MOORHEAD, Minn. -- Minnesota State Moorhead women's basketball will look to collect a pair of vital Northern Sun victories this weekend inside Nemzek Fieldhouse. The Dragons are set to host UMary on Thursday at 5:30 p.m. before taking on Minot State on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. 

Live video and stats will be available at msumdragons.com. Fans can watch the contests on the Dragon Digital Network with Steve d'Eustachio on play-by-play and Jared Bledsoe on commentary. Saturday's game can also be listened to on AM 1100/FM 92.3 with Jace Denman and 'Big Game' James McCarty on the call.

Matchup History...The Marauders earned the first victory of the season series with the Dragons on December 13 with UMary claiming a 84-78 victory in Bismarck. Ashton Safranski led the Dragons with 21 points, but Moorhead also saw strong games from Caylin Kelly and Aubrey Morrison, who scored 16 and 17 points respectively. The win by the Marauders ended a two-game MSUM winning streak dating back to December of 2024. Over the last 10 meetings between the two, each team has secured five victories. Four of the last five losses to the Marauders came in Bismarck as the Dragons hold a 3-1 mark in Moorhead since the 2021-22 season. MSUM leads the all-time series 37-19 with the teams first meeting during the 1983-84 season. Moorhead also leads the long-time series with Minot State, holding a 33-9 record against the Beavers since the 1974-75 season. However, the Beavers hold the most recent victory, defeating the Dragons 78-68 on December 11. Terryn Johnson led MSUM with 15 points and 13 rebounds. 

Safranski Steals...Sophomore guard Ashton Safranski collected four steals across two games for Moorhead last weekend. The defensive effort pushed Safranski's career total to 138, surpassing MSUM greats Jackie Doerr and Kris DeClerk on the all-time list. The Fargo, N.D. native's steals mark stands as the eighth-most in program history with Safranski only having played 52 career games. Safranski is just four steals shy of moving into seventh place on the all-time list (Dana Weibel, 141). Moorhead's school record for career steals sits at 193 held by Nancy Yerka (1986-90). In order to reach the all-time mark, Safranski will also have to surpass her mother Tonah, who logged 190 steals for the Dragons from 1993 until 1997. Currently, the sophomore ranks third in the Northern Sun with 51 steals so far this season.

Watch Terry...Senior post Terryn Johnson would log 10 rebounds last week for MSUM, moving her career total to 751. The number pulls Johnson closer to the top ten list in program history. Johnson sits 26 rebounds shy of surpassing the great Allison Swenson on the all-time list and 28 boards shy of entering the top ten all-time, surpassing another Dragon legend, Mary Ann Donnay. The Kindred, N.D., native is the 11th player in program history to score over 1,000 points and snare over 700 rebounds in a career. After this weekend of competition, Johnson will also have played in 110 career games for the Dragons, which surpasses Megan Strese and Morgan Zabel on the all-time list. 

Don't Tap The Glass...Despite a pair of tough losses last weekend, Moorhead still ranks as one of the NSIC's top rebounding collectives. The Dragons rank third in the conference in rebounds per game (39.5) and offensive rebounds per game (13.6). MSUM's plus-5.8 margin on the boards this season is only second to Winona State in the Northern Sun. So far this season, Moorhead has had nine performances of 40 or more team rebounds and a pair of games with 50 or more. 

Honoring Seniors And More...Saturday's game against Minot State will serve as the MSUM's Senior Day as the Dragons will honor Terryn Johnson, Emily Srejma and Abby Berge for their contributions to the program. Additionally, Thursday's game versus UMary will be the annual Play4Kay game, supporting women's cancer awareness. Moorhead will dawn its special pink uniforms in celebration. 

Karla Nelson is in her 26th season as MSUM's head women's basketball coach. 

Scouting The Opposition

UMary
2025 Record: 20-7 (13-5 NSIC)
2024 Record: 16-12 (12-10 NSIC)
Head Coach: Rick Neumann (14th Season)
Nickname: Marauders
Top Marauder: Bergan Kinnebrew (22.5 PPG, 5 RPG, 46.2 FG%)

Minot State
2025 Record: 10-15 (7-11 NSIC)
2024 Record: 10-20 (9-13 NSIC)
Head Coach: Ryan Clark (2nd Season)
Nickname: Beavers
Top Beaver: Taryn Hamling (16.5 PPG, 3.5 RPG, 43.8 FG%)