SPEARFISH, S.D. – The Black Hills State University women's basketball team travels to Lubbock, Texas, to take on Angelo State in the 2018 NCAA Division II National Tournament. The first round game, which pits the No. 4 and 5 seeds in the South Central Region, is scheduled to tipoff at 7:30 p.m. MST.

THE GAME - Angelo State University Rambelles
» The Yellow Jackets and Belles meet for the first time in school history when they face each other in the first round of the 2018 NCAA Division II National Tournament.

» Angelo State plays in the Lone Star Conference. They finished the regular season 21-5 overall and with a 16-4 LSC record, sharing the regular season conference title with West Texas A&M. The Belles defeated Texas Woman's in the first round of the LSC Tournament, before falling to Tarleton State in the Semifinals. ASU earned the No. 4 seed in the South Central Region.

» The Belles average 72.0 points per game, led by Marquita Daniels, who scores 14.9 points per game. De'Anira Moore averages 12.3 ppg and leads the squad in rebounding, pulling down 9.5 boards per game. Dezirae Hampton (12.1 ppg, 7.3 rpg) also averages double figure scoring.

» This is the third consecutive year ASU has made an appearance in the NCAA Division II South Central Regional tournament. The team has won at least 20 games for three straight years.

THE COACHES
» Black Hills State University head coach Mark Nore enters his 16th season with the Yellow Jackets and owns a 286-182 record. He is the all-time wins leader for the Yellow Jacket basketball team.

» Renae Shippy is in her first year at the helm of the Belles. She was named the head coach at ASU after spending the previous two years as an assistant with the program.

Last Time Out
Black Hills State came from behind late to defeat MSU Denver, 52-50, in the RMAC Shootout Semifinal, before falling to No. 1-seeded CSU-Pueblo, 84-69, in the Championship game last weekend.
 
In Friday's victory over the Roadrunners, Lyndzi Rich led the way for the Yellow Jackets, scoring 13 points and pulling down eight rebounds. Keely Bertram and Remi Wientjes each added eight points. The Green and Gold took their first lead of the game, 51-50, with 1:17 to play in the game, to earn a spot in the finals.
 
On Saturday, BHSU held a late 69-68 lead, but the Thunderwolves scored 16 unanswered to earn the tournament championship. Rich recorded her first career double-double, scoring 17 and pulling down 10 boards. Bertram scored 13, and Remi Wientjes chipped in 10 points.
 
Going Dancing
BHSU has made the 2018 NCAA Division II Tournament as a No. 5 seed in the South Central Region. The Yellow Jackets travel to Lubbock, Texas, and take on No. 4-seeded Angelo State in the First Round. The Green and Gold make the tournament for the second time in three years. In 2015-16, the Yellow Jackets fell to West Texas A&M, 63-48, in the second round.
 
All-Tournament Team
Lyndzi Rich and Keely Bertram were named to the RMAC All-Tournament Team following the conclusion of the RMAC Shootout. Rich averaged 15.0 points per game during the semi- and final rounds, and also recorded her first career double-double (17 points, 10 rebounds) in the championship game. Bertram averaged 13.0 ppg and 8.0 rpg in the two games.
 
RMAC Tournament Final
The Yellow Jackets earned the No. 3 seed in the RMAC Tournament after finishing the regular season with a 16-6 conference record. After defeating the No. 6 seed Fort Lewis, BHSU took down No. 2 MSU Denver in the semifinals. In the first Shootout Final appearance for the Yellow Jackets since 2014, the Green and Gold fell to CSU-Pueblo.
 
All Conference
Three Yellow Jackets earned All-RMAC honors for their play this season. Senior Rachel Erickson was named to the All-RMAC First Team. Lyndzi Rich and Julia Seamans each earned Honorable Mention.
 
Host with the Most
The Green and Gold hosted an RMAC Quarterfinal for the second time in three years. In the first instance, BHSU hosted Colorado Christian in the quarterfinal round of the 2015-16 RMAC Tournament, ultimately falling, 71-59. The last time the Yellow Jackets hosted a home playoff game was 2011.
 
Player of the Week
Rachel Erickson was named the RMAC Offensive Player of the Week for her play against Colorado Mesa (Feb. 17). Erickson scored 19 points, and filled up the stat sheet with three rebounds, two assists, a block, and three steals. The senior is the first Yellow Jacket to earn a conference weekly award since Dakota Barrie was named Defensive Player of the Week in January 2015. She is the first to earn Offensive honors since Callie Bechtel claimed the award in January 2013.
 
New Year, New Season
The Yellow Jackets finished the 2018 portion of the regular season 12-3. Since joining the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference and the NCAA era in 2012, the Yellow Jackets have captured their second best start to the second half of the season. In the 2015-16 season, the Yellow Jackets went 7-3 for the month of January and finished their season 21-8 overall, 17-5 in conference, and earned their first ever NCAA Tournament appearance losing in the second round to West Texas A&M, 63-48.
 
Freshman Phenoms
Lyndzi Rich and Katie Messler have had stellar first-year campaigns at BHSU. Rich is second on the team in scoring, averaging 10.7 points per game, while pulling down 4.9 rebounds per game. She was recently named All-RMAC Honorable Mention. Messler has also had a solid freshman outing, averaging 4.9 ppg, while leading the team in rebounding, with 6.4 boards per game.
 
Record Record
The Green and Gold finished the regular season 22-6 overall. This qualifies them for the best record of a BHSU team since the 2010-11 season, when it finished 24-8, falling in the NAIA Quarterfinals.
 
National Ranking
Black Hills State broke into the D2SIDA Top 25 at the No. 25 spot for the first time in program history. The two RMAC wins over UCCS and MSU Denver gave BHSU the edge to break into the national poll. The Yellow Jackets started the season 8-0, but dropped out of the poll after dropping the next two games.
 
Best Start
The Yellow Jackets surpassed their best start in the NCAA era by beginning 8-0. This puts them second in the all-time records list just six games short of the 14-0 start by the 1997-98 squad under the helm of Kevin Dobbs. Black Hills State was a part of the South Dakota Intercollegiate Conference in the NAIA division during that 14-0 start.
 
Breaking Records
Julia Seamans broke the school record for 3-pointers made in a game with eight against Johnson & Wales (11/18/17) surpassing Rachel Erickson from the week before, who notched seven to tie the program record. Seamans set a new career-high of 24 points after her three-point performance. Erickson's seven 3-point performance helped her reach a new career-high of 26 points against Texas A&M International (11/11/17) and tied the program individual game record of 3-pointers made in a game. Hannah Cass scored her first collegiate double-figure game with 11 points as a redshirt freshman, while Keely Bertram notched her first career double-double with 10 points and 13 rebounds in the game against Texas A&M International. Bertram's 13 rebounds was a new career-high for her as well.
 
Erickson on Fire
Rachel Erickson continues to tear up the floor, as she notched her second 20-point game of the season. Erickson notched 23 points against Minnesota State-Mankato (11/14/17) going 10-of-16 from the field, setting a new career-high for field goals made and attempted. The Cheyenne, Wyoming, native is averaging 22.7 points per game, three games into the season. Erickson tied the program record for 3-pointers made in a game with seven against Texas A&M International (11/11/17).
  Black Hills State is located in the Northern Black Hills of South Dakota, sponsoring 13 NCAA sports with membership in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference, the NCAA emerging sport of women's triathlon and NIRA rodeo. For all information regarding Yellow Jacket Athletics, please visit BHSUAthletics.com or follow us on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram @BHSUAthletics.