Tournament Preview: GNAC/PacWest Yellowjacket Challenge

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT Birgitta Gray O: (406) 896-5917 E: birgitta.gray@msubillings.edu

November 12, 2015 Tournament Preview: GNAC/PacWest Yellowjacket Challenge

Tournament Website

MSU Billings is welcoming three teams to Alterowitz for a tournament this week, including Simon Fraser, No. 3 California Baptist, and Academy of Art. BILLINGS, Mont. – The MSU Billings women’s basketball team is opening the 2015-16 season with a bang, as the Yellowjackets are welcoming fellow conference team Simon Fraser along with the No. 3 team in the country California Baptist and Academy of Art from the PacWest to Alterowitz Gym. The four teams will trade partners in the GNAC/PacWest Yellowjacket Challenge sponsored by the Billings Hotel and Convention Center & ExxonMobil Friday and Saturday Nov. 13-14.

“I think this is the best field we have ever had for our tournament that we run annually,” MSUB head coach Kevin Woodin said. “Cal Baptist was the national runner-up last season. They return four starters and are very good and athletic and are

balanced in scoring. Academy of Art, who we beat two years ago at the west region tournament, is a perennially tough team. They have been a consistently winning program over the years in the PacWest.

“I think it is great and I am hoping we can build some momentum,” Woodin continued. “Hopefully, people will come out and support this tournament. We had a great crowd on Tuesday against Rocky and this weekend I am hoping our home court will treat us well.”

Montana State University Billings | Yellowjackets MSU Billings finished last season with a 14-14 overall record, just missing out on the conference tournament with a 6-12 GNAC finish. The Yellowjackets finished seventh last year in the conference and this season were chosen in the preseason coaches’ poll to end the year at the same place.

MSUB lost three starters from last season, including All-American Kayleen Goggins. The forward was a first-team all-GNAC pick who finished second in the conference in scoring with 20.0 points per game. The Yellowjackets return seven letterwinners including 2013-14 GNAC Defensive Player of the Year Janiel Olson. Olson sat out last season while recovering from a torn ACL injury. Along with the GNAC Defensive Player of the Year accolade, Olson was a first-team all-conference honoree and including this season is now a two-time preseason all-conference pick. The 5-foot-10 forward averaged 7.8 points and 9.7 rebounds her junior year and was ranked as high as No. 15 in the nation in rebounds.

MSUB returns two additional starters in Alisha Breen and Rylee Kane. Breen joins Olson as a preseason all-conference selection.

The junior forward averaged 15.5 points per game (seventh in the GNAC) and 7.6 rebounds (fifth in the GNAC). Last year, Breen averaged 33.8 minutes per game while shooting 44.2 percent from the field. She finished the year shooting 83.4 percent (141169) from the free-throw line – sixth best all-time at MSUB. Kane started every game as a true freshman last season, averaging 5.0 points per game while dishing out 3.2 assists.

Former MSUB volleyball player Monica Grimsrud returns for her final year with the basketball team (3.2 points per game and 3.8 rebounds per game), sharing the captainship with Breen and Olson.

MSUB’s Alisha Breen

Junior transfer Tiana Hanson is the fourth upperclassman member of the roster. Last season at Sheridan College, Hanson averaged a double-double of 20.7 points and 10.5 rebounds per game.

Woodin is entering his 12th season as the head coach of the Yellowjackets. He has posted a 189-125 overall record, capturing four conference titles. Coach Woodin has guided the Yellowjackets to postseason play nine times in 11 seasons.

During the 2004-05 season, he was named the NCAA Division II Independent Coach of the Year. He was also the 200607 Heartland Coach of the Year and the GNAC Women’s Basketball Coach of the Year for the 2013-14 season.

MSU Billings captured the 2013-14 regular season GNAC title. The Yellowjackets entered the NCAA tournament as the No. 2 seed, making a run all the way to the regional championship game before falling to host Cal Poly Pomona 75-68.

This will be the first meeting between MSU Billings and California Baptist. The Lancers received full membership into the NCAA during the 2013–14 academic year.

The MSU Billings and Academy of Art’s single meeting came in the first round of the 2014 NCAA tournament where the Yellowjackets defeated the Urban Knights 60-59. Breen is the lone player returning from the MSUB squad who played significant minutes in the contest. The then-freshman topped double digits in rebounds finishing with 14 off the glass, adding in eight points.

Simon Fraser University | Clan Simon Fraser ended last season with a 15-14 overall record finishing at fourth place in the GNAC standings at 10-8. In the GNAC Tournament, the Clan won their first game against Saint Martin’s, but fell to Alaska Anchorage in the semifinals.

Simon Fraser returns seven letterwinners, losing four, including two starters. The team will be tasked with replacing GNAC Player of the Year Erin Chambers, who set a conference scoring record with 23.9 points per game. Also departing from last season is honorable mention all-GNAC guard Katie Lowen.

In the preseason coaches’ poll, the Clan was picked to finish fifth this season.

Senior Meg Wilson is the team's leading returning scorer (12.9 points per game) and rebounder (8.7 rebounds per game). Wilson was named honorable mention all-GNAC last season and was a preseason all-conference selection this year. Along with Wilson, the Clan returns starters Rachel Fradgley (7.3 points per game, 5.7 rebounds per game, .533 FG) and Ellen Kett (5.2 points per game, 153 assists).

During his tenure at SFU, head coach Bruce Langford has guided the Clan to seven 30-plus win seasons. He enters the 2015-16 season with a career record of 370 wins and 93 losses. In 2012-13, the program's first year of postseason NCAA eligibility, SFU advanced to the Sweet 16 in its first appearance in the NCAA tournament.

SFU’s Meg Wilson

This season, Simon Fraser opened the year with three exhibition wins. The game between the Clan will not only open the GNAC/PacWest Yellowjacket Challenge, but will be the first game of the regular season for both teams.

No. 3 California Baptist University | Lancers After a record-breaking season last year, California Baptist debuts 2015-16 as the No. 3 team in the nation as voted on.

Last year, CBU advanced to its first NCAA Division II postseason, winning the school's first west region title. The Lancers outscored four opponents by an average of 17.0 points per game to appear in the championship game. CBU finished the year as the No. 2 team in the division with a 29-7 record.

In the preseason coaches’ poll, the Lancers were selected to win the PacWest Conference title.

The Lancers return all but three of that same squad, including three preseason all-PacWest honorees Kamille Diaz, Cassidy Mihalko and Courtney Nelson. The trio each finished the year averaging double figures. Nelson led the group with 15.4 points per game, Mihalko was next with 14.9 points per game and Diaz rounded out the trio with 13.6 points, while also dishing out a team-high 4.6 assists per game.

Head coach Jarrod Olson is entering his fourth season at the helm of the CBU program. Last year, Olson guided the Lancers on a 15-game winning streak overall that extended into the postseason and helped Cal Baptist to a runner-up finish at the NCAA national tournament.

CBU placed four Lancers on the all-PacWest team in Darsha Burnside, Nelson, Diaz and Mihalko. Diaz and Burnside went on to earn all-PacWest Tournament recognition and Burnside picked up all-west region honors, along with a spot on the Elite 8 all-tournament team with Nelson. Burnside also became the first Lancer to be named an NCAA Division II stat champion after leading the division with 23 double-doubles.

The Lancers lost just one starter from their national runner-up finish last year. Burnside is the lone senior on the squad this year with Mihalko, Diaz, and Courtney Nelson returning as juniors.

Academy of Art University | Urban Knights The 2015-16 season marks Academy of Art’s fourth season as a fullfledged NCAA member. Last year, the Urban Knights earned an 18-11 overall record, finishing at 18-11 in the PacWest. AAU advanced to the league’s conference tournament before falling in the first round to Azusa Pacific, 69-59.

CBU’s Courtney Nelson

Academy of Art was chosen to finish third in the preseason coaches’ poll this season behind Cal Baptist and Azusa Pacific.

With a roster that includes seven seniors, five juniors, and just one sophomore and one freshman, the Urban Knights are experienced and upperclassman-heavy. A quartet of four-year senior guards in Jasmin Guinn, Zoie Sheng, Sha'Nice Storey, and Regina Camera, compose the nucleus of the 2015-16 Academy of Art squad.

Guinn, an all-PacWest first team honoree in 2014-15, comes into this year as a member the 2015-16 preseason all-PacWest team.

Last season, Guinn averaged 14.8 points per game with 2.7 assists per contest.

Sheng was just behind averaging 13.4 points per game with 2.9 assists. Storey (11.3 points per game) and Camera (10.3 points per game) also finished the season with double-digit scoring averages.

The Urban Knights opened their 2015-16 season at the Disney Tip-Off Classic where AAU lost all three of its contests, but did push No. 7 Alaska Anchorage all the way to the end, as the Knights were within two points in the final two minutes of the game.

AAU’s Jasmin Guinn

LaNay Larson is entering her fifth season as the head coach at Academy of Art. Larson holds an overall coaching record of 80-38 at AAU. The Urban Knights were back-to-back conference champions for the 2012-13 and 2013-14 seasons. En route to the PacWest regular season championship in 2013-14, Academy of Art had a program record 11-game win streak spanning more than a month from Jan. 20 Feb. 24.

2015 GNAC/PacWest Yellowjacket Challenge, sponsored by the Billings Hotel and Convention Center & ExxonMobil Friday, Nov. 13 Game 1 5:15 p.m.

Game 2 7:30 p.m.

Simon Fraser Cal Baptist

Academy of Art MSU Billings

Saturday, Nov. 14 Game 3 5:15 p.m.

Game 4 7:30 p.m.

Cal Baptist Academy of Art

Simon Fraser MSU Billings

Live Coverage: All games will have live stats and video streaming available on the MSUB Stretch Internet portal: HERE. Ticket Pricing: Tickets will be available at the door. The ticket booth will be open 60 minutes prior to each contest.

Prices: $8.00 for Adults $4.00 for Senior Citizens (65 and older), MSUB Faculty/Staff, Students in Grades 9-12 FREE, children 8th grade and younger Concessions and Apparel: A wide variety of concession items will be available for purchase at the newly designed concession area operated by Jackets & Co. Also available for purchase will be long-sleeved tournament shirts in sizes SXXL for $20.00.

The Teams:

MSU Billings

Yellowjackets Billings, MT

Simon Fraser University the Clan

Roster

Schedule Statistics

Burnaby, B.C. Roster

Schedule Statistics

Academy of Art University

Urban Knights San Francisco, CA Roster

Schedule Statistics

California Baptist University

Lancers

Schedule Statistics

Riverside, CA

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Roster