GAME NOTES:
- The Snow College women's basketball team will head to Price to take part in the Eagle Classic hosted by Utah State University Eastern. They will take on Central Wyoming College Friday at 1:00 p.m. before meeting with Eastern Wyoming College the following day, Saturday at 11:00 a.m.
- The Badgers are coming off a weekend in Thatcher, Arizona for the Gila Monsters Tournament they picked up two victories over Cochise College, 68-42, and Yavapai College, 69-32. The Badgers dropped their first game of the season to the host school, No. 7 Eastern Arizona College, 65-55.
- Snow College is 4-0 this season when they finish with more assists than their opponents. Under Head Coach Zu Grinsell, the Badgers are 76-16 when they out-assist their opponents. In their sole loss, they had eight assists to EAC's 23.
- The Badgers have held four of their first five opponents to less than 59 points. This is the first time since the 2019-2020 season they have limited their opponents to fewer than 60 points, when the Badgers also started the year 4-1.
- Snow College is 12-0 all-time against CWC. The Badgers picked up three wins against the Rustlers last season, the first came at the Western Wyoming Classic, 93-75. The second came at last year's Eagle Classic 71-26, and the last one at home 91-46.
- The Badgers hold a record of 3-1 against EWC. The Badgers won the first three meetings of the series but fell in the most recent in 2021, 69-57.
LAST TIME OUT: The Badgers raced out to a 13-5 lead against the Apaches to begin the tournament. They surrendered just eight points in each of the first two quarters to take a 29-16 lead into the halftime break.
Cochise fought back in the third period and was able to cut the Badgers' lead down to single digits. Snow College used a 13-6 run to take its largest lead of the third quarter before entering the final stanza with a 45-31 lead.
The Badgers used a 12-0 run midway through the fourth quarter to lock down the victory. They scored 23 points in the fourth quarter – their most in any quarter of the game – en route to a 68-42 victory.
Seini Tuipulotu led the way offensively with 15 points and four rebounds.
Sydnee Smith recorded 11 points and six rebounds, while
June Olsen also had 11 points to aid in the victory.
Snow College gave the Gila Monsters everything they could handle in the second game of the tournament. After both teams scored nine points in the first quarter, the Badgers took a brief four-point lead to begin the second period.
A 7-0 run from the Gila Monsters turned the lead into a deficit. Snow College scored eight of the final 10 points of the quarter, however, to take a 27-25 lead into halftime.
The opening minutes of the third quarter teeter-tottered before an 8-0 run from the Badgers gave them a six-point lead – their largest advantage of the game. EAC would tie the score at 41 before Snow College took a 45-41 lead into the fourth quarter.
The first seven minutes of the fourth quarter saw four ties and three lead changes. With three minutes left to play and the score tied at 53, the Gila Monsters used a 9-0 run to take a 62-53 lead with under a minute to play. The lead was insurmountable, and the Badgers fell 65-55.
Just two Badgers scored in double figures, led once again by Tuipulotu, who finished with 13 points and seven rebounds.
Lala Baldwin chipped in 10 points on 4-8 shooting from the field.
The Badgers wrapped up the tournament against Yavapai, whom they beat 97-53 in the season opener earlier this year. Saturday's matchup followed a similar suit as the Badgers allowed just seven points in the first half.
Snow College outscored the Roughriders 24-2 in the first quarter and eventually took a 34-7 lead into halftime. The Roughriders picked up the offense in the second half, but could not chase down the Badgers as Snow College earned a 69-32 victory.
Avery Allred led all scorers with 14 points and eight rebounds.
Megan Johnson was a perfect 5-5 from the field to finish with 10 points and seven rebounds. Dalana Jokovljevic also recorded 10 points in the win.
UP NEXT: The Badgers will head to Midland, Texas, for the Midland College Classic. The Badgers will take on three opponents, starting with the host School, Midland College, Nov. 20 at 6:00 p.m. MST. The Badgers are 1-1 against the Chaparrals but haven't faced off since 2018; they lost that game 56-41.
Snow College will then take on No. 12 South Plains College Nov. 21 at 3:00 p.m. MST. The Badgers and Texans have met once before in 2019; the Badgers lost that match 66-46.
The Badgers will wrap the tournament against Odessa College Nov. 22 at 1:00 p.m. MST. The Wranglers have started their season 5-1. This will be the first meeting between the two programs. For video streaming and live stats information, visit snowbadgers.com.
