SEWARD, Neb. – Before filling up on any Thanksgiving feasts, the third-ranked Concordia University women’s basketball team hopes to remain unbeaten when it hosts Mount Marty at 6 p.m. CT on Tuesday. It will be Seward County Appreciation Night inside Walz Arena. As a result, no admission will be charged. The contest will also be featured live on the Concordia Sports Network and 104.9 Max Country radio.
Twelfth-year head coach Drew Olson’s squad opened up conference play last week by claiming a home win over Midland, 85-63, and a road victory over eighth-ranked Dakota Wesleyan, 70-66. The Bulldogs (6-0, 2-0 GPAC) have already made victims out of three opponents ranked inside the top 10 of the NAIA Division II preseason poll: No. 5 University of St. Francis (Ill.), No. 8 Dakota Wesleyan and No. 9 University of Jamestown (N.D.). Concordia has jetted out to its first 6-0 start since 2012-13 thanks in part to its 3-point shooting (11.7 3-point field goals per game) and another star-studded cast of characters led by returning All-American Philly Lammers.
Junior Quinn Wragge entered the week on the brink of becoming the 25th member of the program’s 1,000-point club. She put up 27 points on 11-for-15 shooting from the field while powering the Bulldogs to victory at the Corn Palace. Wragge has totaled 993 points over 75 games as a Bulldog. She’s the team’s leading scorer this season at 15.7 points per game. Four teammates are also averaging in double figures: Taylor Cockerill (12.5), Lammers (12.3), Dani Hoppes (10.8) and Brenleigh Daum (10.0).
Mount Marty (5-2, 0-2 GPAC) has had a solid program under head coach Tom Schlimgen, who took the Lancers to the national semifinals in 2016. Mount Marty began this season at 5-0 before suffering back-to-back losses to No. 10 Morningside and No. 20 Hastings last week. Like Concordia, the Lancers aren’t afraid to pull the trigger from long distance. They rank second nationally in 3-point field goal makes per game (11.9). Their top scorer is sophomore guard Ali Kuca, who averages 14.6 points. So far, Mount Marty has limited its opponents to 37.3 percent shooting.
The Bulldogs will enjoy Thanksgiving weekend off. Following Tuesday’s contest, Concordia will look forward to welcoming College of Saint Mary to Seward on Nov. 29.
Tuesday’s projected lineups
Concordia (6-0, 2-0)
G – MacKenzie Helman: 2.8 ppg, 3.8 apg, 1.5 spg, .316 fg%
G – Dani Hoppes: 10.8 ppg, 1.8 spg, 1.2 rpg, .453 fg%, .438 3-pt fg%
G – Sydney Feller: 8.7 ppg, 2.2 rpg, .425 fg%, .419 3-pt fg%
F – Quinn Wragge: 15.7 ppg, 5.7 rpg, 2.2 apg, 1.8 spg, .596 fg%, .852 ft%
F – Philly Lammers: 12.3 ppg, 9.2 rpg, 2.7 spg, .443 fg%, .786 ft%
Mount Marty (5-2, 0-2)
G – Molly Koisti: 8.6 ppg, 4.4 apg, 4.4 rpg, .415 fg%, .857 ft%
G – Ali Kuca: 14.6 ppg, 2.1 rpg, 0.9 spg, .465 fg%, .492 3-pt fg%
G – Kaylee Granum: 5.4 ppg, 2.6 apg, 2.3 rpg, .417 fg%, .500 3-pt fg%
F – Karissa Chamley: 9.7 ppg, 7.4 rpg, 1.4 apg, .429 fg%, .439 3-pt fg%
F – Sarah Castaneda: 8.9 ppg, 6.6 rpg, 0.9 spg, .558 fg%, .737 ft%