LIVE OPTIONSLIVE STATS FOR BOTH GAMES || LIVE WEBCAST FOR FRIDAY VS. FHSU
WEEKLY RELEASES
UPPER IOWA || FORT HAYS STATE || MISSOURI WESTERN STATE || NORTHERN SUN
THIS WEEKEND IN PEACOCK BASKETBALL... The season will officially begin in Marshall, Minn. on Friday and Saturday, Nov. 13-14, with games against #10 Fort Hays State University and Missouri Western State University. When the team returns from Iowa's neighbor to the north, the Peacocks will host their home openers in Dorman Gym on Nov. 17, 20 and 25 against Lewis, Missouri-St. Louis and Truman before opening up Northern Sun Conference play at home on Nov. 28 versus Winona State.
DON'T FEED THE TIGERS... Coming off the best season in the program's NCAA Division II history, Fort Hays State Women's Basketball has been slotted #10 in the WBCA Division II Preseason Poll, released on Tuesday (Nov. 3). The Tigers finished at No. 8 in the poll last year, going 30-4 overall and making the NCAA Tournament Central Regional Final. Fort Hays State earned its first-ever MIAA Championship in women's basketball last season. The Tigers finished conference play at 18-1 to earn the crown. FHSU went on to earn the No. 1 seed in the Central Regional of the NCAA Tournament, which it hosted at Gross Memorial Coliseum in Hays. The Tigers ousted a pair of NSIC teams, Minnesota State-Mankato and Wayne State (Neb.), before falling to rival Emporia State in the regional final, a team the Tigers defeated twice in the regular season.
THE MYTH OF THE GRIFFONS... Missouri Western finished the 2014-15 season with a 15-12 overall record and 9-10 record in the MIAA. The Griffon season ended last year in the second round of the MIAA tournament against Emporia St. MWSU finished 7th in the MIAA with their 9-10 record. The Griffons were tabbed to finish fifth in the MIAA in the 2015-16 season. MWSU returns five letter winner and four starters from last year's squad. The Griffons return the MIAA leading scorer LaQuinta Jefferson, she averaged 20.2 points per game while shooting 48% from the field.
EXHIBITION RECAPS FOR THE PEACOCKS... Upper Iowa used a mix of solid shooting and tough defense to claim a 69-47 victory over the Ashford Saints in the team's exhibition opener. Sophomore
Blake Bergren led Upper Iowa on the night with 15 points and a pair of assists, while junior
Sam Ofstad scored 9 points and handed out 10 assists.
Upper Iowa played host to the Knights of Wartburg College on Monday night; the teams played each other twice a year in the Iowa Intercollegiate Conference prior to UIU's move up to NCAA Division II prior to the 2007-08 season. Wartburg won the rematch 69-66 after outscoring their hosts by six in the final quarter and erasing a three-point deficit heading into the fourth.
Carly Pagel, who is returning from a redshirt season due to an injury, led the team with 14 points and 10 rebounds.
Upper Iowa's women's basketball team closed out their preseason schedule last Sunday in Iowa City with an exhibition game against the #23 Hawkeyes of the University of Iowa. The Hawkeyes used their length to disrupt the Peacocks' offense all afternoon coming away with a 95-41 win. The Peacocks were limited on offense due to their 26 turnovers, but in the midst of the chaos that the Hawkeye defense was creating two players rose above the pressure. Freshman
Karlee Grabau and senior
Aleesha Cleaver led Upper Iowa against one of the nation's best NCAA Division I teams. Grabau showed off the skills that made her an Iowa All-State Third Team selection after averaging nearly 18 points and 7 rebounds for Crestwood High School last season. The freshman posted a double-double against the Hawkeyes with 13 points and 10 rebounds. Cleaver played tough leaving the game during the first quarter after an inadvertent elbow caught her square in the nose. She returned in the second quarter to lead UIU in scoring in the first half with 6 points. In the second half, the senior guard reached her 10 point total with two more field goals.
