SALT LAKE CITY – The Westminster women's basketball team will open the 2015 NAIA Division I Women's Basketball National Championship on Thursday at 1:15 p.m. (MT) with a first round game against Cumberland (Tenn.) at the Independence Events Center in Independence, Mo.
 
Westminster enters the championship as one of the four No. 1 seeds and with a No. 3 ranking in the final NAIA Coaches' Poll that was released on March 11. They secured a ninth-straight invite to the tournament by winning the Frontier Conference Tournament title. Cumberland qualified for the field of 32 as the No. 15 at-large selection and they will be making their sixth appearance in the National Championship.
 
Fans are encouraged to attend the Griffins Viewing Party as Westminster College will show the game live in the Shaw Student Center.
 
On the Web: The first 30 games of the national championship will be video-streamed live on www.NAIANetwork.com, the NAIA's official video-streaming platform powered by Stretch Internet. There is a $20 cost to purchase a package to watch all of the games on NAIANetwork.com. The championship final will air on ESPN3 for the second-straight year. There will also be live stats and live audio available free of charge for all of the games. Links to follow the action can be found at WestminsterGriffins.com/live.
 
Griffin Fast Break: Westminster will enter the National Championship at 25-2 on the season and riding a 15-game winning streak, the fourth-longest streak in school history. The Griffins finished 13-1 in Frontier Conference play to win a seventh-straight regular season title before defeating Montana Tech and Montana State-Northern to win the conference tournament.
 
Offense Notebook: The Griffins average 65.33 points per game on the year and they have scored at least 70 points in a game seven times on the year. The team shoots 43.8 percent from the field to rank 11th in the NAIA and they lead the nation by making 38.5 percent from beyond the arc. The Griffins make 7.41 treys per game – 10th in the NAIA – while posting 15.30 assists per game which ranks 21st nationally.
 
Defense Notebook: Westminster leads the NAIA in scoring defense by holding the opposition to 48.89 points per game. They have held 16 opponents under 50 points during the year – including nine in conference play – while placing sixth in the NAIA by holding the opposition to 34.4 percent shooting. The Griffins force 15.44 turnovers per game with an average of 8.15 steals per contest.
 
Leaders: Tia Pappas leads three players that are scoring in double figures at 13.30 points per game. She is shooting 46.8 percent from the field and 48.7 percent from three. Amy Krommenhoek is scoring 12.78 points per night while leading the team with 130 assists and 61 steals. Shelby Ellsworth is posting 10.81 points in the 16 games she has played while Alli Winters is adding 9.78 points per game. Amanda Hacking leads the team with 201 rebounds – 79 offensive – and Mika Pinner has a team-best 29 blocked shots.
 
Inside the Numbers: The Griffins have gone 19-0 this season when they score at least 60 points in a game and 19-0 when grabbing more rebounds than the opposition. They are undefeated in 22 outings when leading at halftime and perfect in 24 games when they lead with five minutes remaining in regulation. Westminster has held every opponent below 50 percent shooting while committing fewer turnovers in a game 21 times with a perfect record in that situation. Westminster is 0-1 against teams from the Mid-South Conference this season after losing to Campbellsville (Ky.) on Dec. 19.
 
Postseason History: The Griffins have recorded a 10-8 mark at the NAIA national Championship all-time. They have advanced to the quarterfinals the past two seasons and in three of the last four years. Westminster is 7-1 in the first round and has won six-straight first round games. Last season, the Griffins were eliminated in the quarterfinals by Wiley (Texas) after picking up win over William Woods (Mo.) and MidAmerica Nazarene (Kan.).
 
Milestone Victories: The Westminster women's basketball program earned win No. 300 in program history with its 65-51 win at Montana Tech on Feb. 28. The Griffins have an all-time record of 302-185 while posting nine-straight 20-win seasons. Head Coach Shelley Jarrard earned career win No. 100 with the Griffins 67-43 win at Lewis-Clark State on March 26. Jarrard ranks second in school history for wins (103) behind the 146 by JD Gustin, and she holds the record with a .851 winning percentage.
 
Live by the Long Ball: Westminster currently leads the NAIA by shooting 38.5 percent from beyond the arc and they place 10th in the country by making 7.41 threes per game with their 200 total threes place 19th in the country. The Griffins have made at least five treys in all but four games this season and they have gone for double-digit triples five times. Winters leads qualified Griffins by shooting 47 percent from deep to rank second on the NAIA and she has made 17 of her last 29 attempts from beyond the arc.
 
Getting Defensive: Westminster has established itself as one of the top defensive teams in the country over the past four seasons. This season, the Griffins lead the NAIA by allowing just 48.89 points per game and they have held 14 opponents to 46 points or less. Westminster holds the opposition to just 34.4 percent shooting – sixth in the NAIA – while allowing just 30 percent from deep to place 50th in the NAIA. They hold the opposition to 31.82 rebounds per game which ranks fifth in the country and their 6.15 rebound margin is 22nd in the NAIA.
 
All-American Candidate: Pappas was selected First Team All-Frontier Conference this season and she currently ranks in the top-20 in the Frontier in 14 statistical categories. The senior leads the team in scoring at 13.30 points per game while shooting 46.8 percent from the field and 48.7 percent from deep. Pappas has grabbed 187 rebounds with 72 on the offensive end while posting 88 assists and 50 steals. She has scored in double figures 19 times during the year with four 20-point outings.
 
In the Club: With 14 points against Great Falls on Feb. 19, Pappas became the eighth player in school history to score 1,000 career points as a Griffin. Pappas has averaged 9.38 points per game during her career and her 13.3 scoring average this season is a career high. She enters the National Championship with 1,069 career points and is on pace to finish sixth in school history in the category.
 
All-Conference Krommenhoek: Krommenhoek was also named First Team All-Frontier Conference this season and the senior is scoring 12.78 points per game and she has been in double figures a team-best 20 times. Krommenhoek has scored at least 20 points in three of the past four games and she has hit the mark four times during the year. She ranks 15th in the country by handing out 4.82 assists per game while sitting fourth with her 3.10 assist-to-turnover ratio. Krommenhoek leads the Frontier at 2.26 steals per game to sit 30th in the NAIA.
 
Looking Ahead: A win in the first round would advance the Griffins to a second round game on Friday. The opponent would be the winner between No. 4-seed Westmont (Calif.) and No. 5-seed Lyon (Ark.). That second round game would tip at 5:15 p.m. (MT).