MOORHEAD, Minn. -- MSU Moorhead women's basketball will take its three-game winning streak on the road this week in two NSIC contests. The Dragons take on Minnesota Duluth on Friday at 7:30 p.m. before matching up with nationally-ranked Concordia, St. Paul on Saturday at 5:30 p.m.
Live video and stats will be available at msumdragons.com. Fan can also listen to the game against the Golden Bears on AM 1100/FM 92.3 with Jace Denman and 'Big Game' James McCarty on the call.
Matchup History...The Dragons have dropped the last seven games to the Bulldogs, dating back to February 15, 2020. UMD defeated the Dragons in Nemzek Fieldhouse on January 4, 74-50. The last time MSUM defeated the Bulldogs was on January 24, 2020 (56-51). CSP won its third straight game over the Dragons on January 3, by a 78-54 result. MSUM has not defeated the Golden Bears since January 20, 2023 in a 73-65 win in Moorhead. In total, MSUM was won eight of the last 12 against CSP.
Last Time Out...MSUM moved their win streak to three games thanks to victories over Minot State and UMary last week. The Dragons defeated Minot State 71-64 with
Ashton Safranski and
Ashley Fritz each scoring 15 points. Against the Marauders, Safranski scored another 15 points as three other Dragons scored in double figures as well.
Terryn Johnson,
Natalie Jens and
Abby Berge all scored 10 or more points for MSUM in the win.
She's A Stat Stuffer...Freshman point guard
Ashton Safranski was all over the box score last week for the Dragons. The Fargo, N.D., native averaged 15 points, 7.5 assists, 5.5 rebounds and 3.0 steals in two games last weekend. Against Minot State on Wednesday, Safranski hit all 10 of her free throw attempts, matching the single-game school record for free throw percentage. Oddly enough, the record is held by Safranski's aunt, Tracey, who netted all 14 of her free throw attempts on January 10, 1996 against Wayne State. Safranski is tied atop the NSIC in steals with 64. For her efforts last week, Safranski was named to the NSIC's 'Shining Five'.
Stackin' 'Em Up...Junior forward
Terryn Johnson had another pair of doubles-doubles last week for the Dragons. Johnson scored 14 points with 10 rebounds on Wednesday before netting 15 points and 11 rebounds on Saturday. The showings make it six straight games where Johnson has notched a double-double. Johnson is third in the NSIC in rebounding average, hauling in 8.9 per a game.
Fritz On Fire...Sophomore guard Ashley Fritz exploded offensively for MSUM against Minot State. Fritz drained five three-pointers against the Beavers on eight attempts. The point total is the second-highest of Fritz's career after her 16-point outing against Central Missouri on November 11, 2023.
Trending Up...MSUM enters the weekend having won six of their last seven contests, including the last three in a row. The Dragons are now 3-0 in February for the first time since 2018 in the heart of their program record-tying 16-game winning streak. The first victory in February of that year was their 101-97 thriller in four overtimes at Winona State.
Playing Dragon Basketball...over the last seven games, MSUM has held opponents to just 58.1 points per game on average. The Dragons have limited the opposition to 37.3 percent shooting (154-412) over the last seven games. MSUM has also owned the glass, holding a plus-61 advantage in the last seven contests.
Quick Scout...MSUM will need to limit UMD's success from deep this time around. The Bulldogs made nine of 18 attempts in the first meeting. The Dragons will need sound defense to best nationally-ranked CSP. The Golden Bears shot a whopping 52.8 percent from the field in the first meeting.
Karla Nelson is in her 25th season as MSUM's head women's basketball coach.
