2023-11-05 19:54:29
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Omaha, Neb. — The 22nd ranked Creighton Women’s Basketball squad opens the 2023-24 season on a neutral floor on Monday, November 6th as the Bluejays face North Dakota State at 6:00 p.m. in the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, S.D.
Takeoff History
The Bluejays are 21-28 in season openers entering the game with North Dakota State. Creighton is 13-36 in road opening contests. Under head coach Jim Flanery Creighton is 9-12 in the first game of the season, including 1-0 if the Bluejays begin the season on a neutral floor.
The game with the Bison marks just the fifth time the Bluejays will begin a season at a neutral site. Creighton is 3-1 in those contests, the last being a 40-35 win over Liberty on Nov. 12, 2010 in the Wolfpack Invitational.
Neutral Site Openers in Creighton History
Date Opponent Result Host
New Moon. 27, 1987 Colorado L, 50-76 UC Irvine
Nov. 24, 1989 George Mason W, 107-98 UNLV
Nov. 23, 1990 TCU W, 73-62 Oklahoma State
Nov. 12, 2010 Liberty W, 40-35 NC State
Exhibition Recap
Creighton faced Nebraska Kearney in its only public exhibition contest. The Bluejays were impressive in a pair of victories, posting a 93-42 win over the Lopers. One interesting note is both the Bluejays and Bison played Kansas in private scrimmages, although the scores were not made public.
Series with North Dakota State: Creighton Leads 10-1
Creighton leads the overall series with North Dakota State, 10-1. The Bluejays only loss in the series, however, came in the lone meeting on a neutral floor. That game was played in Albuquerque, New Mexico in 2005. Creighton dropped the contests 68-63. The Bluejays have won the ensuing six meetings.
Series with North Dakota State:
Date Opponent Score
1/19/81 North Dakota State W, 63-52
2/25/83 North Dakota State W, 71-58
1/26/85 North Dakota State W, 64-54
2/22/86 North Dakota State W, 76-54
12/9/05 @ vs. North Dakota State L, 63-68
12/29/08 at North Dakota State W, 51-40
12/18/10 North Dakota State W, 54-44
11/13/11 at North Dakota State W, 71-51
12/16/12 North Dakota State W, 63-42
11/9/18 at North Dakota State W, 86-51
11/18/19 North Dakota State W, 70-59
@ = played in Albuquerque, N.M.
About North Dakota State
Located in Fargo, North Dakota.
The Bison went 18-12 last season, falling in the opening round of the WNIT at Oregon, 96-57.
North Dakota State was picked second in the 2023-24 Summit League Preseason Poll, just behind another Creighton
opponent South Dakota State.
The Bison return three of five starters from last season, including 2022-23 leading scorer Heaven Hamling (16.5 ppg) and Elle Evans (13.4 ppg). Evans was the 2022-23 Summit League Freshman of the Year.
About NDSU Head Coach Jory Collins
Collins will begin his fifth season at NDSU against Creighton.
He has a 55-58 overall record, but his 55 wins rank as the third-most in Bison history.
Last season he guided the Bison to its first appearance in the WNIT.
Scouting North Dakota State
After an impressive 18-12 season in 2022-23, the Bison reached their first WNIT in program history. North Dakota State fell at Oregon, 96-57, in the opening round. This season the Bison are picked to finish second in the 2023-24 Summit League Preseason Poll, just behind another Creighton opponent South Dakota State.
The Bison return three of five starters from last season, including 2022-23 leading scorer Heaven Hamling (16.5 ppg) and Elle Evans (13.4 ppg). Evans was the 2022-23 Summit League Freshman of the Year.
Scouting #22 Creighton
Coming off Creighton’s Elite Eight run in 2021-22, the 2022-23 season came to a disappointing end as the Bluejays were eliminated in the first round of the NCAA Tournament by Mississippi State. Bluejays return four starters from last season, led by leading scorer Lauren Jensen. The Minnesota native closed her junior season with 500 points (16.1 ppg).
Fellow All-BIG EAST First Team selection Morgan Maly delivered 454 points (14.6 ppg) and led the team with 191 rebounds (6.2 rpg). Emma Ronsiek and Molly Mogensen scored 410 (13.2 ppg) and 217 point (7.0 ppg) respectively.
Creighton lost two impactful players to graduation last season as Rachael Saunders and Carly Bachelor did not return. The duo were Creighton’s fifth and sixth leading scorers and combined to start 32 games last season.
Homeward Bound
One of the reasons the 2023-24 opening game is being played at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, S.D. is a pair of Bluejays call the city home. Senior Emma Ronsiek and redshirt freshman Lexi Unruh hail from Sioux Falls. Ronsiek graduated from O’Gorman HS in 2020, while Unruh graduated from Sioux Falls Christian HS in 2021. Plagued by injuries in her first two seasons, Unruh will make her collegiate debut on Monday.
Location, Location, Location
The makeup of a roster follows similar rules as real estate,
location matters. Of the 24 players that make up the Creighton and North Dakota State rosters, 10 are from the state of Minnesota. Four Bluejays and six Bison hail from the Land of 10,000 Lakes.
The breakdown of home states for each roster provides a glimpse into the recruiting footprint for each team.
Creighton (Minnesota 4, Kansas 2, Nebraska 2, South Dakota 2, Missouri 1)
North Dakota State (Minnesota 6, International 3, Illinois 1, Iowa 1, North Dakota 1, Oregon 1,
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