BILLINGS, Mont. –While families across the nation are preparing for family gatherings to offer thanks and spend time with family and friends, the Montana State Billings women's basketball team is preparing for a busy Thanksgiving with their MSUB family. The Yellowjackets will host the 2011 Yellowjacket Women's Basketball Classic Sponsored by the Billings Hotel and Convention Center Friday, Nov. 25 and Saturday, Nov. 26.
 
Joining the Yellowjacket women in the four-team field will be fellow NCAA Division II schools Minnesota State – Moorhead and Minot State University along with NAIA institution Montana State – Northern.
 
The Classic will feature two games on both days with MSU – Northern and Minnesota State – Moorhead tipping off the tourney at 5 p.m. on Friday before MSUB hosts Minot State at 7 p.m. in Friday's nightcap.
 
The following day, Northern will face off against Minot at 2 p.m. with the Yellowjackets closing out both the Classic and their season-opening five-game home slate with a 4 p.m. contest against Minnesota State – Moorhead.
 
Montana State Billings: The Yellowjackets enter the weekend's tournament 3-0 on the young season after having downed rival Rocky Mountain College Tuesday night 65-55. As a team, Kevin Woodin's young squad is shooting 39.5% from the field and is applying some stiff pressure to their opposition, causing opponents to commit 72 turnovers while committing about half as many themselves (39).
 
The Yellowjackets are being led in scoring by sophomore guard Bobbi Knudsen who is averaging a team-best 16.7 points per game after tallying 50 points this season while going 20-46 (43.5%) from the field. She also leads the team with 16 assists.
 
Junior Brooke Tolman is averaging 11 points per contest while freshman forward/guard Janiel Olson is averaging 9.3 points per game. Olson is just missing out on averaging a double-double this season as she leads the team off the glass by averaging eight boards per game, having corralled in 24 total rebounds.
 
Senior guard Kalli Stanhope leads the 'Jackets from three-point range as she is 38.5% (5-13) from beyond the arc.
 
Minnesota State – Moorhead: The Dragons have only played one game thus far in the season, a 66-41 win over Valley City State University. In their season opener, Karla Nelson's team hit 41.1% of their shots from the field, but were a solid 14-17 (82.4%) from the charity stripe while also controlling the rebounding battle as they corralled in 35 boards.
 
Moorhead was led in scoring by Angie Jetvig who recorded an impressive double-double with 21 points and 15 rebounds in the season-opener. She was 8-15 (53.3%) from the field and perfect from at the charity stripe (5-5).
 
The other Dragon to score in double-digits was Haley Thomforde who knocked down 11 points in a 55.6% (5-9) shooting performance.
 
Minot State: The Beavers are currently 2-3 on the season and head coach Sheila Green Gerding will lead her team into action tonight against the University of Mary. Minot opened the season with an 87-63 loss to current nationally-ranked #7 Alaska Anchorage, then rattled off two wins over Alaska Fairbanks and  Mary before slipping into a two-game losing skid.
 
For Minot, a “Twin Tower”-force of sisters Carly and Christina Boag are currently leading the team by averaging double-digit points per game with Carly just missing out on averaging a double-double. Carly is currently averaging 14.4 points and a team-best 9.4 boards per contest having accumulated 72 points and 47 rebounds, 30 coming off the defensive glass, in five games.
 
Twin sister and fellow sophomore forward Christina has 55 points, averaging 11 per game and is second to only her sister in rebounds with 25 total boards. Christina has the edge over her sibling from the field as she is shooting 61.1% (22-36) including having knocked down three treys.
 
Montana State Northern: The Skylights are currently 7-0 during the 2011-12 season and will be using their two contests on Friday and Saturday as exhibition matches. As a team, Chris Mouat's team is shooting just below 40% through their first seven contests of the regular season and are hitting on a solid 41.3% of their shots from three-point range while out-scoring their opponents 66-49.
 
The Skylights are led in their attack by a pair of players averaging around 15 points per game highlighted by Nikki Tresch who has 111 points so far this season, averaging a team-bset 15.9 points per contest while also leading the team with 20 assists. Tresch is shooting a team second-best 40% (32-80) from the field including knocking down a team-best 19 treys.
 
Jordan Bruuresma has collected 107 points this season, an average of 15.3 per game, while corralling in a team second-best 30 total rebounds; 22 off the defensive glass. Bruuresma is leading the team in shooting as she is 35-77 (45.5%) from the field including going 18-31 (58.1%) from three-point range.
 
Rachelle Bennett leads the team in cleaning the glass as she has 36 rebounds, averaging 5.1 boards per contest. 23 of her boards have come off the defensive glass.