The University of Minnesota Duluth women's basketball team will make their home debut for the 2024-25 regular season in Romano Gymnasium, hosting the University of Wisconsin-Parkside on Monday, Nov. 18, at 5:00 PM.
Last Time Out
The Bulldogs kicked off their 2024-25 season last weekend 1-1 at the GAC-NSIC Conference Crossover in Alva, Oklahoma, falling to Southeastern Oklahoma State 85-87 in their season opener and defeating Northwestern Oklahoma State 84-78 on the next day.
After starting off the afternoon slow and falling to a 50-47 deficit by halftime, nine unanswered points at the end of the third quarter allowed the Bulldogs to tie things up 67-67 heading into the fourth. However, the Savage Storm would out-score the Bulldogs 20-18 in the final frame to secure the season opener loss for UMD.
The Bulldogs would shoot out in front in the opening quarter on day two, using their three point shooting to gain a 22-15 lead by the end of the first. The Rangers would respond though in the second to tie things up at 31-31 by halftime. UMD fell to a 10 point deficit to open the second half, but went on to make that up with 10 unanswered points to open the fourth frame and continued to tack on points to collect their first win of the season.
Weekend's Spotlight Players
#11 Myra Moorjani - 2 GP, 45 PTS, 8 RBs, 7 A, 2 STLs
#23 Claire Bjorge - 2 GP, 37 PTS, 6 RBs, 8 A, 66.7 FG%
#42 Lexi Karge - 2 GP, 21 PTS, 12 RBs, 2 A, 75.0 FG%
Scouting Report
The University of Wisconsin-Parkside Rangers started off their 2024-25 season undefeated, picking up a pair of wins against Maryville University and the University of Missouri-St. Louis.
The Bulldogs are 4-1 against the Rangers since their first meeting in 2017, most recently falling to them last season 49-77 on the road in Kenosha, WI.
#5 Peighton Nelson currently leads the Rangers offense, tallying 38 points and seven rebounds with a 57.1 FG%.
UMD Slated Eight in NSIC Preseason
The University of Minnesota Duluth women's basketball team was slated to finish eighth in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) preseason coaches poll. The Bulldogs received 119 points in the conference poll after finishing the 2023-24 season in the semifinal round of the NSIC tournament.
Moorjani Named NSIC Player to Watch
Junior guard Myra Moorjani has been named UMD's NSIC Player to Watch for the 2024-25 season. While she made an appearance in all 29 games, Moorjani became a mainstay member in the Bulldogs' starting five for the final 10 games of the 2023-24 season. Moorjani tallied 181 total points last season while averaging 6.2 points per game, 3.0 rebounds per game, and was third on the team with 40 total assists.
Last Season
The Bulldogs closed out their season with a 19-10 overall record, falling in the semifinal round of the NSIC tournament to the University of Mary Marauders.
UMD carried the momentum from their one point win in their regular season finale against St. Cloud State into a dominant 73-69 home victory in the opening round of the tournament over the University of Sioux Falls.
The Bulldogs stayed alive in their first matchup at the Sanford Pentagon, turning a three point deficit after the third quarter into a nine point comeback victory over Concordia St Paul. UMD would go on to fall 75-83 in their semifinal matchup against the University of Marauders.
Looking Ahead
Bulldog women's basketball will return to Romano Gymnasium for another pair of non-conference matchups, hosting the Northern Michigan University Wildcats and the Michigan Tech Huskies. Tip-off against the Wildcats is currently set for Saturday, Nov. 23, at 12:00 PM.
