ST. JOSEPH, Mo. - Missouri Western women's basketball (16-7, 11-4 MIAA) is back on the road this week, first traveling to Arkansas-Fort Smith (15-9, 9-6 MIAA) on Thursday at 5:30 p.m. and then Northeastern State (10-14, 6-9 MIAA) on Saturday at 1:30 p.m.

Both games will be broadcast live on the Griffon Sports Network (Varsity Network App, GoGriffons.com/listen) with Tommy Rezac on the call. Pregame coverage will start 30 minutes before tip-off prior to each game.

The games are also available to watch with a subscription on the MIAA Network.
 
LISTEN - Griffon Sports Network (Varsity Network App, GoGriffons.com/listen)
Live broadcasts of Missouri Western athletics are available on The Varsity Network app. All home and away football games, along with all home and away men's and women's basketball games, are available to listen to for FREE on the Varsity Network App and at GoGriffons.com/listen. Available on iPhone and Android, fans can access free audio streams for game days on the Varsity Network App. Fans can also receive push notifications as reminders for upcoming games and broadcasts.
 
Once you download The Varsity Network app, search 'Missouri Western' and select which Griffon teams you want to follow. For more information on The Varsity Network and how to listen live to the Griffons, click here. Audio broadcasts can also be found at GoGriffons.com/listen. Audio broadcasts will also be archived at GoGriffons.com/listen and on the Varsity Network App in the 'On Demand' section.

Saturday Showcase against Southern
Missouri Western (16-7, 11-4 MIAA) scored 45 second half points and never trailed in a 77-67 win over Missouri Southern this past Saturday at MWSU Fieldhouse in St. Joseph.

With 1,056 fans in attendance on St. Joseph Appreciation Day, the Griffons jumped out to a 6-0 lead in the first 1:29 of the game, and never looked back. MWSU took a 32-25 lead into the halftime locker room and led 54-40 with 1:17 left in the third.

Missouri Southern (16-11, 8-7 MIAA) didn't go quietly, as the Lions went on a 14-3 run to get to within 57-54 with 6:18 remaining. The Griffons found their stroke again, scoring 23 fourth quarter points and leading 71-60 with 2:51 to go.

Alyssa Bonilla led the way with a game-high 21 points, shooting 4-of-9 from three. She also had six assists and three steals. Laura Toffali logged a career-best 17 points on 7-of-10 shooting to go with a team-best eight rebounds and four steals.

Marie Sepp contributed 15 points to go with seven assists, three steals and three boards. Matilda Soderlund came off the bench to score 11 points on 3-of-6 shooting from long range.

MWSU shot 28-of-61 (45.9%) from the field, including 11-of-30 from three. The Griffs were also 10-of-13 on the free throw line. Western doled out 21 assists to 13 turnovers and won points in the paint, 32-20.

Series Histories
Thursday is the first ever meeting Arkansas Fort-Smith – a newcomer to the MIAA this season. The Lions were previously members of the Lone Star Conference ever since becoming a full-time NCAA Division II program in 2011.

Saturday marks the 20^th all-time meeting with Northeastern State. The Griffons own a 12-7 advantage in this series, and have won 11 of the last 13 meetings since 2014. The Griffs are, however, 4-5 all-time when playing in Tahlequah.

Makin' it Rain
Missouri Western has made 228-of-709 three-point attempts (32.8%) so far this season. Their 228 makes are most in the MIAA, fourth most in the nation and the second most in a single season in program history. The Griffons are averaging 9.9 made threes per game - most in the MIAA and second most in the nation.

MWSU's 709 three-point attempts are the most of any team in the MIAA, the most in a single season in program history and third most of any team in NCAA DII. Their 30.8 three-point attempts per game comes in at third most in NCAA Division II.

Stingy Defense = Efficiency
Missouri Western has jumped to No. 2 in the MIAA in takeaways per game with 17.9 turnovers per outing. With that, MWSU is No. 4 in the league with a +3.13 turnover margin. Their team assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.08 ranks third in the MIAA as well.

2024-25 Griffs
Missouri Western hired its 10th head coach in program history this past offseason, naming Ashton Feldhaus to the position on April 15, 2024. Feldhaus took the reins after spending the previous five seasons as the top assistant and associate head coach for NCAA Division II Eckerd College in St. Petersburg, Florida.

In those five years, Eckerd won a combined 91 games and made the NCAA tournament in each of those five seasons. They also won the Sunshine State Conference tournament championship in 2020 and again in 2024.

As for the team itself, Missouri Western returned five players from the 2023-24 squad that won an MIAA regular season title for the sixth time in program history and the first time since 2016.

Bonilla Ballin'
Alyssa Bonilla, a fourth year Griffon, is making the most of her senior season. Bonilla is averaging 17.2 points (2nd MIAA), 4.7 rebounds, 5.8 assists (2nd MIAA, 8th nation) and 2.8 steals (1st MIAA, 22nd nation) per game. Her 1.8 A/TO ratio ranks No. 6 in the MIAA as well. Bonilla has now logged three double-doubles on the season and has scored in double figures in 22 out of 23 games this year. She's scored 20 or more points eight times this year as well.

Familiar Faces
Meredith Rieker, Kelsey Johnson, Kassandra Caron and Jaidyn Schomp make up the rest of the returners.

Schomp has started 17 games thus far, and leads the team with 18 blocked shots. She's also averaging 4.1 points and 3.5 boards per game.

Rieker has appeared in every game so far this season, including her first career start vs. Washburn on Jan. 25, and has made 22 three-pointers on 77 attempts.

Caron has emerged as the team's leader in rebounds (5.3 per game) and is tied for the team lead in blocked shots (18).

Soderlund Shootin'
Matilda Soderlund has been one of the sharpest shooters in the MIAA this season, making 56-of-138 attempts (40.6%) from long range. She ranks No. 3 in the MIAA and No. 17 in the nation in three-point percentage. Soderlund is averaging 2.4 made treys per game - third most in the MIAA. Her 56 made threes are fifth most in the MIAA.

Soderlund is averaging 9.8 points per game this season for the Griffs, having scored in double-digits 10 times, including a career-best 24 points against McKendree on Dec. 18.

Soderlund transferred to Missouri Western from Morehead State, where she played 30 games and made five starts last season. The Stockholm, Sweden native led the Eagles last season with 45 made three-pointers.

More D1 Experience, Starting with Sepp
Marie Sepp comes to MWSU after two seasons at Division I University at Albany. So far at MWSU, Sepp is averaging 12.67points per contest this season. She scored 22 points, a career-best, against Northwest Missouri State on Feb. 1. Her field goal percentage of 53% ranks as the 4th best in the MIAA.
Sepp appeared in 54 total games and scored 38 total points in her two years at Albany.

Laura Toffali joins the fold after a two-year stay at Kennesaw State. A Villasanta, Italy native, Toffali played in 38 games for the Owls over the last two years, including four career starts. She scored a total of 114 points over those two years.

Toffali has made 16 starts this season for Missouri Western, scoring a career-best 17 points against Missouri Southern on Feb. 15.

Malgorzata Byczkowska transferred after one year at Tarleton State. This year, she's posted a season-best seven rebounds against Northwest on Feb. 1 and a season-best 8 points against UCO on Feb. 8.

A native of Gdynia, Poland, Byczkowska spent the 2022-23 season at Howard College in Big Springs, Texas, earning WJCAC All-Conference honors. She averaged 13.1 ppg and 5.3 rpg in that season.

From St. Petersburg to St. Joseph
Jessica Ford transferred in from NCAA Division II Eckerd College, following Ashton Feldhaus from St. Petersburg, Florida to St. Joseph.

Ford is averaging 4.7 points and 4.3 rebounds per game so far this season, having played in every game and making 17 starts.

Originally from Marlborough, England, Ford started 22 games for the Tritons last season, averaging 6.0 points and 4.5 rebounds a game, helping Eckerd to a 20-win season and a Sunshine State Conference tournament championship.

New Lions on the Block
It was announced in 2023 that Arkansas-Fort Smith would join the MIAA with Lincoln University departing for the Great Lakes Valley Conference.

The Lions have proven to be a worthy addition across numerous sports, including women's basketball. UAFS at one point this year had won five consecutive MIAA games and just beat UCM and Washburn at home last week.

Ryan McAdams is in his fourth season as their head coach, and has guided the Lions from seven wins in his first year, 10 his second season and 11 wins last year to now 16 this season.
Fort Smith ranks No. 3 in the MIAA in scoring, averaging 74.5 points per game. They've hit 178 three-pointers along the way – the fourth most of any team in the MIAA.

The Lions have proven effective on the offensive glass, ranking No. 2 in the MIAA with 12.4 O-boards per game.

Fort Smith has some length on its roster with five players standing 5-11 or taller. With that, UAFS ranks No. 3 in the MIAA with 101 blocked shots.

Anna Trusty, a true freshman, is their leading scorer with 14.1 points per game. Layne Kirkendoll is the top rebounder with 6.0 boards per contest. Sinetra Jones, a 6-3 senior, is the team's leader in blocked shots with 34.

Sinetra, who played two years at Division I Oral Roberts, ranks fifth in UAFS history with 72 career blocks.

Northeastern Nuggets
Northeastern enters the week trying to break a four-game slide. Still, the Riverhawks have notched conference wins against Newman twice, Emporia State, Missouri Southern, Rogers State and Central Oklahoma.

Under second-year head coach Keith Ferguson, Northeastern took a big step in the right direction last season, going 14-15 overall and 10-12 in the MIAA, reaching the MIAA tournament for the first time since 2018. It was also their winningest season since 2013.

Arkansas Tech transfer Alex Hill is Northeastern's leading scorer with 14 points per game. NSU returns Courtney Lee for her fourth season. A two-time All-MIAA selection, she averaged 10.9 points and 6.1 rebounds per game last season. This year, Lee averages 11.2 points and a team-leading 5.9 rebounds per game.

Interview with Ashton Feldhaus and Jessica Ford