The Dixie State women's basketball team closes its four-game homestand on Friday, hosting Westminster at 2 p.m. inside the Burns Arena.
Live coverage is scheduled on television (CEC-TV – TDS Cable Channel 22) and online on the Dixie State Athletics YouTube Page (YouTube.com/DixieStateAthletics). Live stats will also be available at www.sidearmstats.com/dixie/wbball.
ALL-TIME VS. WESTMINSTER: Friday's game marks the sixth meeting between Dixie State and Westminster. The Griffins won the inaugural matchup in St. George on Dec. 1, 2006. The next two matchups were played in Salt Lake City, Utah, with Westminster earning two more victories in northern Utah before taking a 61-55 victory in St. George during the 2015-16 season. The Griffins won the most recent matchup, 69-58, last season in Salt Lake City, and lead the all-time series with a 5-0 mark.
KNOW YOUR FOE: Westminster enters the game with a 1-2 record, with a win over Davenport sandwiched between losses to Concordia-Irvine and Northern State. Freshman forward Hunter Krebs leads the Griffins' scoring attack, averaging 13.3 points and 5.7 rebounds per game, while junior guard Denise Gonzalez adds 9.3 points and 5.3 assists per game.
LAST TIME OUT: Dixie State used a dominant performance in the paint to secure its second consecutive victory on Tuesday, defeating Antelope Valley 71-59 inside the Burns Arena.
The Trailblazers outrebounded the Pioneers by a 55-39 count and recorded five blocks, while Maile Richardson (American Fork, Utah/American Fork HS) (13 points, 12 rebounds) and Kristin Baldwin (Thatcher, Ariz./Thatcher HS) (10 points, 14 rebounds) each finished with a double-double for the first DSU double-doubles of the season.
Dixie State finished the contest at 42 percent (24-of-57) from the field, 21 percent (4-of-19) from 3-point range, and 73 percent (19-of-26) from the free throw line. Richardson and Baldwin led the way with the first DSU double-doubles of the season, while Moeaki added 11 points and four rebounds.
2017-18 ROSTER: Dixie State returns five starters from the 2016-17 squad, including redshirt junior guard Tramina Jordan (Las Vegas, Nev./Centennial HS) (11.0 ppg, 3.7 apg), senior center Ashlee Burge (Riverton, Utah/Herriman HS) (9.8 ppg, 5.6 rpg), senior guard Matti Ventling (Las Vegas, Nev./Las Vegas HS) (9.4 ppg, 5.4 rpg), and sophomore guard Ali Franks (Redding, Calif./Enterprise HS) (8.7 ppg, 4.8 rpg). Senior forward Lisa VanCampen (Morgan, Utah/Morgan HS) (7.9 ppg, 8.3 rpg) will redshirt during the 2017-18 season. Senior guard Gabrielle Cabanero (Las Vegas, Nev./Valley HS) (4.2 ppg, 1.6 rpg) also returns for her final season in a DSU uniform.
The Trailblazers added two transfer players for the 2017-18 season, including senior center Kristin Baldwin (Thatcher, Ariz./Thatcher HS) and junior forward Maile Richardson (American Fork, Utah/American Fork HS).
Baldwin averaged a double-double as a junior at BYU-Hawaii during the 2016-17 season, scoring 12.0 points per game to go with 10.9 rebounds per game to land All-PacWest honorable mention honors. Prior to BYU-Hawaii, Baldwin played two seasons at Pima Community College in Tucson, Arizona.
Richardson played two seasons at Utah State-Eastern in Price, Utah. Richardson averaged 8.5 points and 6.1 rebounds per game in two seasons for the Eagles, earning All-Scenic West Athletic Conference honorable mention honors.
Five new freshmen join the ranks this year in guards Mariah Martin (Sandy, Utah/Alta HS), Tayor Moeaki, Keslee Stevenson (Willard, Utah/Box Elder HS), and Morgan Myers (St. George, Utah/Desert Hills HS), and forward Shandi Bastian (Sigurd, Utah/Richfield HS).
Martin averaged 16.8 points, 6.8 assists, 4.8 rebounds, and 4.6 steals as a senior at Alta High School. Moeaki averaged 18.6 points, 3.2 assists, 2.9 rebounds, and 2.2 steals per game as a senior at American Fork High School. Stevenson averaged 15.5 points, 2.7 steals, and 2.0 assists per game as a senior at Box Elder High School. Myers averaged 8.5 points and 3.2 steals per game as a senior at Desert Hills High School. Bastian averaged 10.8 points and 6.1 rebounds per game as a senior at Richfield High School.
COACHING STAFF: Head Coach JD Gustin begins his second season at Dixie State in the 2017-18 campaign. Prior to Dixie State, Gustin served 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 second-year assistant Nicole Yazzie (Westminster, 2013), while Utah Sports Hall of Fame Foundation inductee Deb Bennett (BYU, 1977) joins the staff as an assistant coach.
UP NEXT: Dixie State wraps heads to Orem, Utah, on Tuesday to battle Utah Valley in its final non-conference game of the season. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m.
