WINONA, Minn. – The Winona State University women's basketball team officially opens the 2019-20 campaign on Saturday with a crosstown matchup against Saint Mary's University inside McCown Gymnasium. Tipoff is slated for 5 p.m. inside McCown Gymnasium.
WSU last played SMU in a regular season matchup in 2015 and came away with a 90-68 victory. The Warriors lead the all-time series, 22-8.
Notes
SCOUTING SMU: The Cardinals also open their season against Winona on Saturday. Last year, SMU went 13-13. Saint Mary's was picked to finish sixth in the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (DIII). Head coach David Foley is in his second season with the Cardinals. SMU has just one senior on the team, Michele Remer, and is led offensively by sophomore Brooklyn Paulson. The guard averaged 11.2 ppg as a freshman as was named the 2019-19 Co-MIAC Rookie of the Year. Juniors Rachel Kedl (5.8 ppg) and Claire Patterson (6.1 ppg) also contribute to the offensive production.
ABOUT LAST YEAR: The Warriors went 15-13 (12-10 NSIC) a year ago, reaching at least the second round of the NSIC Tournament for the fifth straight season. Winona State ranked 13th in the league in scoring (64.1 ppg) during the 2018-19 season and was sixth in scoring defense (60.7). The Warriors ranked 10th in field goal percentage (40.8%) and 12th from beyond the arc (32.3%). WSU was one of the top free throw shooting teams with a 74.3% mark.
PRESEASON PICK: Winona State finished fourth in the NSIC South last season and has been tabbed to finish in the same spot in 2019-20 according to the NSIC Preseason Coaches' Poll. The Warriors were voted to finish eighth in this year's overall conference race. MSU Moorhead (NSIC North) has been picked to finish first overall while Sioux Falls was selected second overall and first in the South.
HIGH PROFILE EXHIBITIONS: The Warriors "unofficially" began their new season two weeks ago with a pair of exhibition games at Marquette University and the University of Iowa. The Warriors lost at Marquette, 93-47, and suffered a 98-53 defeat at Iowa. Junior Emma Fee led WSU at Marquette with 15 points and six rebounds while rookie Caitlin Riley scored 16 points on 4-7 shooting from downtown at Iowa.
YOUTHFUL EXUBERANCE: Winona State experienced quite the roster shakeup this offseason, returning just six players from last year's active roster. Void of any seniors in 2019-20, head coach Scott Ballard will rely on his group of five juniors to lead a team consisting of nine underclassmen. Included in that group of young players are six freshman that will don the Purple & White for the first time. Sophomores Jenna Bruss and Sydney Lodermeier each played significant minutes as freshman in 2018-19.
GREENER PASTURES: Also new to the team in 2019-20 are transfers Taylor Klug and Katie Sowa. Klug, a junior, came to Winona State last season, but was a redshirt after transferring from Mankato. Named to the 2016-17 NSIC All-Freshman Team, Klug played two seasons at Mankato and shot 40% from the field with a 35% clip from three-point land. She averaged 9.3 points, 2.2 rebounds and 1.3 assists/game. Sowa, a sophomore, comes to WSU from the University of Indianapolis where she appeared in all 28 games as a freshman. She averaged 15.7 minutes and 7.1 points/game while shooting 41% from beyond the arc.
MAKE IT RAIN: Junior Allie Pickrain returns as the offensive leader for Winona State. She was named the 2017-18 NSIC Freshman of the Year (All-NSIC Second Team) and a Second Team All-NSIC recipient again in 2018-19. Pickrain shot 43% from downtown as a freshman and followed that up with a 34% clip last season. The Apple Valley, Minnesota native has missed just two games in her career, making 50 starts over the last two seasons, and averages 11.8 ppg with 2.3 assists and 2.1 rebounds/game.
THE PENTAGON: With the season just beginning, it's never too soon to look toward the finish line. The NSIC Tournament begins on February 26th with top seeds hosting the opening round and winners advancing to the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls on February 29-March 4. The Warriors will look to make their sixth straight appearance at the Pentagon in 2019-20.
