8 percent from beyond the arc, and 71.9 percent from the stripe. 

TIERYN IT UP.  Guard Tieryn Plasch, a sophomore from Lake Nebagamon, Wis., leads the Beavers averaging 9.7 points, and 4.3 boards per game. Plasch is a three-point shooter through and through. She leads the team with 109 three-point attempts, compared to just 153 field goal attempts. Plasch is shooting 43.1 percent from beyond the arc. She had a 
season-high 22 points versus St. Cloud State last Tuesday. 

A HEYER AUTHORITY. Aubrey Heyer leads Bemidji State with 101 rebounds, for an average of 5.1 rebounds per game. She is also tallying 5.4 points per tilt. Heyer's best game came with 16 points against Valley City State. She had a 
season-high 12 boards against Wayne State January 3. 

ELLA. Ella Giorgi comes in tallying 6.4 points, and 3.2 boards per game. She is also tallying 1.1 blocks per tilt. Giorgi had nine points last week against UMary. She is shooting 42.6 percent from the field.

FINNISH IT. Janette Hanni, a grad student from Oulu, Finland, was crucial in Minnesota Crookston's game against the Beavers earlier this season. She led the team with 19 points on 8-of-18 from the field. Hanni enters the week averaging 5.3 points per game. 

NORTHERN STATE. Northern State enters the weekend with a 14-8 (11-5 NSIC) record. The Wolves had won four-straight prior to falling to Minot State 73-64 in Minot, N.D. Saturday. Northern State is ranked fourth in the stangins. They are outscoring foes by 6.8 points per game. They are outrebounding teams by 6.8 per tilt, and they are averaging 3.9 blocks per game. They had a season-high in points against Augustana with 94 points, and 52 rebounds, defeating the Vikings 94-48. The Wolves are shooting 44.3 percent from the field, and 30.1 percent from beyond the arc. 

AINT TOO PROUD TO BRAGG. Madelyn Bragg leads the team with 15.2 points, and seven boards per game. She had a season-high in rebounds twice this season with 14 against UMary, and Hawai'i Hilo. Bragg is shooting 46.1 percent from the field, and 31.8 percent from beyond the arc. She had 20 points against MSU Moorhead, and 14 versus Minot State last week.

RIANNA ON THE ASSIST. Rianna Fillipi facilitates the Northern State offense with 5.4 assists per game. She is also 
averaging 12.1 points, and 5.7 rebounds, to go with 1.5 steals per game. She had 10 assists against St. Cloud State, and notched six steals versus Minnesota Duluth. Fillipi is shooting 44.4 percent from the field, and 33.3 percent from beyond the arc. 

JEWETT MAKING AN IMPACT. Augustana transfer Michaela Jewett has made an instant impact with a team-high 8.9 boards per game, to go with 13.0 points per tilt. She is shooting 44.4 percent from the field. Jewett notched 16 points versus Minot State. She had a season-high 28 points in a win over Minnesota State January 24. 

GAMEDAY

MINNESOTA CROOKSTON AT BEMIDJI STATE
DATE: Tuesday, February 4
TIME: 7:30 p.m. C.T.
SITE: Bemidji, Minn.
ARENA: BSU Gymnasium
LIVE STATS: https://bsubeavers.com/sidearmstats/wbball/summary
LIVE VIDEO: https://nsicnetwork.com/bsubeavers/
X: @UMNCrookstonATH/@UMNCrookstonWBB

NORTHERN STATE AT MINNESOTA CROOKSTON
DATE: Thursday, February 6
TIME: 7:30 p.m. C.T.
SITE: Crookston, Minn.
ARENA: Gary Senske Court at Lysaker Gymnasium
LIVE STATS: https://goldeneaglesports.com/sidearmstats/wbball/summary
LIVE VIDEO: https://nsicnetwork.com/goldeneaglesports/
X: @UMNCrookstonATH/@UMNCrookstonWBB

WEEKLY SNAPSHOT

MINNESOTA CROOKSTON
Projected Starters
Jr. PG 1 Emma Miller (5-1, Albertville, Minn.) 22.4 PPG, 5.1 RPG, 3.0 APG
R-So. SG 2 Hope Dudycha (5-5, Austin, Minn.) 7.5 PPG, 2.2 RPG
Fr. 3G 10 Halle Winjum (5-6, Crookston, Minn.) 3.0 PPG, 1.7 RPG
R-So. SF 30 Riley Jenkins (5-10, Galesburg, Ill.) 10.7 PPG, 6.6 RPG
R-Sr. PF 4 Nicole Hernandez (6-2, Oak Creek, Wis.) 7.0 PPG, 7.9 RPG, 2.9 BPG
Bench
Fr. F 21 Willow Thiel (5-11, Perham, Minn.) 6.4 PPG, 3.8 RPG
So. F 14 Rayna Klejeski (6-0, Barnum, Minn.) 3.8 PPG, 1.9 RPG


BEMIDJI STATE
Projected Starters
So. PG 10 Tieryn Plasch (5-7, Lake Nebagamon, Wis.) 9.7 PPG, 4.3 RPG, 2.6 APG
Sr. SG 0 Erin Barrette (5-7, Menominee, Mich.) 8.0 PPG, 2.5 RPG, 2.5 APG
Fr. 3G 22 Aubrey Heyer (5-11, Chaska, Minn.) 5.4 PPG, 5.1 RPG
So. SF 2 Ashlynne Guenther (5-11, Duluth, Minn.) 6.5 PPG, 3.1 RPG
Jr. PF 20 Rachel Koenig (6-2, Nodine, Minn.) 8.9 PPG, 2.8 RPG
Bench
Sr. F 34 Ella Giorgi (6-2, Coon Rapids, Minn.) 6.4 PPG, 3.2 RPG
Gr. G 23 Janette Hanni (5-8, Oulu, Finland) 5.3 PPG, 2.6 RPG
Sr. G 12 Sydney White (5-8, Andover, Minn.) 4.0 PPG, 1.6 RPG
Jr. F 33 Brooke Theis (6-1, Shawano, Wis.) 2.2 PPG, 2.7 RPG
So. G 3 Sage Ganyo (5-5, Britt, Minn.) 2.1 PPG, 1.5 RPG

NORTHERN STATE
Projected Starters
Gr. PG 3 Rianna Fillipi (5-8, Lennox, S.D.) 12.1 PPG, 5.7 RPG, 5.4 RPG
Jr. SG 4 Morgan Fiedler (5-8, Aberdeen, S.D.) 7.0 PPG, 2.0 RPG
Sr. 3G 23 Alayna Benike (5-11, Castlewood, S.D.) 8.8 PPG, 6.3 RPG
Gr. SF 34 Michaela Jewett (6-0, Brookings, S.D.) 13.0 PPG, 8.9 RPG
Jr. PF 2 Madelyn Bragg (6-3, Aberdeen, S.D.) 15.2 PPG, 7.0 RPG
Bench
Jr. G 25 Izzy Moore (5-10, Sioux Falls, S.D.) 8.3 PPG, 3.5 RPG
So. G 5 Decontee Smith (5-8, Mapleton, N.D.) 8.0 PPG, 3.5 RPG

KEYS TO THE WEEKEND

Will Emma Miller have a major impact for the Golden Eagles?

Can the Golden Eagles get strong production off the bench?

Will Nicole Hernandez continue to be a force defensively?

Can the Golden Eagles get key wins in order to make the NSIC Tournament?

Can Riley Jenkins get a double-double? 

Can Halle Winjum follow up her 10 points last time out?