Bluejays Open Four-Game Home Stand With NDSU Saturday

Game 9 vs. North Dakota State • Saturday, Dec. 18 • 7:35 p.m.
North Dakota State Bison at Creighton Bluejays
Ryan Athletic Center & D.J. Sokol Arena • Omaha, Neb.
Links: Audio (1180 AM) | Video | Live Stats
Series History: Creighton leads 5-1
Last Meeting: Creighton won 51-40, Dec. 29, 2008 in Fargo

• The game can be heard on KOIL AM 1180 in Omaha and online at www.koilam1180.com. Brad Burwell and former Bluejay Sara Cizek Going will call the action.

• Live stats and live video for this game and all home games can be found on the CU athletics website at www.gocreighton.com.

• Creighton is opening a four-game home stand – its longest since January 1999.

• Despite its loss to Nebraska in its last home game, Creighton has still won 25 of its last 30 home games and is 14-4 all-time at D.J. Sokol Arena.

• Carli Tritz was named MVC Newcomer of the Week on Monday for the second time this season after averaging 12.5 points per game against Nebraska and Notre Dame. The guard scored a career-high 21 points against NU.

• Schuett averaged a double-double with 10 points and 10.5 rebounds per game against Nebraska and Notre Dame.

• Ally Jensen is 7-for-11 (.636) from three-point range in her last three games after starting the season 5-for-21 (.238) from long range.

• This game is on the schedule due to North Dakota State's cancellation of last year's Dec. 28 scheduled game in Omaha. NDSU was unable to get to Omaha because of winter weather last year.

• Creighton is 4-0 at home all-time against North Dakota State.

Scouting the Bluejays
Creighton is picked to finish third in the Missouri Valley Conference this year, receiving seven first place votes ... Creighton returns six letterwinners and three starters from last year's team which finished 21-11 and 13-5 (2nd) in the MVC, advancing to the second round of the WNIT for the third straight season and playing in the event for the sixth time in eight years ... The Bluejays are still looking for their shooting touch this season, shooting 38.3 percent from the field, 32.1 percent from 3-point range and 62.1 percent at the free throw line ... Senior Kelsey Woodard leads the team with 12.0 points per game and 17 3FG ... Freshman Carli Tritz (10.1 ppg) tops the team with in FG percentage (.470) and leads CU with 21 steals to rank second in the MVC ... First-team all-MVC forward Sam Schuett (9.8 ppg) leads the team with 7.8 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game ... Freshman Sarah Nelson is second with 4.9 rebounds per game ... Half of Creighton's roster are freshmen, with three rookies playing in the rotation normally.

Scouting the Bison
North Dakota State is 5-4 on the season, including 1-3 in true road games ... NDSU was 16-13 last year and picked to finish fifth in the 10-team Summit League this year ... All five NDSU starters average double figures, led by Katie Birkel's 17.2 ... Abby Plucker (11.2 ppg) leads the team with 10 rebounds and 4.3 assists per game ... Janae Burich (12.4 ppg) tops NDSU with 24 blocks ... Danielle DeGagne (14.0) and Hannah Linz (10.6) also score in double figures ... NDSU is averaging 71.6 points, allowing 65.2 points, shooting 42.9 percent from the field, 36 percent from three-point range and 66.8 percent at the line.

The Coaches
Jim Flanery (Creighton, 1987) is in his ninth season as head coach at his alma mater, where he has led his team to six WNIT postseason appearances and five 20-win seasons. He owns a career record of 156-107 (.593), the highest winning percentage by a coach in CU history. In 2003 he became the winningest rookie coach in school and MVC history and led the Jays to the 2004 WNIT Championship. Prior to serving as CU's head coach, Flanery served as CU's top assistant for a decade. Flan is 1-1 against North Dakota State and 8-1 against Summit League teams. Carolyn DeHoff (Arizona State, 1991), is in her third season at North Dakota State, where she is 37-30 (.552) as a collegiate head coach.   Prior to NDSU, she served as an assistant coach at Utah and Weber State.

Creighton-NDSU Series History
Creighton leads the all-time series with North Dakota State 5-1, including a 4-0 mark in Omaha. The Jays and Bison have not met in Omaha since Feb. 22, 1986. CU's lone loss in the series came in Albuquerque on Dec. 9, 2005. CU won the last meeting between the teams on Dec. 29, 2008 in Fargo, 51-40.

Last Time vs. North Dakota State
Creighton ended the game on a 27-6 run to come from behind and defeat North Dakota State 51-40 on Dec. 29, 2008 in Fargo. After a first half which saw the Jays make just four of their first 25 shots, the CU offense finally came to life midway through the second half. After starting the second half 3-for-10 from the field, the Jays went 8-for-13 to finish the game strong. NDSU was ahead 34-24 before the Jays began their comeback. After NDSU went up 37-28, the Jays rattled off the game's next 15 points to go ahead 43-37. Kelsey Woodard scored 15 of her game-high 17 points in the second half, as she made each of her four three-point field goal attempts after halftime to lead the comeback. Jill Zaruba led NDSU with 10 points.

NDSU at Creighton – Take Two
This game is a rescheduled contest from last year's schedule. It was originally to have been played on Dec. 28, 2009, but due to a snow storm in the upper midwest, North Dakota State was unable to get all of its players back to Fargo from Christmas break in time to get to Omaha for the game. The contest was cancelled and the teams were unable to find a date to make up the game during the 2009-10 season. The game is a return for CU's contest in Fargo during the 2008-09 season.

Reaching the Summit
Jim Flanery is 8-1 all-time against teams currently in the Summit League, the only loss coming to North Dakota State on Dec. 9, 2005. NDSU was not yet a member of the Summit League at that point, making Flan undefeated when facing teams actively in the conference (formerly Mid-Continent) at the time of the meeting.

Woody vs. The Dakotas
Kelsey Woodard has dominated three career games played against teams from the Dakotas. Earlier this month she poured in a season-high 24 points at South Dakota. Her career-high is 29 points against South Dakota State and her 17 points against North Dakota State the last time these teams met was a game-high. She is averaging 23.3 points against Dakota teams and is shooting an eye-popping 76.9 percent from three-point range against Dakota schools, making 10-of-13 shots from long distance, including 4-of-5 against NDSU. She is shooting 69.7 percent from the field (23-33) and 82.4 percent from the free throw line (14-17) in three games against teams from the two states directly north of Nebraska.

Longest Home Stand Since 1999
Creighton's game with North Dakota State begins the Bluejays' longest home stand since 1999. It is the first game of a four-game home stand, the first of two for CU this season, after not playing one four-game stand over the past 11 seasons. This home stand marks the first time the Jays have played four straight at home since Jan. 21-31, 1999. The Jays play a four-game conference home stand between Jan. 27 and Feb. 5, the longest MVC home stand since that same 1999 stretch.

Tritz Honored by MVC – Twice
Freshman Carli Tritz was named MVC Newcomer of the Week for the second time this season on Dec. 13 after averaging 12.5 points per game against Nebraska and Notre Dame, including a game-high 21 points and made 4-of-6 three-pointers against the Huskers. She also earned the honor on Nov. 29 after her clutch performance against Marquette on Nov. 28. Tritz drained a pair of game-winning free throws with 14.3 seconds left to lead CU past previously unbeaten Marquette, 63-61. She scored eight of her 10 points after halftime to help CU overcome a nine-point second-half deficit. The Sioux City, Iowa, native finished with 10 points, game-high 5 steals, 5 rebounds and three assists. She joins Kelsey Woodard and Megan Neuvirth as the only Bluejays to earn MVC Newcomer of the Week honors.

Jensen's Hot Hand
Ally Jensen is 7-for-11 (.636) from three-point range in Creighton's last three games, including a stretch of four consecutive makes over a two-game span. She was a perfect 3-for-3 from long range against South Dakota (Dec. 2) and made her only three-point attempt against Nebraska (Dec. 8). Through her first five games, Jensen was just 5-for-21 (.238) from long range. She enjoyed a perfect shooting night at USD, making all three of her field goal attempts, which were all three-pointers, and both of her free throw attempts to finish with 11 points. She added 11 points at No. 18 Notre Dame (Dec. 11) and has scored in double figures twice in CU's last three games.

Schuett's Milestones
Sam Schuett joined some elite groups of players during Creighton's game with Nebraska (Dec. 8), becoming the 23rd player in school history to surpass 1,000 career points and the seventh player to reach 700 career rebounds. She is the sixth CU player to have both 1,000 points and 700 rebounds in a career.

Basketball BCS
While the BCS doesn't apply to the basketball world, it does lay out six major conferences to gauge records against. For the first time in school history, Creighton faced an ACC team this season, falling 84-71 at North Carolina State (Nov. 15). In Jim Flanery's nine seasons at Creighton, the Bluejays are 18-41 (.310) against BCS conference schools – ACC (0-1), Big East (1-4), Big Ten (5-10), Big 12 (8-24), Pac-10 (4-0) and SEC (0-2). Since the 2005-06 season the Jays have five wins (Marquette, Colorado, Oregon State and two vs. Kansas State) in 34 games against BCS schools.

Flan Schedules the Big Boys (or Girls)
With Creighton's win over Marquette on Nov. 28, head coach Jim Flanery now has twice as many wins against BCS schools than the next closest MVC school since his first campaign in 2002-03. Flanery's 18 wins against BCS schools in that span are twice as many as Drake (9). In fact, Flan has more wins against BCS schools in that span than Bradley has games played (16) against BCS schools. His 18 wins also equal the number of games played by Evansville, Indiana State and Wichita State against BCS schools in that same span. Creighton's game at Notre Dame was its 59th against a BCS program since 2002-03, the next closest MVC school is Drake, which has played 37 games against BCS schools in the same span.

MVC Records vs. BCS since 2002-03
through Dec. 15
School    G    W-L    Pct.
Creighton    59    18-41    .305
Drake    37    9-28    .243
Illinois State    26    8-18    .308
Missouri State    28    7-21    .250
Indiana State    18    6-12    .333
Northern Iowa    33    4-29    .121
Wichita State    18    4-14    .222
Evansville    18    3-15    .167
Bradley    16    2-14    .125
Southern Illinois    20    0-20    .000

Tritz or Treat
Freshman Carli Tritz scored a game-high 21 points against Nebraska (Dec. 8) to become the first Bluejay rookie with a 20-point game since Kelsey Woodard scored 29 against South Dakota State on March 20, 2008. Tritz scored at least 10 points in four straight games (Nov. 20 - Dec. 8), the longest streak by a CU freshman since Sam Schuett scored 10+ points in five straight in 2007. The guard made 4-of-6 three-pointers against NU after entering the game 1-of-5 from long range through her first six contests.

Woodard Shutouts Have Strange Ties
Senior Kelsey Woodard was shutout for just the second time in 106 career games on Dec. 8 against Nebraska. The guard, who ranks 17th in CU history with 1,166 career points went 0-for-9 from the field and 0-for-5 from three-point range in the loss. She was also held scoreless at home against Northern Iowa on Jan. 24, 2010. A common connection in those shutouts – the head coach of both Nebraska (Connie Yori) and UNI (Tanya Warren) – are both in the Creighton Hall of Fame and are the only two players with their numbers retired in school history.

Strong Competition
On Dec. 11, Notre Dame was Creighton's second straight opponent which appeared in last year's NCAA Sweet 16, as the Jays lost to Nebraska on Dec. 8. The Fighting Irish were the fifth opponent the Jays have played this year which advanced to the NCAA Tournament last year. Creighton's first five opponents this season and seven of its first eight foes advanced to the postseason a year ago . Marquette played in the WNIT last year, as did CU's first home opponent Wyoming. Each of CU's first three opponents – Liberty, NC State and Bowling Green – appeared in the NCAA Tournament last year.

Jays Ranked No. 15 in Mid-Major Top-25
Creighton is ranked No. 15 in this week's CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top 25 poll. The Jays were ranked No. 20 in the preseason, climbed to 18th during the first two weeks of the regular-season, 16th in the third week and 14th in the fourth week. Two of CU's first three games were against Mid-Major top-10 teams, topping eighth-ranked Liberty and falling at fifth-ranked Bowling Green. Bowling Green was also receiving votes in the AP Top 25 and the USA Today/ESPN Top 25 to start the season.

Home Winning Streak Snapped
Creighton's loss to Nebraska (Dec. 8) snapped its nine-game home winning streak – the Bluejays' longest since winning 23 straight at home between the 2001-02 and 2002-03 seasons. The Bluejays have still won 25 of their last 30 home games dating back to 2008-09.

Bench Blasting
Before a loss at No. 18 Notre Dame, Creighton's bench had out-scored the opponent's bench in each of its first seven games.   The Irish reserves out-scored CU's bench 34-11. Before that game, the CU bench had out-scored opponents 170-84, highlighted by a 22-0 edge against Marquette (Nov. 28). The Bluejay bench is averaging 22.6 points per game, while the opposition's bench is averaging 14.8 points per contest.

Turnover Topic
After opening the season with 28 turnovers against Liberty (the most by CU since it had 29 in the final game of the 2007-08 season), the Bluejays have learned how to take care of the ball. The Jays are now averaging 15.6 turnovers per game and have not had more than 19 turnovers since the opener. The Jays committed a season-low six turnovers at South Dakota (Dec. 2), tied for the fewest committed by the Jays under head coach Jim Flanery.

Woodard's Shooting in South Dakota
Kelsey Woodard scored 24 points at South Dakota on Dec. 2, her highest scoring game since putting up 27 against Indiana State on Jan. 3, 2009. It was the ninth time in her career she has scored 20 points in a game and was the fourth-highest scoring game of her career. Her career-high of 29 points also came in the state of South Dakota, when she led the Jays to a WNIT win at South Dakota State as a freshman. She is now 18-for-24 (.750) from the field and 6-of-8 (.750) from three-point range in two career games played in the Mount Rushmore State.

Schuett's Assists are Up
Sam Schuett leads the team with 26 assists this year. Her 3.3 assists per game rank seventh in the MVC. She dished a career-high eight assists in a 63-61 win over Marquette (Nov. 28) and followed with six assists at South Dakota (Dec. 2). The eight assists were the most by a Bluejay since Ally Thrall's nine on March 20, 2008. The eight helpers also established a D.J. Sokol Arena record.

Defense of D.J.
With a 2-1 mark at home this year, the Bluejays are 14-4 all-time at D.J. Sokol Arena. In those 18 games, the Bluejays have allowed 55 of fewer points seven times. Bluejay opponents are averaging just 57.4 points per game in the 18 games played inside D.J. Sokol Arena, while the Jays are averaging 65.4 points per game in their new home venue.

Tritz Takes
Carli Tritz leads the team and ranks second in the MVC with 21 steals. She has grabbed at least two steals in all but one game this year, leading the team in steals in each of CU's last six games. She topped the team with five steals against Marquette (Nov. 28), as she became the first Bluejay freshman to record five steals in a game since Megan Neuvirth had five in the 2007 MVC Tournament championship game against Drake.

Winning Novembers
Creighton went 3-2 in November to post a winning record in November for the third time in the last four seasons. The Bluejays are now 13-9 in November in the last four years, after going 6-12 in the first five Novembers under head coach Jim Flanery. The Jays finished with 21 wins in each of the two seasons (2009-10 & 2007-08) in which they posted a winning November under Flan.

Leading vs. Losing
Creighton's win over Wyoming (Nov. 20) marked the fourth time at D.J. Sokol Arena that the Bluejays never trailed in a game. The Jays have now had as many games where they have led wire to wire (4) as they have lost (4) at their new home.

Woodard's Numbers
Kelsey Woodard hit seven three-pointers in her first three games this year to become the fourth player in school history and the 22nd in Missouri Valley Conference history to reach 200 career three-pointers. With 96 points through seven games this year she now has 1,177 points in her career, moving past her sister Kristi (1,110, 19th) on the Creighton career scoring list. The younger Woodard now ranks 16th in CU history in scoring, 23 points shy of becoming the 16th player with 1,200 points.

Kamp's Points Per Minute
Alyssa Kamphaus scored four points in six minutes against Wyoming (Nov. 20), making 2-of-4 shots in that quick span. The freshman scored eight points in eight minutes at Bowling Green (Nov. 15) and has now played 23 minutes in her four appearances. In those 23 minutes, she has scored 15 points – or what equates to 26.1 points per 40 minutes played.

Youth Movement
Creighton has six freshmen on the roster this season, with four making their collegiate playing debut during CU's opening week. McKenzie Fujan scored the first five points of the season for Creighton and Carli Tritz led the Jays with seven first-half points in CU's opener. Sarah Nelson has logged CU's only double-double of the season with a team-high 14 points and 10 rebounds at North Carolina State (Nov. 13). Alyssa Kamphaus scored eight points in eight minutes at Bowling Green (Nov. 15), making all three of her field goal attempts in the game.

Home is Where the Wins Are
Creighton is 14-4 (.778) all-time at D.J. Sokol Arena, posting a 12-3 home record last year. The Bluejays are now 86-28 (.754) at home under Jim Flanery (since 2002-03), including 56-16 (.778) in MVC play at home under Flanery.

Low Scoring Win
Creighton defeated Liberty 40-35 to open the season at the Sheraton Raleigh Wolfpack Invitational on Nov. 12. The 40 points were the fewest scored by the Bluejays in a win since a 40-23 victory over Doane College (Neb.) on Feb. 21, 1977 and the fewest scored overall by the Jays since a 50-35 loss to Eastern Michigan on Dec. 21, 2000. The 35 points for Liberty where the fewest it had scored in a game since Dec. 29, 1993.

Sarah's Solid Start
Freshman Sarah Nelson led the Bluejays with 14 points and 10 rebounds against North Carolina State (Nov. 13). The double-double was the first by a Bluejay freshman since Kelsey Woodard logged her only career double-dime on Jan. 4, 2008 against Wichita State. The rookie led the team in rebounding in three of CU's five games and tops the team with six blocked shots this year.

Woodard Named All-Tournament Team
Kelsey Woodard led the Bluejays with 10 points per game at the Sheraton Raleigh Wolfpack Invitational, earning her all-tournament recognition at the event. Against Liberty, she drained three three-pointers in the second half to account for all nine of her points and to help CU come from behind and win. She added two more threes and 11 points in the championship game against North Carolina State.

Kelsey Can Shoot
Kelsey Woodard is one of 23 players in school history with 1,000 career points. Woodard is the second-most accurate free-throw shooter in school history (.848), trailing only her sister Kristi (.862) in that category. She is ranked fourth in school history and 17th in league history with 210 career three-pointers.

Schuett Lowe's Senior CLASS Candidate
Sam Schuett has been named one of 30 candidates nationally for the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award which honors seniors for their efforts on and off the court. CLASS stands for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School and to be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in community, classroom, character and competition. Schuett graduated magna cum laude with a degree in accounting in May, has served on the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, ranked 12th among CU's 232 student-athletes in community service hours last year and is a first-team all-conference player on the court. Ten finalists for the award will be named in January. Creighton is one of five school's nationally (Wisconsin, Ohio State, Lehigh, Duke) to have a male and female as Lowe's Senior CLASS candidates, as CU's Kenny Lawson Jr., is up for the award as well.

Flock of Freshmen
Half of the Creighton roster is made up of freshmen this season. The six-member freshman class equals the largest rookie class in the nine-year tenure of head coach Jim Flanery, as the 2005-06 team also had six freshmen. All six Bluejay rookies this season are on scholarship, marking the first time since the 1997-98 season that Creighton has at least six freshman on scholarship. Only four freshmen have played through three games, as Riley Norman suffered a season-ending knee injury in the preseason and Jordan Garrison is sidelined with a leg injury.

Norman to Redshirt
Freshman forward Riley Norman will take a medical redshirt this season after suffering a torn right ACL during preseason work outs. The rookie had surgery on Oct. 18 to repair the knee, which she also injured at the end of her senior year of high school.

Playing the Percentages
Even with three of their top four scorers back, the Bluejays return just 59.9 percent of their scoring from last season. The Jays return 54.4 percent of their rebounding and only 43.4 percent of their assists from last year, as they lost their top two ball distributors Chevelle Herring (81) and Megan Neuvirth (73).

If the Schuett Fits
Senior forward Sam Schuett returns after earning first-team all-MVC notice last year and starts her senior season as a contender for MVC Player of the Year. Schuett led the team in points (414), three-pointers (65), three-point percentage (.422), rebounds (7.5 per game), blocks (38) and double-doubles (7) and ranked among MVC leaders in three-point field goal percentage (1st), rebounding (5th), blocked shots (5th), three-pointers made (6th), field goal percentage (9th), free-throw percentage (9th) and scoring (12th). She ranked 18th in the NCAA with her 42.2 three-point field goal percentage.

Creighton's Sisterhood
One of Creighton's six freshmen is Sarah Nelson, younger sister of Bluejay senior Kellie Nelson, continuing a recent trend of sisters playing for the Jays. Current senior Kelsey Woodard followed in the footsteps of older sister Kristi (2002-06), while Laura (2001-05) and Krissie (1997-01) Spanheimer also had a family tradition at Creighton. The Nelsons however, are just the second recorded sister duo to play alongside each other at Creighton, joining Peggy and Patty Bierle during the 1978-79 season.

I'll Take 3-Pointers for 200 Alex
Creighton led the MVC and ranked 21st in the NCAA making 233 three-pointers last year, the third straight season CU eclipsed 200 threes. The Jays have made at least 200 triples in five of Jim Flanery's eight seasons at the helm. Prior to Flanery's tenure, the Jays had made 200 three-pointers in a season just twice in 15 seasons with the three-point line.

Nebraska Natives
For the fourth consecutive season, at least half of Creighton's roster is from Nebraska. Last year the Bluejays started five Nebraskans in 29 of their 32 games, marking the first time in recorded history the Jays had an all-Nebraska lineup in one game - let alone 29. Seven of Creighton's 12 players on this year's roster are from Nebraska – Omaha products Jasmin Corbin (Millard West), Kellie Nelson (Westside), Sarah Nelson (Westside) and Sam Schuett (Millard West), Bellevue native Kelsey Woodard (Bellevue West), Seward High graduate Alyssa Kamphaus and Weston native by way of Wahoo Bishop Neumann, McKenzie Fujan.

20-20-20 Vision
Creighton has won at least 20 games in each of its previous three seasons. In school history, every time the Jays have won 20 games in a season, it has come in groups of at least three – winning at least 20 in three straight years (1985-87), four straight years (1991-94), three straight years (2002-04) and now again in three straight (2008-10). The Bluejays have now won 20 games in five of Jim Flanery's eight seasons as head coach. Flanery's predecessor Connie Yori won 20 games three times in her 10 years as CU's head coach, while Bruce Rasmussen captured 20 wins in five of his 12 years leading the Bluejays.

Another Tough Schedule
Creighton again plays the toughest non-conference schedule in the MVC, as eight of the Bluejays' 11 non-conference games are against teams which appeared in the postseason last year, including a pair of NCAA Sweet 16 teams. CU hosts 2010 Sweet 16 participant Nebraska on Dec. 8 and follows at Sweet 16 team Notre Dame on Dec. 11. Liberty, Bowling Green and NC State all played in the NCAA Tournament last year. Wyoming, Marquette and Kansas played in the WNIT last year.

Cheers to Sam and Woody at the Line
Kelsey Woodard (.848) and Sam Schuett (.808) are ranked No. 2 and No. 4 in school history in career free throw percentage, respectively. Both Woodard and Schuett have two of the top-10 free throw percent shooting seasons in school history, including Schuett's 83 percent at the stripe last year. Schuett also set a school record last year by making 40 consecutive free throws, the third-longest streak in MVC history.

Creighton Single-Season Free Throw%
    1.    .892    Kristi Woodard (66-74)    2003-04
    2.    .862    Kristi Woodard (56-65)    2004-05
    3.    .849    Ally Thrall (73-86)    2006-07
    4.    .847    Tanya Warren (83-98)    1985-86
    5.    .846    Kelsey Woodard (66-78)    2008-09
    6.    .841    Kelsey Woodard (74-88)    2007-08
    7.    .833    Sam Schuett (65-78)    2007-08
    8.    .832    Krissie Spanheimer (89-107)    1998-99
    9.    .830    Sam Schuett (83-100)    2009-10
    10.    .826    Holly Sivesind (95-115)    1995-96

Rebounding Record in Reach for Schuett
Creighton lost its all-time leading rebounder to graduation after last season, as Megan Neuvirth's record 929 career rebounds are gone. Neuvirth also set a single-season record with 325 rebounds as a junior. Sam Schuett started her senior season ranked 10th in school history with 653 career rebounds, and is now ranked eighth in with her 715 boards despite having played along side Neuvirth in each of her first three seasons. With Neuvirth gone, perhaps Schuett can nab the 214 more boards needed to topple Neuvirth's mark.

Women Return to Qwest Center Omaha
The Bluejays will return to Qwest Center Omaha for just the second time in the history of the venue, hosting Kansas on Dec. 22 (prior to a men's game against Samford). The Jays hope for a better outcome than the 51-44 loss suffered to Drake on Feb. 27, 2009 in the only other women's game played at Qwest Center. The Bluejays shot a lowly 21.9 percent in that televised loss.

Welcome Coach Carrie Moore
The Bluejays have a new member of the coaching staff this season, assistant coach Carrie Moore. The Western Michigan graduate (2007) led the NCAA in scoring with 25.4 points per game and was the MAC Co-Player of the Year as a senior. She is Western Michigan's all-time leading scorer with 2,224 career points, starting all 120 games in her career for the Broncos. Moore spent the previous two seasons as the Director of Basketball Operations at Princeton.

Exhibition Recap
Creighton defeated Division II Northwest Missouri State 96-61 in its lone exhibition game on Nov. 3. The Bluejays jumped out to a 19-0 lead and never looked back, leading by as many as 41 in the contest. Creighton's five freshmen scored half (48) of the Bluejays' points in the win, led by Sarah Nelson's team-best 16 points. Fellow freshman Carli Tritz added 11 points and team-best seven assists and four steals, and rookie Jordan Garrison chipped in 10 points. CU's three returning senior starters each had 10+ points, with Kellie Nelson (14), Kelsey Woodard (13) and Sam Schuett (12) each contributing in the blowout. The Jays out-rebounded the Bearcats 52-38 and outscored NWMSU 58-12 in the paint. CU shot 54.1 percent from the field and 41.2 (7-17) percent from three-point range in the win.

Preseason Picks
The Bluejays have been picked to finish third in the MVC preseason poll as voted on by league coaches, media and SIDs. CU received seven first place votes, second only to preseason favorite Missouri State's 27. The Jays earned 328 points in the poll, just one behind second-place Northern Iowa. The Jays have finished even or higher than their predicted finish in six of Jim Flanery's first eight years at the helm.

Updated & Extended Coverage
Fans will notice Creighton home games not only have a new live stats platform, but will also benefit from Creighton's change to BCS Stats. The new live stats provider allows fans to follow the live action on their mobile device at www.gocreightonstats.com. Fans can also find more info on Bluejay athletics on Facebook at the “Official Creighton Athletics Page” and on Twitter at www.twitter.com/gocreighton. The women's basketball team also has its own Facebook page, with inside glimpses into the program. Fans can also read assistant coach Carrie Moore's blog “Tuesdays With Moore” each Tuesday on www.gocreighton.com.

Bluejays Open Four-Game Home Stand With NDSU Saturday

Players Mentioned

Jasmin Corbin

McKenzie Fujan

Jordan Garrison

Chevelle Herring

Ally Jensen

Alyssa Kamphaus

Kellie Nelson

Sarah Nelson

Megan Neuvirth

Riley Norman

Sam Schuett

Carli Tritz

Kelsey Woodard

Related Videos