Stan Plewe/Utah Tech Athletics

Women's Basketball 12/5/2018 4:48:00 PM By DSU Athletics Media Relations

Trailblazers travel for two RMAC games in South Dakota

DSU Women's Basketball at South Dakota Mines/Black Hills State
Date/Time	Friday, Dec. 7 - at SDSMT - 5:30 p.m. - Rapid City, S.D. Saturday, Dec. 8 - at BHSU - 4 p.m. - Spearfish, S.D.
Game Notes	Dixie State (PDF) , South Dakota Mines , Black Hills State
Live Video	South Dakota Mines , Black Hills State
Live Stats	South Dakota Mines , Black Hills State
DSU Social Media	@DixieAthletics (Twitter score updates) Facebook \| Instagram
Hashtags	#DixieBlazers #RMACwbb

The Dixie State women's basketball team hits the road again this week with its first trip to South Dakota for a pair of Rocky Mountain Athletic contests. The Trailblazers will open the trip on Friday at 5:30 p.m. at South Dakota Mines in Rapid City before wrapping up the trip on Saturday at 4 p.m. at Black Hills State in Spearfish.

Live video streaming will be provided for both games at https://portal.stretchinternet.com/sdsmt/ (South Dakota Mines) and https://portal.stretchinternet.com/bhsu/ (Black Hills State). Live stat links for both games can be found at DixieStateAthletics.com.

ALL-TIME VS. SOUTH DAKOTA MINES: Friday's game marks the first matchup between Dixie State and South Dakota Mines on the basketball court.

ALL-TIME VS. BLACK HILLS STATE: Saturday's game marks the first matchup between Dixie State and Black Hills State on the basketball court.

KNOW YOUR FOE: South Dakota Mines enters the weekend with a 2-2 overall record and an 0-1 mark in RMAC play. The Hardrockers earned wins over MSU Billings (88-69) and Dakota State (100-42) before conference play began, but dropped a 70-43 decision to Black Hills State on Saturday in the RMAC opener. Junior guard Anna Haugen leads the SDSMT attack, averaging 10.5 points and 6.0 rebounds per game.

Black Hills State enters the weekend at No. 14 in the WBCA Division II Coaches Poll. The Yellow Jackets sport a 5-0 overall record and a 1-0 mark in RMAC play after dispatching South Dakota Mines in the RMAC opener last week. Three BHSU players average double-figure scoring, including Morgan Ham (13.0 ppg, 6.0 rpg), Remi Wientjes (11.4 ppg, 4.8 rpg), and Julia Seamans (10.4 ppg, 3.2 rpg).

NEW SEASON, NEW CONFERENCE: After 11 seasons as a member of the Pacific West Conference, the Trailblazers officially opened their RMAC membership on Saturday. Dixie State logged a 112-86 record as a member of the PacWest and finished in second place three times (2010-12). DSU was picked to finish in 10th place in the RMAC preseason coaches' poll.

ON THE ROAD: Since joining the NCAA Division II ranks in 2006-07, Dixie State has recorded a 61-86 (.415) record in true-road games and has logged a winning record on the road three times (2010-11, 2011-12, 2012-13). Additionally, the Trailblazers have posted a 47-50 (.484) conference road record and a 19-16 (.543) record in neutral-site games.

PERFECT PRESEASON: Dixie State recorded the best start since the 2010-11 season, posting a 3-0 mark with wins over Northern New Mexico (93-52), Western Oregon (59-40), and Saint Martin's (107-103 – 3 OT).

DOUBLE-DIGIT FRENZY: For the second time this season, five Trailblazers finished in double figures as DSU defeated Saint Martin's, 107-103, in triple overtime on November 17. Rashel Blazzard led the way with 24 points, while Lisa VanCampen and Ali Franks each set a new career high with 23 points. Mariah Martin added 14 points, while London Pavlica chipped in 13 points.

2018-19 TRAILBLAZERS: Dixie State looks to build on a 12-15 overall record and an 8-12 mark in PacWest play during the 2017-18 season. The Trailblazers enter their first year as a member of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) in the 2018-19 campaign.

Dixie State returns two starters from the 2017-18 squad, including sophomore guard Mariah Martin (10.5 ppg, 4.6 apg) and senior forward Maile Richardson (7.2 ppg, 5.3 rpg). Three DSU reserves return for the new season, including junior guard Ali Franks (8.9 ppg, 3.8 rpg), sophomore guard Keslee Stevenson (6.6 ppg, 2.6 rpg), and sophomore guard Morgan Myers (2.9 ppg, 2.0 rpg). Redshirt senior forward Lisa VanCampen (7.9 ppg, 8.3 rpg) also returns after redshirting during the 2017-18 season.

The Trailblazers added three transfer players for the 2018-19 season, including junior guards Rashel Blazzard, Madi Loftus, and Deshka Olson.

Blazzard averaged 7.9 points, 2.9 rebounds, 2.8 assists, and 1.9 steals per game at USU-Eastern during the 2017-18 campaign. Blazzard played her freshman season at Westminster College, averaging 7.8 points and 1.0 rebound per game.

Loftus played two seasons at USU-Eastern, where she averaged a team-high 14.9 points, 3.7 rebounds, and 2.3 assists per game last season as a sophomore and earned first team All-SWAC honors.

Olson Appeared in 24 games and made one start at Loyola Marymount during the 2014-15 season. She averaged 8.8 minutes and 2.2 points per game and connected on 11 3-pointers.

Junior guard Amy Green also joins the Trailblazers this season for her first year of collegiate basketball. Green averaged 17.2 points, 6.9 rebounds, 4.4 steals, and 4.3 assists per game as a senior at Snow Canyon High School, leading the Warriors to the 2012 3A State Championship. She earned Adidas All-American honors and was a McDonalds All-American nominee.

Five new freshman join the ranks this year in guards Kelsea Barker, London Pavlica, and Jaimee Stahlee, along with center Cameron Mooney and forward Lana Olevao.

Barker averaged 14.5 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 2.2 steals per game as a senior at Dixie High School. Pavlica averaged 11.9 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 4.2 assists per game as a senior at Liberty High School. Stahlee averaged 16.4 points, 2.3 rebounds, and 2.0 steals per game as a junior at Bountiful High School. Mooney averaged 11.3 points and 8.0 rebounds per game as a senior at Skyline High School. Olevao averaged 10.5 points and 8.2 rebounds per game as a senior at Highland High School.

COACHING STAFF: Head Coach JD Gustin begins his third 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 third-year assistant Nicole Yazzie (Westminster, 2013), while Utah Sports Hall of Fame Foundation inductee Deb Bennett (BYU, 1977) returns for her second year on the staff as an assistant coach. Jonathan Long joins the staff as an assistant coach for the 2018-19 season after serving last year as a student assistant, while Connor Frith remains as student assistant.

UP NEXT: Dixie State returns home for its RMAC home-openers next weekend, hosting New Mexico Highlands on December 14 and CSU-Pueblo on December 15.

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Players Mentioned

#15 Maile Richardson: Forward; 6' 1"; Senior

#5 Lisa VanCampen: Forward; 6' 1"; Redshirt Senior

#23 Ali Franks: Guard; 5' 10"; Junior

#22 Deshka Olson: Guard; 5' 8"; Junior

#4 Rashel Blazzard: Guard; 5' 6"; Junior

#12 Madi Loftus: Guard; 5' 9"; Junior

#3 Mariah Martin: Guard; 5' 7"; Sophomore

#11 Keslee Stevenson: Guard; 5' 11"; Sophomore

#21 Morgan Myers: Guard; 5' 7"; Sophomore

#1 London Pavlica: Guard; 5' 7"; Freshman

#32 Cameron Mooney: Center; 6' 2"; Freshman

#33 Lana Olevao: Forward; 6' 0"; Freshman

Players Mentioned

#15 Maile Richardson
: 6' 1"; Senior
: Forward

#5 Lisa VanCampen
: 6' 1"; Redshirt Senior
: Forward

#23 Ali Franks
: 5' 10"; Junior
: Guard

#22 Deshka Olson
: 5' 8"; Junior
: Guard

#4 Rashel Blazzard
: 5' 6"; Junior
: Guard

#12 Madi Loftus
: 5' 9"; Junior
: Guard

#3 Mariah Martin
: 5' 7"; Sophomore
: Guard

#11 Keslee Stevenson
: 5' 11"; Sophomore
: Guard

#21 Morgan Myers
: 5' 7"; Sophomore
: Guard

#1 London Pavlica
: 5' 7"; Freshman
: Guard

#32 Cameron Mooney
: 6' 2"; Freshman
: Center

#33 Lana Olevao
: 6' 0"; Freshman
: Forward