MINOT, N.D. – The Minot State women's basketball team opens the 2017-18 season at home, as they play host to Rocky Mountain College on Friday afternoon at 1 p.m. in the Minot State Dome.

Beaver Bits

Head coach Mark Graupe enters his first season leading the Minot State program.

The Beavers return four starters and 11 letterwinners from last season's squad that went 4-25 overall in 2016-17.

Senior Holly Johnson was named the Preseason Player to Watch and enters her debut season at Minot State after stops at North Dakota State and North Dakota.

Minot State returns their top two scorers from 2016-17: Kari Clements (10.7) and Madison Wald (10.3).

Kristal Flowers led the Beavers last season with 6.9 rebounds per game while Diondra Denton added 5.1 rebounds per game.

Clements recorded a team-high 65 assists in 2016-17 while Mariah Payne averaged a team-high 3.2 assists per game.

Scouting the Rocky Mountain College Battlin' Bears

Rocky Mountain College enters Friday afternoon's contest with a 2-0 record. The Battlin' Bears are set to face Dickinson State on Thursday before coming to Minot State. Hailee Farstveet and Alexi Smith lead the scoring with 17 and 16 points per game, respectively. Brooke Jones is recording a team-high 6.9 rebounds per game while Farstveet is dishing out seven assists per game to lead the team.

Head coach Wes Keller is in his third season leading the Battlin' Bears program.

Minot State leads the all-time series with Rocky Mountain College, 19-14. In their last meeting, the Beavers defeated the Battlin' Bears 61-54 in Billings, Mont. on November 23, 2009.

Up Next

Minot State returns to action next week when they play host to Dickinson State on Thursday, Nov. 16 at 5:30 p.m. in the Minot State Dome. Links to live stats and video are available on msubeavers.com.