THIS WEEKEND IN PEACOCK WOMEN'S HOOPS… Upper Iowa is prepped for the final road games of the regular season against fellow NSIC South foes Southwest Minnesota State University and the University of Sioux Falls. SMSU is tied for fifth in the NSIC South Division and took the first matchup this season with a final score of 89-57. USF is on a four-game winning streak and sit in second place in the division and fourth overall. The Cougars secured a 65-39 win over Upper Iowa earlier this season. The Peacocks and Mustangs will tip-off on Friday evening at 5:30 p.m. in Marshall, Minn. before UIU heads to Sioux Falls, S.D. on Saturday to challenge the Cougars at 3:30 p.m.
LIVE OPTIONS… Fans who can't make it to the game have several options to follow the action from home or on the go through the links above or UIUPeacocks.com/Live. Webcast and live stats will be available for both matches. The games can be streamed live on the NSIC Channel through Roku, Amazon Fire, Apple and Android TV's.
RECALLING LAST WEEK'S ACTION… Upper Iowa finished on the wrong side of two hard-fought NSIC battles that went down to the wire as the Peacocks were swept at home by the University of Mary (69-65) and Minot State University (72-69). The Peacocks were only outscored in two of eight quarters and averaged 67.0 points between the two games, 12.7 points higher than their season average going into the weekend. Upper Iowa outscored their guests 60-48 in the paint thanks to 45.4 percent shooting from inside the arc. The Peacocks shot 31.7 percent from deep and 74.5 at the line.
FINISHING ON A HIGH NOTE… Haley Martin has been making the most of her final games as a Peacock by increasing both her scoring and rebounding average since the new year began. Martin started her senior campaign averaging 4.9 points and 5.9 rebounds per game in 2018 but as increased those averages to 7.5 points and 6.6 rebounds in 2019. The senior has led the team in scoring and rebounding over the last four games with 10.3 points and 8.8 boards per game, and has been one rebound shy of a double-double in each of her last three contests. With four more regular season games left, Martin has accumulated 159 points, 162 rebounds, 20 assists, and 14 steals this season, all career-highs.
LENDING A HAND… Redshirt senior
Casey Miles dished out a career-high seven assists last weekend against Minot State to mark her fifth game this season with four or more assists. Miles has averaged 4.3 assists over the last four games while posting a positive assist to turnover ratio. The Hudson, Iowa product leads the team with 62 helpers this season.
SEASON STAT LEADERS… Team leader in italics
- Savannah Domeyer – 8.5 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 35 blocks, 12 steals, 48.0% FG
- Natalie Dinius – 8.4 ppg, 2.8 rpg, 11 steals, 34.7% 3FG
- Bekka Pierson – 8.0 ppg, 3.8 rpg, 13 blocks, 43.9% FG
- Emma Gaber – 6.6 ppg, 1.5 rpg, 1.3 apg, 14 steals, 28.2% 3FG
- Haley Martin – 6.1 ppg, 6.2 rpg, 6 blocks, 14 steals, 38.5% FG
- Ally Fink – 4.7 ppg, 2.1 rpg, 20 blocks, 50.0% FG
- Casey Miles – 4.0 ppg, 2.4 apg, 22 steals
- Laker Ward – 3.2 ppg, 2.4 rpg, 14 steals, 39.0% 3FG
- Marina Peinado - 2.9 ppg, 2.1 apg, 22 steals
SCOUTING THE MUSTANGS… Southwest Minnesota State (11-12, 8-10 NSIC) is tied for fifth in the NSIC South Division standings after dropping both of its road tests last weekend to conference leader Minnesota State University Moorhead (92-63) and Northern State University (56-51). The Mustangs are looking to capture their first winning season since the 2009-10 season as well as tie the overall series with Upper Iowa at 13-all. Junior forward Caleigh Rodning leads the team in scoring and rebounding with 13.4 points per game and 6.9 rebounds per contest. Meleah Reinhart averages 12.0 ppg while Sadie Stelter and Erin Baxter average 9.8 points. Abuk Akoi shoots a team-high 47.0 percent and averages 7.5 points and 5.0 rebounds per game. SMSU is shooting 39.0 percent from the field, 32.0 percent from the 3-point line, and 77.0 percent from the free throw mark. The Mustangs are averaging 70.2 points per game, while opponents are averaging 69.7 points per game.
SCOUTING THE COUGARS… Sioux Falls (17-7, 5-11 NSIC) has won four straight and six of its last seven contests including a weekend sweep of Northern State (73-66) and MSU Moorhead (77-74) last week in road cross divisional play. With the victories, USF took over sole possession of second play in the NSIC South and trail leader Concordia St. Paul by a game. The Cougars were led by junior Mariah Szymanski who averaged 23.5 points, 3.0 rebounds, 2.0 steals and 1.5 assists between the two wins. Szymanski scored a season-high 33 points against NSU but averages 9.8 points per game. Kaely Hummel is USF's biggest scoring threat with 15.0 points per contest (8
th in NSIC) while Hannah Jones (5.9 rpg) and Anna Goodhope (5.0 rpg) lead the team in rebounding. Jones also leads the squad with 3.0 assists per game. The Cougars rank third in the NSIC in scoring at 71.8 points per game and stand second in scoring defense at 58.5 points per contest.
UP NEXT… Upper Iowa returns back to Dorman Gymnasium to face Minnesota State University, Mankato and Concordia University, St. Paul in the final regular season contests of the year. The Peacocks will take on the Mavericks on Friday, Feb. 22 at 5:30 p.m. and the Golden Bears on Saturday, Feb. 23. UIU's seniors will be recognized in between the women's and men's game on Prochaska Court.
