SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – Summit League Women’s Basketball is back! The 2022-23 collegiate women’s basketball season gets underway with all 10 of our teams taking the court Monday. The opening week of the season will include four matchups between Summit League teams and top 25 nationally-ranked opponents. One of the four matchups during the first week of play will be a meeting between #21/21 Creighton and #23/24 South Dakota State (11/7; 7 p.m. CT).
 
Joining the Jackrabbits in opening-day ranked matchups are Omaha at  #22/22 Nebraska (11/7; 12 p.m. CT) and Oral Roberts at #15/16 Oklahoma (11/7; 4 pm. CT).
 
The fourth nationally-ranked matchup of opening week will be South Dakota, which is receiving votes in both the Associated Press and USA Today/WBCA Preseason Coaches Polls, hosting #21/21 Creighton on Thursday at 7 p.m. CT.
 
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TEAM TRACKER
DENVER PIONEERS (10-20, 5-13 SL) | @DU_WHoops
Next Up:  vs. Air Force (11/7; 7:30 p.m. MT); vs. Northern Colorado (11/11; 6 p.m. MT); vs. Loyola Marymount (11/15; 6 p.m. MT)
Previous Game:  vs. South Dakota State (L, 86-59; Summit League quarterfinals)
The Pioneers added eight new faces to the 2022-23 roster including graduate transfers Mikayla Brandon (Northern Illinois) and Ally Haar (Niagara) ... Brandon played 92 career games during her four years at Northern Illinois, averaging 4.1 ppg and 4.8 rpg for the Huskies ... Haar saw 95 career games during her four seasons at Niagara, averaging 5.27 ppg for the Purple Eagles ... Denver was the best blocking team last season averaging 4.61 bpg during league play. Makayla Minett paced the efforts averaging 1.8 bpg ... Minett started 13 league games last season and averaged 6.4 rpg. She blocked 33 total shots during league play, the highest on the team and third-best in the league.
 
KANSAS CITY ROOS (23-9, 12-6 SL) | @KCRoosWBB
Next Up: vs. Westminster (Mo.) (11/7; 11 a.m. CT); vs. Tennessee State (11/11; 7 p.m. CT); vs. UTEP (11/13; 1 p.m. CT)
Previous Game: at Northern Iowa (L, 75-58; WNIT first round)
The Roos will be under the direction of first-year head coach Dionnah Jackson-Durrett, who appeared in five-straight Elite Eight games during her tenures at Mississippi State and Texas ... Kansas City’s roster will see six new faces this season, four freshmen and two transfers, including graduate transfer E’Lease Stafford who started 26  games and averaged 9.3 ppg last season at Utah State ... Key role-players Sanaa’ St. Andre, Dani Winslow and RaVon Nero return from last year’s WNIT qualifying team ... Nero, the 2020-21 Summit League Sixth Woman of the Year, was selected as a Preseason All-Summit League second team honoree ahead of the 2022-23 season … She recorded 8.4 ppg, 1.9 rpg and 1.7 apg in seven League games last season.

NORTH DAKOTA FIGHTING HAWKS (15-15, 9-9 SL) | @UNDwbasketball
Next Up: vs. Detroit Mercy (11/7; 7 p.m. CT); vs. Wyoming (11/11; 1 p.m. CT)
Previous Games: vs. Oral Roberts (L, 61-54; Summit League quarterfinals)
North Dakota was tabbed fourth in the 2022-23 Summit League Women’s Basketball Preseason Coaches’ Poll, which is the highest the team has been ranked since joining the league ... North Dakota was one of 20 teams dubbed as a most improved team during the 2021-22 season … The Fighting Hawks improved from 2-19 in 2020-21 to 15-15 last season under the direction of head coach Mallory Bernhard ... The Fighting Hawks return the League’s leading scorer and Preseason All-Summit League first team honoree Kacie Borowicz, who averaged 21.1 ppg a season ago ... Borowicz also led the League in free throw percentage (95.7 percent) and she did not miss from the charity stripe in 12 of UND’s 18 League games.
 
NORTH DAKOTA STATE BISON (11-18, 7-11 SL) | @NDSUwbb
Next Up: at Montana (11/7; 7 p.m. CT); vs. Mayville State (11/10; 5 p.m. CT); vs. Valley City State (11/14; 7 p.m. CT)
Previous Game: vs. Kansas City (L, 81-74; Summit League quarterfinals)
As a squad, the Bison ranked third in the league for 3-point field goals made during the regular season (6.9 rpg) and fourth in team 3-point field goal percentage (32.2 percent) ... The Bison return Heaven Hamling, who earned honorable mention honors last season and was named to the Preseason All-Summit League first team for this season ... Hamling averaged 14.3 ppg, 4.9 rpg, 2.8 apg and owned the League’s best 3-point field goal percentage (36.5 percent) last season en route to All-Summit League Honorable Mention honors ... The Bison also return Abby Schulte to the 2022-23 roster … Schulte was among the Bison’s top five scorers averaging 7.1 ppg and 2.6 rpg.
 
OMAHA MAVERICKS (7-19, 3-14 SL) | @OmahaWBB
Next Up:  at Nebraska (11/7; 7 p.m. CT); at Wichita State (11/12; 2:05 p.m. CT)
Previous Game: vs. St. Thomas (L, 61-56)
The Mavericks have seven newcomers joining third-year head coach Carrie Banks’ 2022-23 roster ... Omaha will see key returners in Katie Keitges, Elena Pilakouta, and breakout rookie Grace Cave ... Keitges led all returners in minutes played last season (580) and averaged 4.5 ppg, 1.4 rpg and 1.1 apg for the Mavericks ... Pilakouta is the top returning scorer for Omaha. She averaged 9.8 ppg while also pulling down 4.6 rpg last season ... Cave was one of the top three scorers for the Mavericks last season, averaging 8.3 ppg in League play. She also averaged 2.3 rpg and 1.7 apg in her debut season with Omaha.
 
ORAL ROBERTS GOLDEN EAGLES (16-15, 10-8 SL) | @ORUWBB
Next Up:  at #15/16 Oklahoma (11/7; 4 p.m. CT); at UNLV (11/11; 7:30 p.m. CT); at Oklahoma State (11/14; 6:30 p.m. CT)
Previous Game:  vs. South Dakota State (L, 72-53; Summit League semifinals)
The Golden Eagles will be under the direction of first-year head coach Kelsi Musick. Musick spent the last 13 seasons as the head coach at Southwestern Oklahoma State University where she led the Lady Bulldogs to the NCAA Division II National Championship game in 2019 ... The Golden Eagles were the second-best stealing team in the League last season, averaging 9.0 spg ... Tirzah Moore, the reigning Freshman of the Year, returns to the squad this season … She was the highest-scoring Summit League freshman last season, averaging a team-best 14.8 ppg and 6.0 rpg for the Golden Eagles ... Along with Moore, ORU returns Hannah Cooper, Delaney Nix, Nena Taylor, Ariel Walker and Trinity Moore ... Musick welcomes eight newcomers to her roster, three freshmen and five transfers.
 
ST. THOMAS TOMMIES (7-21, 4-14 SL) | @TommieWBBall
Next Up:  at Northern Iowa (11/7; 5 p.m. CT); vs. South Carolina State (11/12; 7 p.m. CT); at Illinois State (11/15; 6:30 p.m. CT)
Previous Games:  at Denver (L,66-63), at Omaha (W, 61-56)
The Tommies finished their first season in the League with a 7-21 overall record and a 4-14 League record as they transitioned from the DIII level ... The Tommies are under the direction of Ruth Sinn who enters her 18th season at St. Thomas … She holds an overall record of 363-109, including a mark of 356-88 in Division III ... Preseason All-League second team honoree Jade Hill returns to the Tommies following a rookie season that earned her a spot on the 2021-22 All-Newcomer Team ... Hill started all 18 League games for the Tommies and averaged 14.5 ppg, 3.5 apg, 2.9 rpg and 1.4 spg. Her points per game ranked second on the team and was the second-best scoring output by a freshman during League play last season.
 
SOUTH DAKOTA COYOTES (29-6, 17-1 SL) | @SDCoyotesWBB
Next Up: vs. Midland (11/7; 7 p.m. CT); vs. #21/21 Creighton (11/10; 7 p.m. CT); at Bradley (11/13; 2 p.m. CT)
Previous Game:  vs. #12/12 Michigan (L, 52-49; NCAA Tournament Sweet 16)
At the helm of the Coyotes this season is first-year head coach Kayla Karius. The former USD assistant has served as the recruiting coordinator in each of her four previous coaching stops, including last season at Drake where the Bulldogs won 20 games and reached the WNIT’s Round of 16 ... Her recruiting class at South Dakota included 2022 Summit League Player of the Year Chloe Lamb, three-time Summit League Defensive Player of the Year Hannah Sjerven and two-time All-Summit League honoree Liv Korngable … Karius inherits a South Dakota program that is coming off a Sweet 16 run during the 2022 Big Dance … The Coyotes became just the second Summit League team to advance that far in the NCAA Tournament after posting a 61-47 win over No.7/5 Baylor in the second round ... USD has five starters to replace, but the Coyotes return Grace Larkins -- the 2021-22 Sixth Woman of the Year … She ranked fourth on the team in scoring a year ago after averaging 8.1 ppg to go along with 3.3 rpg and 1.5 apg.
 
SOUTH DAKOTA STATE JACKRABBITS (29-9, 17-1 SL) | @GoJacksWBB
Next Up:  vs. #21/21 Creighton (11/7; 7 p.m. CT); vs. Lehigh (11/11; 7 p.m. CT); vs. Mississippi State (11/14; 6 p.m. CT)
Previous Game: vs. Seton Hall (W, 82-50; WNIT Championship)
The Jackrabbits enter the season coming off a 2021-22 campaign that saw them become just the second team in Summit League history to be crowned the WNIT Champions and end their season with a championship game victory on their home court ... For the first time in program history, the SDSU women were ranked in the AP Preseason Poll …  The Jacks checked in at No. 23 and were also ranked No. 24 in the USA Today/WBCA Coaches Poll ... SDSU returns six of its top seven scorers from last year, including 2022 WNIT MVP and this season’s Preseason Player of the Year Myah Selland … Paige Meyer, All-Summit League second team and All-Newcomer team honoree, Paiton Burckhard and Tori Nelson, both All-Summit League honorable mention recipients, are also back for the Jacks ... Selland was named to the watch lists for the Becky Hammon and Cheryl Miller awards heading into the season.
 
WESTERN ILLINOIS LEATHERNECKS (14-15, 5-12 SL) | @WIUWBB
Next Up: at Minnesota (11/7; 5:30 p.m. CT); at Southern Indiana (11/11; 6 p.m. CT); vs. Eastern Illinois (11/14; 6 p.m. CT)
Previous Game: vs. South Dakota (L, 75-49; Summit League quarterfinals)
The Leathernecks are coming off a season that saw the team finish 14-15 overall and 5-12 in League play and add six new faces to the roster for the upcoming season ... Western Illinois was a force behind the arc last season, leading the League in 3-point field goals per game (8.6) … They also ranked second among league teams in 3-point field goals attempted (765) and 3-point field goals made (250) ... Preseason All-Summit League second team honoree Elizabeth Lutz returns for her fifth season with the Leathernecks … Lutz led the League in steals a year ago, averaging 2.2 per game and finished second on the team in rebounds (4.7) ... Offensively, Lutz was the second-best scorer on the team, averaging 11.9 ppg during League play while dishing out a team-best 3.4 apg.