March 3, 2001
GRAND FORKS, ND - North Dakota forward Theresa LeCuyer (Sr., Anoka, Minn.) scored 24 points and grabbed 13 rebounds to lead top-seeded UND to a 76-59 win over No. 3 seed North Dakota State on Saturday in the championship game of the North Central Conference Wells Fargo Finals women’s basketball championships.
North Dakota (25-3 overall), the NCC regular season champion and North Central Region’s top-ranked team, secured an automatic berth in the NCAA Division II women’s basketball championships with the win. North Dakota State (25-6 overall), which came into the conference tournament as the region’s second-ranked team, is expected to gain an at-large bid to the tournament when selections are announced Sunday at 5:30 p.m. Central time.
It was UND's 19th consecutive home win dating back to last season. The Sioux are 15-0 this year.
UND is now 3-0 against archrival North Dakota State this year. It is the first time the Sioux have ever defeated NDSU three times in a single season. The Bison have defeated the Sioux three times in a year on two occasions. NDSU did it in 1995-96 and 1981-82.
Saturday's game was never close. North Dakota jumped out to a 10-0 lead and held NDSU scoreless for the first four minutes. UND led by as many as 17 points in the first half and held a 39-27 halftime lead.
The second half started much the same way as the first, with the Sioux outscoring the Bison 16-4 in the first eight minutes to grab a 55-31 lead. UND led by 30 points (73-43) with 3:58 to play, but NDSU outscored the Sioux 16-3 in the game’s final minutes.
For the game, North Dakota shot 47.3 percent from the field (26-of-55), while North Dakota State shot 35 percent (21-of-60). North Dakota State only committed 15 turnovers, while UND committed 22, but the Sioux dominated on the boards, grabbing 50 rebounds to NDSU’s 24.
Joining LeCuyer in double-figure scoring for UND was forward Becky Moen (So., Morris, Minn.), who scored 17 points in 21 minutes coming off the bench.
North Dakota State was led by guard Angie Froelich (Fr., Algona, Iowa), who scored 16 points in 22 minutes in a reserve role. Bison center Jayne Boeddeker (Sr., Minto, N.D.) and forward Erin Ditty (Jr., Hastings, Minn.) each added 11 points.
LeCuyer and Moen were named co-Most Valuable Players of the tournament.
All-Tournament team selections were Boeddeker from North Dakota State, UND forward Mandy Arndtson (Sr., Austin, Minn.) and UND guard Jenny Hoffner (Sr., Brooklyn Park, Minn.), St. Cloud State forward Tina Schreiner (Jr., Cold Spring, Minn.) and Augustana guard Tamera Oltmanns (Jr., Lennox, S.D.).
Official Basketball Box Score -- GAME TOTALS -- FINAL STATISTICS North Dakota State U vs North Dakota 3/3/01 7 p.m. at Grand Forks, N.D. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- VISITORS: North Dakota State U 25-7, 13-5 NCC TOT-FG 3-PT REBOUNDS ## Player Name FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA OF DE TOT PF TP A TO BLK S MIN 04 Donni Luecke........ * 1-4 1-1 0-0 0 2 2 2 3 0 0 0 0 18 20 Jaye Amundson....... * 0-5 0-2 0-0 0 0 0 3 0 4 3 1 1 22 23 Amanda Gehrke....... * 0-6 0-5 3-4 0 2 2 2 3 1 3 1 2 31 30 Jayne Boeddeker..... * 5-10 1-3 0-0 1 0 1 5 11 0 1 1 1 23 44 Jaime Berry......... * 2-7 0-2 0-0 0 1 1 1 4 0 2 0 0 18 05 Heidi Jacobson...... 0-0 0-0 0-0 1 0 1 0 0 1 2 0 0 5 22 Erin Ditty.......... 4-10 0-1 3-5 3 3 6 3 11 1 1 0 1 22 32 Kristin Rausch...... 1-1 1-1 1-2 0 1 1 0 4 0 0 0 0 5 40 Angie Froelich...... 5-10 1-3 5-7 0 2 2 1 16 0 1 0 2 22 50 Angela Mayo......... 0-3 0-0 0-0 1 1 2 3 0 0 1 1 1 12 52 Janna Davis......... 3-4 0-0 1-4 1 2 3 0 7 0 1 1 1 22 TEAM................ 1 2 3 Totals.............. 21-60 4-18 13-22 8 16 24 20 59 7 15 5 9 200 TOTAL FG% 1st Half: 10-26 38.5% 2nd Half: 11-34 32.4% Game: 35.0% DEADB 3-Pt. FG% 1st Half: 2-9 22.2% 2nd Half: 2-9 22.2% Game: 22.2% REBS F Throw % 1st Half: 5-8 62.5% 2nd Half: 8-14 57.1% Game: 59.1% 5 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- HOME TEAM: North Dakota 25-3, 15-3 NCC TOT-FG 3-PT REBOUNDS ## Player Name FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA OF DE TOT PF TP A TO BLK S MIN 03 Theresa LeCuyer..... * 6-16 0-3 12-12 3 10 13 0 24 4 3 0 2 30 10 Tonia Jones......... * 3-5 0-0 1-2 2 4 6 1 7 0 1 0 0 27 24 Jenny Hoffner....... * 1-4 0-2 0-0 0 1 1 1 2 1 2 0 2 28 43 Mandy Arndtson...... * 4-8 0-2 0-0 1 2 3 4 8 1 1 1 0 22 44 Jenny Boll.......... * 2-5 0-0 4-4 2 4 6 4 8 4 3 0 2 23 05 Tamar Elias......... 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 2 0 0 4 0 1 3 20 Annie Leake......... 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 21 Marisa Leighton..... 1-3 0-0 0-0 0 4 4 2 2 1 1 0 1 14 22 Becky Moen.......... 6-9 1-1 4-5 1 3 4 5 17 2 3 0 0 21 23 Megan Pick.......... 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 8 30 Tara Zoanni......... 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 2 41 Kristi Kilander..... 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 1 1 1 0 0 2 0 0 3 55 Janel Palbicki...... 3-5 0-0 2-4 1 4 5 1 8 2 2 0 0 17 TEAM................ 5 2 7 Totals.............. 26-55 1-8 23-27 15 35 50 22 76 15 22 1 8 200 TOTAL FG% 1st Half: 14-27 51.9% 2nd Half: 12-28 42.9% Game: 47.3% DEADB 3-Pt. FG% 1st Half: 1-2 50.0% 2nd Half: 0-6 0.0% Game: 12.5% REBS F Throw % 1st Half: 10-12 83.3% 2nd Half: 13-15 86.7% Game: 85.2% 2 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Officials: Mike Larson, Marty Heine, Vicki Barron Technical fouls: North Dakota State U-None. North Dakota-None. Attendance: 2221 Score by Periods 1st 2nd Total North Dakota State U.......... 27 32 - 59 North Dakota.................. 39 37 - 76 Wells Fargo Finals NCC championship game. Tournament co-MVPs--Theresa LeCuyer & Becky Moen, North Dakota All Tournament Team: St. Cloud State - Tina Schreiner, NDSU - Jayne Boeddeker UND - Mandy Arndtson, Jenny Hoffner, Augustana- Tamera Oltmanns