Northern State women's basketball preview: Wolves hoping to bounce back from down year

After missing the mark in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Tournament last season for the first time since 2008-09, Northern State University is hoping to not repeat last season’s mistakes. 

And head coach Paula Krueger believes that the team is trending in the right direction. 

Though a down year that saw NSU finish sixth out of eight teams in NSIC North, injuries zapped the team’s talent and many players had their productive performances cut short. Northern also had to do with ripples in the schedule with four canceled games due to COVID-19.  

“Last year, we lost nine games and four of those games we were ahead all the way right down to the buzzer. If we make or two more plays and figure out how to win those games, and all of sudden, things turn around. I don’t know if it’s things we have to do differently, there’s just things we have to do better, and it starts with me,” Krueger said.  

“The kids are working hard, the staff is working hard, and I feel like we’re in the right place to do things in the right way and make this year be the change we want to see,” she added. 

Now in her fourth season at head coach, Krueger is tasked with leading a younger group with nine returners as they navigate a full 28-game schedule.  

With a bulk of last season’s starters gone due to graduation, Northern will have to fill the spaces left by center Alayna Johnson, guard Ellie Gess, and forward Joie Spier. As much as the outgoing players added to the team last season, Northern is fortunate to return top-scorer Lexi Roe (née Wadsworth), along with guard Rianna Fillipi, last season’s NSIC North Freshman of the Year. 

Entering her fourth year as a starter Roe comes off a season where she averaged 12.2 points through 13 games and shot 39.3 percent from the three-point line.  

“She just brings so many different things to the table, now being in the league for her fourth year, she’s kind of a calming effect and does a little bit of everything for us. Certainly, glad to have her back,” Roe said. 

Fillipi started 12 games as a true freshman and added 10.6 points per game. She found her rhythm throughout the season and quickly became another weapon from the field. She finished up going 51-for-142 (35.9 percent), while also leading the team in steals with 34.  

“Just getting that college experience against similar talent and similar kinds of things, only helped her to grow,” Krueger said. “She’s really growing into a great leader both on and off the floor. I’m so excited to see what she can do.”  

Fillipi will get help in the backcourt with the additions of University of North Dakota transfer Rachel Garvey and freshman Jordyn Hilgemann. Garvey is continuing to show progress from a prior knee injury and once fully healthy, will show off her sharp shooting abilities she possessed. Hilgemann is coming in after becoming the all-time leader scorer with 2,144 career points at Marshall High School in Minnesota. 

As injuries gripped last year’s team, Haley Johnson, a 5-9 redshirt senior, had a strong finish last season with starts in the last seven games. The guard added on 6.8 points and 4.0 rebounds per game, including 16 points in one game against St. Cloud State.  

And while NSU was fortunate to have Johnson contribute immensely at the end of last season, they still lost out on seeing forward Kailee Oliverson play. Now in her fourth year at NSU, Oliverson appeared in four games last season and posted 17 points in the season opener against Wayne State. 

“We haven’t had a chance to have a healthy season in the four years I’ve been here. We’re hoping to not check that box this year and have a year where we’re able to have everybody at the best that they can be,” Krueger said. 

More NSU basketball:Northern State finalizes basketball schedules

While normalcy will return with double the number of games for NSU to prepare for the tournament, they will deal with a change in start times in conference games that will have the men starting first in the doubleheaders. 

“We’re looking forward to the opportunity to be on the floor and to play a full season and have fans in the stands. We were blessed last year that we were able to have people here, and there were some other places where that wasn’t the same thing,” Krueger said. “To just have basketball be what it is, it’s so much more than a game. Now we get to get back to that feeling of why we do this.” 

Northern State will begin on Nov. 2 against Presentation College at Wachs Arena at 5:30 p.m.