MARQUETTE, Mich. - Coming off of a 2-0 start to the season in Wisconsin Dells, the Northern Michigan women's basketball team is now set to debut in the newly renovated Vandament Arena, hosting a pair of Northern Sun opponents. 

The Wildcats will first welcome Minnesota Crookston on Friday, November 15, and then contend with Bemidji State on Saturday, November 16. Both games will tip-off at 3 p.m.

Casey Ford will be on the call for each game and can be listened to on 94.9 The Bay. 


Follow The Action
Follow @NMU_WBBall and @NMU_Wildcats on X (formerly known as Twitter) for updates leading up to and during the race. 

Friday, November 15 - vs. Minnesota Crookston at 3 p.m.
Tickets  |  Watch ($)  |  Live Stats  |  Listen

Saturday, November 16 - vs. Bemidji State at 3 p.m.
Tickets  |  Watch ($)  |  Live Stats  |  Listen


A Word from Casey Thousand
"There are a lot of things we can improve on, but there are a lot of things we have gutted out. We were pretty steady and everyone did something for both games."



About the 'Cats
The Wildcats defeated Thomas More 48-46 in OT and Lewis 53-48 this past weekend in Wisconsin Dells. It was the first time since the 2021-22 season an opponent held Lewis below 50 points. 

Early in the season, NMU ranks T-6th nationally at 6.5 blocks/game, 7th in scoring defense at 47.0 points/game, and 24th in field goal percentage defense at 31.9%.

Sarah Newcomer scored 14 points with four triples in NMU's victory over Lewis. She currently leads the team in scoring at 11.0 points per game. UP native and Bemidji State transfer Alyssa Hill paces Northern on the glass with 7.0 rebounds per game while freshman Madison Schroeder's five blocks leads the teams and is second in the GLIAC.

NMU fields a 17-player roster for this season. Northern will have a big hole to fill in losing Makaylee Kuhn, a four-time All-GLIAC First Teamer and the program's all-time leading scorer (2,005 points). In addition, All-Defensive center Ana Rhude has also graduated, meaning there will be multiple shoes to fill in the lineup. The leading candidate to step into NMU's go-to scoring threat will be Jacy Weisbrod, who was selected to the GLIAC Preseason Second Team after earning those honors to end last year. 

Jacy Weisbrod was selected to the GLIAC Preseason Second Team after earning those honors to end last year. She averaged 12.7 points/game (14.8/game in conference play) last season and led the conference in three-point shooting, connecting on 92-217 (42.4%) triple attempts, with those 92 made threes ranking 6th in Division II. Weisbrod knocked down nine triples and a career-high 29 points against Kentucky Wesleyan in the NCAA Tournament. Those nine threes tied an all-time program record for made threes in a game.

In her 2+ seasons leading the Wildcats, head coach Casey Thousand has accrued a record of 39-23 (.629). Last year, Northern went 22-10 and made the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2019, defeating Kentucky Wesleyan to make the Round of 32.


A Look at Minnesota Crookston
Out of the NSIC, the Golden Eagles have started the season 0-2, falling to Nebraska Kearney 99-53 and Pittsburg State 93-79 at the NSIC/MIAA Conference Challenge in Aberdeen, South Dakota. 

Crookston went 9-19 a season ago and were led by Emma Miller who averaged 17.2 points and 6.4 rebounds per game. She is the leading scorer early on this season, averaging 14.0 points per game. 

The team is shooting 43.8% from the field, 28.6% from three, and 73.3% from the charity stripe. The Golden Eagles had trouble on the glass the first weekend of play, being outrebounded by 16 and 5. 

In five matchups, the Wildcats are a perfect 5-0 against the Golden Eagles. The teams last shared the court in 2022 in Crookston, a 74-64 NMU victory. In 2021, the 'Cats picked up a slim 50-48 victory in Marquette. 


A Look at Bemidji State
The Beavers did not play last weekend and will open its season at Michigan Tech on Friday. A season ago, Bemidji went 6-20 and were paced by former Beaver and now-Wildcat, Alyssa Hill. 

Senior Erin Barrette was named a Preseason NSIC Player to Watch after totaling 119 points, 57 assists, and 51 rebounds last season. 

Bemidji was picked to finish in last place in the NSIC Preseason Poll. 


GLIAC Preseason Poll
1.  Grand Valley State, 100 (10)
2.  Ferris State, 83 (1)
3.  Northern Michigan, 75
4.  Parkside, 71
5.  Michigan Tech, 68
6.  Wayne State, 66
7.  Saginaw Valley State, 44
8.  Purdue Northwest, 31
9.  Davenport, 29
10. Roosevelt, 20
11. Lake Superior State, 18