The Winona State Warriors will see a familiar foe on Sunday as they head to Sioux Falls, South Dakota to take on the Sioux Falls Cougars in the second round of the NSIC playoffs. The Warriors have already defeated the Cougars twice this season, winning in overtime in Sioux Falls and by 14 in Winona. Game time is set for 5:30 p.m.

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Scouting Sioux Falls: The Cougars (22-5, 17-5 NSIC) advance to the second round of the NSIC playoffs by defeating Minot State 83-52 in Sioux Falls on Wednesday night. Sioux Falls has been a dominant force for most of the year, being ranked as high as seventh in the national polls at one point. They have struggled a bit as of late though, losing two of their last four to end the regular season, including a 23 point defeat to Augustana. Sioux Falls is still extremely dangerous, though, as they rank first in the NSIC in margin of victory (12.0) and second in scoring (75.9). The Cougars are led by NSIC First-Team honorees Kaely Hummel and Mariah Szymanski. Hummel is fourth in the NSIC with 16.9 points/game and hits her free throws at an 85.2% clip. Szymanski averages 12.1 points/game and can stroke it from behind the arc, hitting 53 threes on the season. Jacey Hunter was named to the All-NSIC Defensive Team and is third in the NSIC with 8.2 rebounds/game.

Survive and advance: Up by 16 heading into the final quarter, the Warriors had to fend off a furious MSU-Moorhead run to win their first round game by a score of 82-77. Taylor Hustad picked a good time to have a career high, as her 32 points led the way in the WSU win. Caitlin Riley chipped in 13 big points, her first game in double digits since December 13.

All-Conference Honorees: Juniors Taylor Hustad and Allie Pickrain were just named to the NSIC All-Conference team this morning, as announced by the league office. Hustad garnered first team honors while Pickrain landed on the second team for the third straight year. Hustad has had a breakout year, averaging 14.9 points and 7.9 boards per game. Her 10 double-doubles is top 50 in the nation for DII. Pickrain is averaging 11.1 points on the year and scored a career high 27 against Bemidji State in January. She has 924 career points, good for 21^st all time in WSU history.

Cougar kryptonite: The Warriors are the one team the Sioux Falls Cougars just can't seem to figure out. Winona State is the only team to defeat Sioux Falls twice this season and has given them their only road loss. Sioux Falls, a team that averages nearly eight three pointers a game, has hit just seven in their two games combined against the Warriors.

Unsung hero: Junior Emma Fee has come alive for the Warriors this season. After scoring just 58 total points in her first two years, Fee has scored 240 total points this season for an 8.9 points/game average. Fee has developed a very consistent midrange jump shot and was named the NSIC South Division Player of the Week for the first time in her career this year.

Passing the rock: Junior Emily Kieck has become a very consistent floor general for the Warriors this season. She is third in the NSIC with a 2.0 assist/turnover ratio and leads the league with 4.6 assists/game. Her 125 assists this season are good for 29^th in DII and put Kieck at 10^th place in Winona State history for a season.