THIS WEEKEND IN PEACOCK WOMEN'S HOOPS… The Upper Iowa University women's basketball team tips off their 2021-22 campaign with a pair of matchups in Missouri before an exhibition game in Illinois. The Peacocks head to Jefferson City, Mo. to play the University of Arkansas at Monticello on Friday at 5:30 p.m. and Southern Arkansas University on Saturday at 1:30 p.m. before playing NCAA DI Bradley University in Peoria, Ill. on Monday in an exhibition contest at 6:30 p.m. Coverage options produced by the hosting teams will be available through the links at UIUPeacocks.com/Live.
LIVE COVERAGE OPTIONS… We've got you covered with several live options while the Peacocks are on the road. Live stats and a webcast produced by tournament host Lincoln Missouri will be available for the games against UAM and SAU. The exhibition game against Bradley will be aired on ESPN 3, have a live radio broadcast, and be accompanied by live stats produced by the Braves. Links to all the coverage options will be available through the links included with this story and at UIUPeacocks.com/Live.
NSIC PRESEASON COACHES' POLL... The Peacocks were selected fourteenth overall and eighth in the NSIC South Division in the 2021-22 Preseason Coaches' Poll. The University of Minnesota Duluth was selected by the league coaches as the overall and north division preseason favorite in the NSIC for the 2021-22 season. St. Cloud State received a first-place vote to rank second with 203 points while Augustana was third with 187 points and two first-place votes. The Vikings were the coaches' choice to win the south division.
YOUNG GUNS RELOADED... The Peacocks return both Lydia Haack, 2020-21 NSIC All-Freshman Team, and Jessica Musgrave, 2019-20 NSIC Freshman of the Year, along with several other experienced but young players. Haack, this year's NSIC Player to Watch for UIU, averaged a team-high 14.5 points and 3.3 assists per game last season. Musgrave was sidelined with a season-ending injury in just the second game of the season. In her two games, Musgrave averaged 15.5 points and 9.5 rebounds following her freshman campaign that saw the Toledo, Iowa product average 14.7 points and 6.7 rebounds in 29 games.
THE PEACOCK FLOCK... In addition to Haack and Musgrave, the UIU returners include Brooke Evenson, Katie Tornstrom, Calista Rochon-Baker, Lexie Lodermeier, Savannah Domeyer, and Alaina Brenning. Evenson scored 9.1 points and pulled down 6.2 rebounds per game as a sophomore, while Tornstrom averaged 7.3 points and 4.3 rebounds per contest. In addition to the experienced returners, the Peacocks have added several new faces including freshman Mia Huberty and University of North Dakota-transfer Emma Anderson.
SCOUTING THE BLOSSOMS... The University of Arkansas at Monticello women's basketball team was voted to finish twelfth in the Great American Conference in the conference's 2021-22 Preseason Coaches' Poll. Head Coach Markell Cox enters his second season as head coach of the UAM women's basketball program after a going 1-7 (1-6 GAC) last year. The Blossoms return eight players from a year ago in Taylor Flores, Trinity McDowell, Lauren Kleine, Aeryn Hawkins, Chaney Scott, Tieraney Bolton, Shania Smith, and Taylor East.
SCOUTING THE MULERIDERS... The Southern Arkansas University women's basketball team was voted to tie for ninth in the Great American Conference in the conference's 2021-22 Preseason Coaches' Poll. Fourth-year head coach Adam Collins leads a SAU squad that posted a 4-10 (3-9 GAC) record last season. The Muleriders' season ended in the opening round of the GAC Tournament against Ouachita after suffering an 85-84 loss on a shot at the buzzer. Southern Arkansas returns all 14 players that played at least one game last spring.
SCOUTING THE BRAVES... The Bradley University women's basketball team was picked fifth in the 2021-22 Missouri Valley Conference Preseason Coaches' Poll. Head coach Andrea Gorski enters her sixth season as head coach at her alma mater after going 17-12 (12-8 MVC), winning a conference title, and making an appearance in the NCAA Tournament last year. The Braves are led by a veteran backcourt that includes super senior guard, Gabi Haack, who was selected to the 2021 MVC Preseason All-Conference Team. A 3-time All-MVC honoree and the 2021 MVC Women's Basketball Championship's Most Outstanding Player, Haack is the older sister of UIU's Lydia Haack.
