11/12/2026 6:31:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Huskies will face Washburn and Northwest Missouri State in two game tournament
ST. CLOUD, Minn. – St. Cloud State Women's Basketball will play in the Southwest Minnesota State University (SMSU) Crossover Challenge, this Friday and Saturday, November 13th and 14th. The Huskies will face Washburn University on Friday at 3:00 p.m. CT and Northwest Missouri State (NMSU) (1-0, 0-0 MIAA) on Saturday at 1:00 p.m. CT.
Follow the Huskies
Friday and Saturday's game will be streamed live by SMSU on Midco Sports +. SMSU's athletic staff will also provide live stats for both games.
Huskies Hoops is Back
Head Coach Lori Fish enters her 19th season with St. Cloud State. Fish and the Huskies are coming off an eight-place finish in the NSIC last season (fifth in the South), tallying a 14-15 overall record with a 10-12 conference record. The Huskies made their 14th consecutive postseason appearance last season, coming away with a win in the First Round over the University of Sioux Falls, before falling in the NSIC Quarterfinals to Minnesota State-Mankato.
"I'm looking forward to seeing the growth of this team and how quickly we can get our six new players up to speed," said Fish. "This group has put in a lot of work this offseason, and I'm excited to see how that translates to the court."
A 2024-2025 Second Team All-NSIC, Alana Zarneke had yet again another productive season in 2025-26. Zarneke averaged 11.7 points, 3.9 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 1.6 stocks, shot 39.2% from the field, 31.5% from three, and 79.1% from the free throw line. She enters the 2026-27 with 119 career three pointers, just five away from being top 10 all-time in Husky history.
"Alana has always been a strong player and fierce competitor," said Fish. "She has the ability to change the momentum of a game and will be a key leader for our team this season."
The Huskies will also be headlined by Abigail O'Reilly, Paige Lambe, Reagan Briggs, and Ashley Sawicki. O'Reilly returned from injury last season, playing in all 29 games with six starts, averaging 9.4 points, 5.1 rebounds, and 1.0 assist, shooting 49.0% from the field and 74.6% from the free throw line. Lambe started in all 29 games last season, averaging 7.1 points, 2.9 rebounds, and 2 assists. Briggs started in 20 of her 24 games played last season, averaging 6.2 points, 3.4 rebounds, 1.5 assists, and a team-high 1.6 steals. Briggs scored a career high, 15 points against Bemidji State last season. A 5th year senior, Sawicki looks to pick up where she left off when she returned to play last season and helped the Huskies in their late season run.
Other returners include Halle Vande Hey, Grace Roesch, Elise Groppoli, Kyla Hendricks, Annika Peper, and Laynie Meister. The Huskies brought in six newcomers this season including Senior transfer from Bemidji State, Tieryn Plasch. Plasch started in all 27 games for the Beavers averaging 11 points and leading their team last season with 58 assists and 34 steals. Five Freshman will join the roster including Brynn Krull, Morgan Korf, Haylie Wolbeck, Violet Otto, and Lauren Hust.
Series History against Washburn
This will be the fourth meeting all-time between the Ichabods and the Huskies. This will be the third season in a row the two teams have faced each other, with the Huskies winning the last two matchups. The Huskies came away with a 73-61 win last season.
SCSU vs Washburn Recap (11/13/25)
Early in the first quarter, St. Cloud State found themselves down 6-0, but back-to-back threes by Alana Zarneke and Rachel Kottke knotted the game back up. The teams battled on the remainder of the quarter as the Huskies trailed 18-17 at the end of the first. A late 8-0 surge in the second quarter partnered with a three-pointer by Zarneke with nine seconds left in the half gave the Huskies a 32-31 lead at halftime.
The third quarter saw similar efforts between the teams as they traded leads and blows throughout the period. The Huskies pushed ahead with another late quarter run as a 15-3 run over the final 3:59 of the third propped SCSU to a 54-45 lead going into the final frame. Washburn made their run in the fourth as a three-pointer cut the lead down to four with 3:01 left in the game. That three-pointer by the Ichabods was their final field goal of the game as the Huskies held them to 0/6 shooting and two turnovers in the final minutes of the game. A few timely buckets and six made free throws secured the win for SCSU. Overall, St. Cloud State forced 19 turnovers and limited Washburn to 37.7% from the field and 20.0% from deep in their 73-61 season opening victory.
Scouting Washburn
This will be the first regular season game of the year for both Washburn and SCSU. Just a season ago, Washburn totaled a 24-8 overall record and a 14-5 Missouri Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) record. Washburn advanced to the NCAA Tournament after winning the MIAA Playoffs.
Graduating three of their top scorers, the Ichabods have a lot of new opportunities for playing time on their roster. Britany Kogbara averaged seven points and four rebounds per game as a junior last season, returning as one of Washburn's top players. Madelyn Amekporfor also returns to the Ichabods, after starting in 31 of the 32 games she played in last season.
The Ichabods are coached by Lora Westling, who's in her fifth season with the school. Westling has compiled an 66-54 (40-42 MIAA) record in her four full seasons back in Topeka. Inside of Lee Arena the Ichabods have gone 38-16 under Westling. She has coached eight total All-MIAA selections, three members of the MIAA All-Defensive team and a Co-Newcomer of the Year while at Washburn.
Series History against Northwest Missouri State
This will be the first matchup ever between the Bearcats and the Huskies.
Scouting Northwest Missouri State
The Bearcats played their first game of the regular season earlier in the week on Monday against Lincoln (MO), winning 67-42. The Bearcats held an 18-12 overall record and a 11-8 MIAA record last season, losing in the first round of their conference tournament to Missouri Southern.
Bailey Birmingham led the Bearcats in scoring on Monday, totaling 16 points, four rebounds, and three assists. Sadie Maas also aided in the scoring column with 14 points and seven rebounds, while seven other Bearcats racked up points in the game.
Longtime Bearcat Coach Austin Meyer enters his ninth season with the college. Meyer has guided the Bearcats to five consecutive above .500 seasons.
For all the latest on St. Cloud State Women's Basketball, stay tuned to SCSUHuskies.com and follow the team on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
