The Dixie State women's basketball team continues its five-game homestand on Saturday, playing host to Hawaii Hilo inside the Burns Arena. Tipoff is set for 5 p.m., as the Trailblazers (2-16, 2-10 PacWest) look to snap a four-game losing skid.
Live coverage is scheduled on television (CEC-TV – TDS Cable Channel 22), radio (Radio Dixie 91.3. FM), and internet (SouthernUtahLive.com)
ALL-TIME VS. HAWAII HILO: Saturday's game marks the 20th meeting between Dixie State and Hawai'i Hilo. The teams first met on Jan. 7, 2007, in Hilo, Hawaii, with DSU winning the inaugural matchup, 68-49. The Vulcans earned their first victory in the series the following year in Hilo. The Trailblazers responded with a three-game win streak before UHH earned its second victory in the series on Feb. 7, 2009. Since then, DSU has won 11 of the last 13 matchups, including a 10-game win streak from 2010 to 2015. The Trailblazers hold a 15-4 series lead, including a 9-0 mark inside the Burns Arena.
KNOW YOUR FOE: Hawaii Hilo enters Saturday's matchup with a 4-9 overall record, and a 4-6 mark in PacWest play. The Vulcans have won three of their last four games, including victories over Concordia, BYU-Hawaii, and Holy Names, but have yet to earn a victory outside of the Hawaiian Islands. Sophomore guard Kim Schmelz leads the UHH attack, averaging 14.1 points per game, while senior forward Sydney Mercer adds another 11.1 points and 4.1 rebounds per game.
LAST TIME OUT: Dixie State fell, 69-48, to Azusa Pacific on Saturday at the Burns Arena, as the Cougars connected on 15 3-pointers (nine in the second half) en route to the victory. The Trailblazers shot 34 percent (18-of-53) from the field, 26 percent (8-of-30) from beyond the arc, and 44 percent (4-of-9) from the field. Jordan led DSU with a team-high 10 points and five assists, while Ventling added nine points, and Gonzales finished with eight points.
2016-17 ROSTER: Dixie State returns two starters from the 2015-16 squad, led by junior center Ashlee Burge (Riverton, Utah/Herriman HS), who averaged 7.6 points and 4.8 rebounds per game and recorded two double-doubles last year. Sophomore guard Tramina Jordan (Las Vegas, Nev./Centennial HS), who started 17 games last year, also returns in 2016-17. Jordan averaged 5.0 points and 1.6 assists as a freshman last season. The Trailblazers return two reserve players from last year's squad, including junior guard Gabrielle Cabanero (Las Vegas, Nev./Valley HS) (1.8 ppg) and senior guard Cassidy Carrillo (La Mirada, Calif./St. Paul HS) (0.9 ppg).
Four junior college transfers join the Trailblazers for the 2016-17 season, including junior forwards Shelby Kassuba (Sammamish, Wash./Skyline HS) and Lisa VanCampen (Morgan, Utah/Morgan HS), junior guard Matti Ventling (Las Vegas, Nev./Las Vegas HS), and junior guard Monique Washington (South Jordan, Utah/Bingham HS).
Kassuba played two seasons at Bellevue College in Bellevue, Washington, where she averaged 17 points, eight rebounds, three assists, and three steals per game as a sophomore. VanCampen spent two seasons at Snow College in Ephraim, Utah, and averaged 7.0 points and 5.9 rebounds per game as a sophomore. Ventling played two seasons at the College of Southern Idaho in Twin Falls, Idaho, where she averaged 8.3 points, 3.8 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game as a sophomore. Washington played her freshman year at Clark College in Vancouver, Washington, averaging 2.3 points and 1.9 rebounds per game.
Dixie State also adds one NCAA Division I transfer in senior center Hannah Roberts (Henderson, Nev./Green Valley HS), who joins the Trailblazers after one season at Arkansas-Pine Bluff. Roberts appeared in 15 games at UAPB and made two starts as a junior in 2015-16. Prior to her time at UAPB, Roberts averaged 2.4 points and 4.4 rebounds per game in two seasons at Southeast Community College in Milford, Nebraska.
Three new freshman join the ranks this year in twin-sister guards Ali and Kili Franks (Redding, Calif./Enterprise HS) and guard Jaden Gonzales (Plainview, Texas/Plainview HS). The Franks sisters prepped at Enterprise High School in Redding, California. Ali averaged 10 points, four rebounds, and three steals per game, while Kili averaged 15 points, six rebounds, and two steals per game for the Hornets. Gonzales prepped at Plainview High School in Plainview, Texas, where she averaged 16.0 points per game and connected on 66 3-pointers as a senior for the Bulldogs.
COACHING STAFF: Head Coach JD Gustin begins his first season at Dixie State in the 2016-17 campaign. Gustin was announced as the new DSU women's basketball head coach in May 2016, following the departure of former coach Jenny Thigpin. Gustin recently concluded his first season as an assistant coach at Weber State, where he helped lead the Wildcats to a 23-12 record and a runner-up finish in the 2016 Women's Basketball Invitational Tournament.
Prior to Weber State, Gustin spent four years at the University of Utah, serving as director of women's basketball operations from 2011-13 and women's basketball assistant coach from 2013-15. He helped guide the Utes to a runner-up finish in the 2013 Women's National Invitational Tournament (WNIT).
Before his time at Utah, he served as head women's basketball coach at Westminster College for seven seasons from 2004-11, where he compiled a 146-83 record and led the Griffins to five consecutive NAIA National Championship tournament appearances. He led Westminster to its first-ever NAIA tournament berth in 2006-07, and guided the Griffins to the quarterfinals of the NAIA championships for the first time in school history with a school-record 28 wins in 2010-11. Gustin won three Frontier Conference championships, including a perfect 14-0 conference mark in 2008-09.
Gustin is joined by new assistant coaches Nicole Yazzie (Westminster, 2013) and Brennon Schweikart (BYU-Hawaii, 2013).
NEXT UP: Dixie State hosts BYU-Hawaii in the third game of a five-game homestand on Thursday, Feb. 2, at 5 p.m.
