Women's basketball wins first home game of 2023-2024 season

The Augustana women’s basketball team launched its first season led by a new head coach with a No. 6 NSIC ranking. Now, three games later, the Vikings have claimed a 1-2 record overall and a 1-0 record in the NSIC conference. 

In addition to outranking nine other teams in the preseason conference coaches’ poll, the Vikings named a “player to watch” in senior guard Lauren Sees. So far this season, Sees has scored 19 points, six of which came from the Vikings’ most recent game against Dakota Wesleyan University. 

The Vikings took on Dakota Wesleyan on Nov. 25 in the Elmen Center where they fell 63-50. 

“In the past, we’ve really been an offensive team,” senior guard and forward Michaela Jewett said. “This year, I think we’ve really had to hone in our defense and just know that that is a top priority if we aren’t going to score as many points as we did last year.” 

Throughout the first half, the Vikings closely trailed Dakota Wesleyan, who tied the score 14-14 in the first quarter. The Vikings missed out on tying things up in the second quarter after Dakota Wesleyan pulled off an offensive rebound and layup to land a 33-30 lead at the half.

Dakota Wesleyan continued to bring momentum into the second half, and the Vikings scored nine off the backboard to their opponent’s 20 in the third quarter. Despite bringing a battle into the fourth quarter, the Vikings couldn’t stop Dakota Wesleyan’s 8-2 run.

Jewett led the Vikings with 13 points and senior center Johanna Miller trailed right behind Jewett with 12 points. 

Jewett has been at the forefront of the team’s points this season. At the Vikings’ home opener against the University of Sioux Falls on Nov. 21, she recorded 21 points total. 

That wasn’t the only success the team found against rival USF, though. 

The Vikings defeated USF 73-56, marking new head coach Jillian Flores Bennett’s first win with Augustana. 

“It feels awesome, obviously,” Flores Bennett said. “To start our conference play against a rival on a random Tuesday before Thanksgiving, I wasn’t sure how the ladies were going to respond to that. We had a rough first half, but I couldn’t have asked for anything more. I mean, I’m on cloud nine, and I’m going to ride this cloud for a little bit.” 

The Vikings scored first, with Miller making a free throw and Sees shooting a two-pointer. Freshman guard Payton Hardy also shot a layup in her first minutes of her first collegiate game.

At the end of the half, the Vikings were down by one. However, the team came back firing in the third and fourth quarters, earning 46 points to USF’s 28. 

“In the first half, we talked about our shots just weren’t falling, and that’s not something we can control,” fifth-year forward Jennifer Aadland said. “So we talked among ourselves in the locker room and just said, ‘Hey, we gotta crash the boards hard, play defense and our shots will fall.’ And they did.”

A three-point threat, Jewett started to rack in points in the second half. In the third quarter, Jewett tallied a 9-3 run to place the Vikings in the lead 50-42. 

“We were down in the first half and then you come out in the third and you just get all the momentum going,” Jewett said. “Then we’re finally up, and it’s just flowing, you get a stop, score, you get another stop, and that’s just so fun as a player.” 

While taking down a Sioux Falls rival was a memorable moment for the team, Aadland said her favorite moment of the night was in the locker room after the Vikings executed their win. 

“It was coach Flo’s first win, so when she came in, we had all our Gatorade water bottles ready and we drenched her,” Aadland said. “Just celebrating her first win was awesome.” 

The Vikings came into the game against USF after facing a 83-66 loss against the University of Central Missouri on Nov. 16. 

Jewett led the score for the Vikings, making five three-point baskets and earning 22 points total. Aadland followed close behind with 16 points. 

Flores Bennett said the loss was a learning experience for the team. 

“Central Missouri, they’re a phenomenal team, really well coached, returned their whole team, and we knew going in it was going to be a tough one,” Flores Bennett said. “But we learned a lot, and I got to see a lot of our toughness. And honestly, playing on the road prepares you for a lot.”

Flores Bennett joined the team in April 2023 when former head coach Dave Krauth retired after 34 seasons with the Vikings. She comes to Augustana from Iowa Western Community College, where she tallied a 26-5 record in the 2022-2023 season. 

“It has been great. [Flores Bennett] is super intense,” Aadland said. “She’s a young coach, so she’s always getting on us to be better and pushing us a bunch. Obviously, there’s a lot to learn with new offense and everything, but I feel like we’ve all adjusted really well and we’re happy to have her.”

Looking to the rest of the season, Flores Bennett said the Vikings hope to improve their defense after pursuing an offensive style the past few years. 

Flores Bennett said she is excited to see how the team continues to grow this season. 

“We’re a good team. I inherited an awesome team, but I’m excited to see how we continue to grow defensively and how we really continue to share the ball with a lot of capable scorers,” Flores Bennett said. “I’m excited to see us continue to play selflessly.”

The Vikings will be back on the court on Dec. 2 at 2 p.m. in St. Paul, Minnesota, taking on Concordia University, St.Paul.