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Lancee Whetman
Shooting Star

Women's Basketball

No. 3 Griffins Visit Dickinson State and Rocky Mountain

Lancee Whetman
Complete Release | PDF

SALT LAKE CITY – The third-ranked Westminster College women's basketball team takes to the road for a pair of Frontier Conference games this week. Westminster plays at Dickinson State (N.D.) on Thursday at 5 p.m. MST before visiting Rocky Mountain (Mont.) on Saturday at 5:30 p.m. MST.

FOLLOW THE ACTION
Both games will be streamed live on the web and have live stats available. Fans can find inks for all of the live features are available by clicking here.

GRIFFIN NOTES
Westminster goes into the road trip riding a season-long seven-game winning streak and at 14-2 on the season. They are undefeated in Frontier play at 8-0 to hold a one-game lead in the conference race. The Griffins have compiled a 7-2 mark in games away from home this season and they are 4-0 in conference road games.

With a scoring average of 70.38 points per game, Westminster ranks third in the Frontier and 46th in the NAIA. The team in shooting a league-best 46.3 percent from the floor and they are fourth in the country in that category. They also lead the NAIA in 3-point field goal percentage, making 41.5 percent from beyond the arc while making 8.06 threes per game to place second in the nation. The griffins are 12th in assists at 16.56 per game and they rank second with a 1.39 assist-to-turnover ratio.

The Griffins continue to be one of the top defensive teams in the nation and they rank fifth in the NAIA by holding the opposition to 55.62 points per outing. Griffin opponents are shooting 39.3 percent from the floor and 30.3 percent from three. Westminster allows just 29.94 rebounds per by which ranks second in the country.

Alli Blake is the team's leading scorer at 14.38 points per game. She is fifth in the Frontier with that average and she leads the league and is fourth in the country by shooting 55 percent. Blake is also fourth in the Frontier with 4.5 assists per game, an average that places 19th in the NAIA. Alli Winters shoots 59.1 percent from beyond the arc to lead the country and her 2.44 threes per game are 22nd nationally. Shelby Ellsworth grabs a team-best 6.38 rebounds with Tia Pappas added 5.75 boards and 2.13 steals per night.

NATIONAL RANKING
Westminster received 230 points to hold at No. 3 in the fifth edition of the NAIA Coaches' Top 25 Poll that was released on Tuesday. This is the second straight week that the Griffins have been ranked No. 3 this season and matches the highest they have ever been ranked. The Griffins have now been ranked in the Top 25 for a school-record 29 consecutive polls dating back to Dec. 12, 2011. They have also spent the last 18 polls inside the top five, which is the longest active streak in the country.

AROUND THE FRONTIER
At the halfway point of the Frontier Conference season, Westminster is 8-0 and they hold a one-game lead over Lewis-Clark State for the conference lead. The top six teams qualify for the conference tournament and Westminster has a magic number of four to clinch a spot in the field. The Griffins have a magic number of seven to clinch a bye into the semi-finals entering this week's action.

BOMBS AWAY
Westminster continues its hot shooting from beyond the arc this season. The Griffins rank 10th in the NAIA by making 8.06 triples per contest and they lead the country by making 41.5 percent from beyond the arc. They have recorded at least five threes in every game this season and hit at least eight treys on nine occasions.

Alli Winters is the top 3-point shooter in the NAIA as the junior makes 59.1 percent of her long range attempts. She is 22nd in the country by making 2.44 triples per outing and has made three or more in a game nine times. Amy Krommenhoek is shooting 47.9 percent from long range to place sixth in the NAIA and is 40th with an average of 2.13 makes per game. Kelsi Wells makes 1.56 per game and is 333rd by shooting 38.5 percent from beyond the arc.

FRONTIER DOMINANCE
Going back to the start of the 2008-09 season, Westminster has dominated the Frontier Conference to the tune of a 74-5 (.937) mark. They have won five straight regular season titles and have only dropped more than one league game one time. During that span, only Lewis-Clark State (Idaho) at 55-24 (.696) and Montana State-Northern at 42-38 (.525) have winning records in Frontier action. The Griffins have won 19 straight home conference games, going undefeated at home in league play for two straight seasons.

BALL CONTROL
While the Griffins are third in the Frontier by scoring 70.38 points per game, they are efficient with the basketball. Westminster is averaging 109.5 points per 100 possessions while posting 16.56 assists per game to place 12th in the NAIA. They rank second in the country with a 1.39 assist-to-turnover ratio and fifth by holding the opposition to 55.62 points per night. Griffin opponents are scoring 86.5 points per 100 possessions and are committing 15.5 turnovers per game.

THE BLAKE SHOW
Senior Alli Blake has been doing a little bit of everything for the Griffins this season. She currently leads the team in scoring at 14.38 points per game to place fifth in the Frontier. Blake has been named the Frontier Conference Player of the Week twice this season. Blake is fourth in the NAIA by shooting 55 percent from the floor and 19th by handing out 4.5 assist per game. She has led the team in assists in 10 games while twice going for at least seven assists. Blake is also averaging 5.0 rebounds per night with 33 of her 80 total rebounds coming on the offensive end.

WELCOME BACK ELLSWORTH
Sophomore Shelby Ellsworth returns after sitting out last season with a knee injury. Ellsworth posted the first 20-20 game in school history when she had 23 points and 20 rebounds in a game versus Cal Maritime in 2010. This season, Ellsworth is second on the team in scoring at 11.1 points per game and she has been in double figures on 11 occasions. She has two double-doubles on the year, including 13 points and 10 rebounds in the win against Lewis-Clark State last Saturday.

LOOKING AHEAD
Westminster returns home next week to begin a stretch of four straight home games. The first of those final four regular season home contests comes on Feb. 6 versus Dickinson State. The Griffins will then welcome Carroll (Mont.) to the Behnken Field House on Feb. 8.
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