For Immediate Release
Monday, February 1, 2021
NSIC Media Relations
Media Packet
NSIC North Division Player of the Week
#4 Lexie Schneider (F, 6-3, Jr., Hilbert, Wis. / Appleton East HS) - UMary
- Averaged 20.5 points and 12 rebounds in the Marauders split at UMC
- Scored 20 points with 11 boards in a 59-55 win on Friday
- Added 21 points and 13 rebounds in a 73-65 loss on Saturday
- Was 16-of-29 from the field (55%) for the weekend
NSIC South Division Player of the Week
#22 Erin Norling (F., 5-11, Sr., Loretto, Minn. / Delano HS) - Wayne State
- Averaged 20.5 points, 8.5 rebounds, 3.0 steals and 2.5 assists in split vs. WSU
- Had 21 points and nine rebounds in Friday’s 75-70 loss
- Scored 20 points with eight rebounds in Saturday’s 72-61 win
- Named player of the week for the third time this season (1/4/21 & 1/25/21)
Other Top Performances - North
#32 Rachael Heittola (BSU) averaged 17.0 points, 8.0 rebounds and 2.0 assists per game in a weekend sweep. She recorded 25 points, 10 rebounds, two assists, two steals and one block in 26 minutes during Saturday’s win. She notched her fourth career and first double-double of the season. She shot 52.9 percent (14-27) from the field and 71.4 percent (5-7) from the free-throw line over the weekend. She helped BSU to its first seven-game winning streak since the 1987-88 season.
#21 Jes Mertens (UMC) tallied 14.5 points per game as she notched 17 points, seven rebounds, two assists, and two steals in a win over UMary Saturday. She tallied 12 points, seven rebounds, three assists and two steals on Friday. She shot 4-of-6 from the field and 3-of-3 from beyond the arc in a win over UMary.
#24 Brooke Olson (UMD) averaged 16.5 ppg over the weekend against Northern State. Shot 12-23 (52.1%) from the field in two games against Northern State. She went 7-7 from the free throw line in two games and led UMD in points. She averaged 1.5 assists and 1.0 blocks per game over. She leads the NSIC averaging 19.2 points per game and sits second in field goal percentage at 56.7%.
#44 Anna Counts (MINOT) averaged 15.5 points over two games at Bemidji State. She grabbed 14 rebounds and made three blocks. She shot 56.5 percent from the field (13-23) and 5-7 from the free-throw line for the series. She scored season-high 21 points on Saturday and grabbed 11 rebounds for her first double-double of the season. She shot 8-14 (.571) from the floor and posted 10 points in Friday’s game on 5-9 (.556) shooting from the field.
#4 Lexi Wadsworth (NSU) scored 30 points over the weekend as she shot 60.8% from the floor and 77.7% beyond the arc against UMD.
Other Top Performances - South
#20 Izzy Van Veldhuizen (AUGIE) shot 57-percent from the field on 12-of-21 shot attempts including 53-percent from three. She made seven long-range baskets from beyond the 3-point line. In all, she averaged 17 points and five rebounds over the two Viking wins. In Friday’s win over UIU, she tallied 18 points and followed up on Senior Night, Saturday, with 16 points helping Augustana hold the South Division lead with three weekends to go.
#11 Lindsey Becher (CSP) averaged 12.0 points per game on the weekend and scored 18 points in Sunday’s 68-63 win over SMSU. Becher registered her first career double-double with 18 points and 10 rebounds on Sunday. She also averaged 6.5 blocks per game on the weekend, pushing her season average to an NSIC-leading 3.8 per game.
#45 Rachel Shumski (MSU) led the Mavericks with 19 points and 7 rebounds in a comeback victory over Sioux Falls on the road.
#34 Krystal Carlson (USF) scored a career high 23 points with eight rebounds in a 71-67 loss to Minnesota State on Sunday. She hit 10-of-14 field goals and was 3-of-6 at the foul line. In addition, she had an assist and a steal in 31 minutes before fouling out.
#35 Abuk Akoi (SMSU), in a 58-50 victory on Saturday, put up 14 points going 5-of-11 from the field, making this the third game in a row scoring double digit points. She also got nine rebounds along with five blocked shots. Saturday’s win would end a 17 game losing streak against Concordia-St. Paul with the Mustangs splitting the series.
#5 Mattie Schimenz (WSU) averaged 15.0 ppg, including a team-high 20 points on Saturday. She was 10-for-14 from the floor and a perfect 7-for-7 on free throws across the two contests. She shot 50% from behind the arc (3-for-6) and dished out 4.5 assists per game. Schimenz also collected a pair of steals for WSU.
Women's Basketball Pages
NSIC Women's Basketball Players of the Week
2020-21 NSIC Players of the Week
1/4/21
N: #12 Brooklyn Bachmann - Bemidji State
S: #22 Erin Norling - Wayne State
1/11/21
N: #24 Brooke Olson - Minnesota Duluth
S: #11 Lindsey Becher - Concordia-St. Paul
1/18/21
About the NSIC
The NSIC is a 16-team, 18-sport, NCAA Division II conference with institutions located in Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota. The NSIC is a model Division II conference that uses high-level athletics competition to develop champions in the classroom and community while empowering student-athletes to be impactful and positive leaders. Formed in 1992 by the merger of the Northern Intercollegiate Conference (men’s league) and the Northern Sun Conference (women’s league), the NSIC has flourished over the past quarter century, maturing into a 16-team union of Upper Midwest colleges and universities. The NSIC has won 23 team national championships and crowned 77 individual national champions. For additional information, visit
NorthernSun.org.
About NCAA Division II
The NCAA, the national governing body for college athletics, is a volunteer association of more than 1,000 colleges and universities that classify their athletics programs in one of three membership divisions. The 300+ institutions in NCAA Division II support a balanced approach in which student-athletes have the opportunity to earn scholarships based on their athletic ability, pursue their desired academic degree, and participate in all the campus and surrounding community have to offer. Division II student-athletes annually graduate at rates higher than their student body peers, and they have access to the best championships-participant ratio among the NCAA’s three divisions. Division II gives student-athletes the unique opportunity to compete in the classroom, on the field, in their career, for their causes, and on their terms. For additional information, visit
NCAA.org.
#NSICWBB