Women's Basketball

Omaha stifles North Dakota in opening round of #SummitWBB Championship

The Basics
Score: No. 8 Omaha 49, No. 9 North Dakota 39
Records: Omaha (6-26, 3-13 SL), North Dakota (7-24, 3-13 SL)
Location: Denny Sanford PREMIER Center - Sioux Falls, S.D.

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – No. 8 Omaha defeated No. 9 North Dakota in the first game of the 2026 Women's Summit League Basketball Championship Wednesday at the Denny Sanford PREMIER Center. Ali Stephens led all scorers with 17 points and pulled down a career-high 14 rebounds to pace the Mavericks, who have now won three straight first-round games in the postseason.

Freshman Avril Smith had four points and five rebounds in the first quarter as Omaha built an 11-1 advantage before UND made a field goal. The Fighting Hawks' first basket came on a driving layup by MacKenzie Hughes with just over 30 seconds to play after they had missed their first 14 attempts from the field.

Omaha maintained the advantage throughout, taking a 25-16 lead into halftime before stretching the margin to as many as 15 points in the third quarter.

Hughes and Walker Demers would each score 10 points to pace the Fighting Hawks in scoring. Demers made the opening basket of the second half but the seven-point deficit would be as close as UND would get after the break.

Stephens scored 10 second-half points and went 3-for-7 from three-point range herself, while the Omaha defense limited the Fighting Hawks to just one make from beyond on the arc on 20 attempts.

The Mavericks will play top-seeded North Dakota State in Thursday's second quarterfinal, which is set to start approximately 25 minutes following the opening quarterfinal between No. 2 South Dakota State and No. 7 Kansas City. That contest opens the action at 12 p.m. CT.

Turning Point
Omaha pushed its lead to 37-22 midway through the third quarter after back-to-back 3-pointers from Ali Stephens. The surge capped a stretch where the Mavericks forced multiple stops and created their largest lead of the game.
 
Inside the Box Score 
  • Stephens led Omaha with 17 points and 13 rebounds for a double-double, the fifth Maverick to record a double-double in the Summit League tournament. 
  • Avril Smith grabbed 16 rebounds to go with seven points.  
  • Regan Juenemann added 10 points, while Sarai Estupiñan recorded eight points and five assists.
  • Omaha outrebounded North Dakota 42-35 and held the Fighting Hawks to 23.5 percent shooting and 5 percent 3-point range.
  • Hughes' double-figure scoring game was her 20th of the season as she capped her collegiate career with 11 straight.
News & Notes
  • Omaha won the first-round game for the third consecutive season and has won at least one game in each of its last five tournament appearances: 2021 (2), 2023 (2), 2024 (1), 2025 (1), and 2026 (1).
  • The Mavericks made title-game appearances in both 2021 and 2023 and upset top-seeded South Dakota State in the quarterfinals during their run in 2021.
  • Omaha led for 38:23 of the 40-minute contest and never trailed UND in the game.
#SUMMITWBB