Strong field assembled for Tyson Classic
Hoops season opens in style
By Barry Poe | Posted: Friday, October 31, 2008
Nothing like a little women's basketball get-together to get the competitive juices flowing.
Morningside College is playing host to the first Tyson Classic, which will bring together some of NAIA Division II's top basketball talent. Four games each will be played both today and Saturday at the Tyson Events Center/Gateway Arena, host to the last 11 Division II national women's tournaments.
The field will include five teams from last year's national tournament, including three of the four semifinalists. Moreover, five teams are ranked in the Division II preseason poll.
"We wanted to bring in as many teams has we could for the fans to watch and for the teams to test each other," said Morningside Coach Jamie Sale. "There are five teams from last year's national tournament and five who are ranked in the top 14 this year, including the Nos. 1 and 2 teams as well as the defending national champions."
Sale's Morningside Mustangs are ranked No. 1 and Hastings No. 2 while 14th-ranked Northwestern won the 2008 national title. Hastings plays No. 9 Jamestown (N.D.) in the opening game at 2 o'clock today while Morningside takes on Mayville State (N.D.) in the 8 p.m. nightcap. In between, Northwestern squares off with Dakota State at 4 o'clock and Briar Cliff plays No. 13 Minot State at 6.
"We addressed the No. 1 ranking a little with our players, but we're used to being ranked fairly high, so I don't think it will bother us too much," said Sale. "To us, ratings are not an issue. We just need to start out the season strong, play two tough games and see where we have to go from there.
"We have some players returning, but we lost some good ones, too, so it will be interesting to see how our team will react."
Morningside, which lost to Northwestern in a national tournament semifinal, returns four starters from that 33-4 squad that established a school record with a 27-game winning streak. The Mustangs captured their fourth straight Great Plains Athletic Conference regular-season title with an 18-0 record.
Dani Gass, a two-time first-team All-American, and honorable mention All-American Autumn Bartel headline the returnees. The other returning starters are Leslie Foral, a 5-10 junior guard and Brittany Williamson, a 6-foot junior forward. Junior Laura Nelson will fill the fifth starter's role after Chelsie Trask, a highly touted recruit, went down with a season-ending knee injury.
Morningside and Minot State meet at 8 p.m. on Saturday. The Mustangs defeated Minot State in a controversial finish in a national tournament quarterfinal last March when an apparent game-winning shot by Minot State was waved off after a review of the videotape revealed that time had expired before the shot.
While Morningside returns nearly its entire team in tact, Northwestern will be rebuilding. The Red Raiders of Coach Earl Woudstra lost all five starters from the 35-2 national championship team, including Debbie Remmerde, the two-time Division II player of the year.
Hastings, meanwhile, is under the guidance of a new head coach in Jeff Dittman, the former Dakota State coach who took over for Tony Hobson, now at NCAA Division II Fort Hays State. Hobson led the Broncos to three national championships in six seasons. Lindsay Ducey, a 6-foot junior and an All-GPAC honoree last season, led Hastings in scoring at 18 points per game but missed the national tournament because of an ankle injury.
Briar Cliff brings back its top four scorers from last season, but three are coming off knee surgery. Cat Nelson, a junior from North High, averaged 15.3 points and Jamee Phipps, a senior from South Sioux City, scored 12.2 an outing. The Chargers were 11-20 and lost their last 12 games of the 2007-08 season.
FRIDAY'S GAMES
2:00: Hastings vs. Jamestown
4:00: Northwestern vs. Dakota State
6:00: Briar Cliff vs. Minot State
8:00: Morningside vs. Mayville State
SATURDAY'S GAMES
2:00: Hastings vs. Dakota State
4:00: Briar Cliff vs. Jamestown
6:00: Northwestern vs. Mayville State
8:00: Morningside vs. Minot State
Morningside College is playing host to the first Tyson Classic, which will bring together some of NAIA Division II's top basketball talent. Four games each will be played both today and Saturday at the Tyson Events Center/Gateway Arena, host to the last 11 Division II national women's tournaments.
The field will include five teams from last year's national tournament, including three of the four semifinalists. Moreover, five teams are ranked in the Division II preseason poll.
"We wanted to bring in as many teams has we could for the fans to watch and for the teams to test each other," said Morningside Coach Jamie Sale. "There are five teams from last year's national tournament and five who are ranked in the top 14 this year, including the Nos. 1 and 2 teams as well as the defending national champions."
Sale's Morningside Mustangs are ranked No. 1 and Hastings No. 2 while 14th-ranked Northwestern won the 2008 national title. Hastings plays No. 9 Jamestown (N.D.) in the opening game at 2 o'clock today while Morningside takes on Mayville State (N.D.) in the 8 p.m. nightcap. In between, Northwestern squares off with Dakota State at 4 o'clock and Briar Cliff plays No. 13 Minot State at 6.
"We addressed the No. 1 ranking a little with our players, but we're used to being ranked fairly high, so I don't think it will bother us too much," said Sale. "To us, ratings are not an issue. We just need to start out the season strong, play two tough games and see where we have to go from there.
"We have some players returning, but we lost some good ones, too, so it will be interesting to see how our team will react."
Morningside, which lost to Northwestern in a national tournament semifinal, returns four starters from that 33-4 squad that established a school record with a 27-game winning streak. The Mustangs captured their fourth straight Great Plains Athletic Conference regular-season title with an 18-0 record.
Dani Gass, a two-time first-team All-American, and honorable mention All-American Autumn Bartel headline the returnees. The other returning starters are Leslie Foral, a 5-10 junior guard and Brittany Williamson, a 6-foot junior forward. Junior Laura Nelson will fill the fifth starter's role after Chelsie Trask, a highly touted recruit, went down with a season-ending knee injury.
Morningside and Minot State meet at 8 p.m. on Saturday. The Mustangs defeated Minot State in a controversial finish in a national tournament quarterfinal last March when an apparent game-winning shot by Minot State was waved off after a review of the videotape revealed that time had expired before the shot.
While Morningside returns nearly its entire team in tact, Northwestern will be rebuilding. The Red Raiders of Coach Earl Woudstra lost all five starters from the 35-2 national championship team, including Debbie Remmerde, the two-time Division II player of the year.
Hastings, meanwhile, is under the guidance of a new head coach in Jeff Dittman, the former Dakota State coach who took over for Tony Hobson, now at NCAA Division II Fort Hays State. Hobson led the Broncos to three national championships in six seasons. Lindsay Ducey, a 6-foot junior and an All-GPAC honoree last season, led Hastings in scoring at 18 points per game but missed the national tournament because of an ankle injury.
Briar Cliff brings back its top four scorers from last season, but three are coming off knee surgery. Cat Nelson, a junior from North High, averaged 15.3 points and Jamee Phipps, a senior from South Sioux City, scored 12.2 an outing. The Chargers were 11-20 and lost their last 12 games of the 2007-08 season.
FRIDAY'S GAMES
2:00: Hastings vs. Jamestown
4:00: Northwestern vs. Dakota State
6:00: Briar Cliff vs. Minot State
8:00: Morningside vs. Mayville State
SATURDAY'S GAMES
2:00: Hastings vs. Dakota State
4:00: Briar Cliff vs. Jamestown
6:00: Northwestern vs. Mayville State
8:00: Morningside vs. Minot State
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