BILLINGS, Mont. – Featuring one of the youngest squads in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference this season, the Montana State University Billings women's basketball team had a regular-season full of ups and downs. The Yellowjacket women will be looking to put the last three games behind them and refocus as they prepare to face Northwest Nazarene University in the first round of the 2012 GNAC Basketball Championships hosted by Saint Martin's University in Lacey, Wash.
 
Under the guidance of eighth-year head coach Kevin Woodin, the 'Jackets ended the 2011-12 regular-season 18-11 overall. That mark included finishing sixth in the GNAC with a record of 10-8 to earn the No. 6 seed heading into this week's league tourney.
 
With the sixth-seed comes an up-hill battle to the championship, but having been an under-dog for most of the season has proven to help the women exceed expectations already this season.
 
MSUB will look to face the third-seeded Crusaders of Northwest Nazarene (17-9, 11-7 GNAC) in the opening game of the women's 2012 GNAC Basketball Championship on Thursday, March 1 at 5:15 p.m.
 
The 'Jackets swept the Crusaders during the regular season; posting victories both at home on Jan. 12, 58-53, as well as in Nampa, Idaho on Feb. 11, 69-60. While MSUB earned the two-game sweep during the regular-season, the tournament means a fresh start and it is still extremely difficult to beat a team three times in a season.
 
MSUB features the GNAC's second-best scoring defense, allowing just 58.8 points per contest. The Yellowjackets have been able to hold their opponents to a .388 shooting percentage this season which includes the league's best three-point field goal defense of .270.
 
Starting point guard Bobbi Knudsen, who was a unanimous selection to the 2012 GNAC All-Conference First Team, leads the team with a conference best 514 points which has her currently eighth all-time in school history for most points scored in a single season. Her 17.7 points per game place her second in the GNAC.
 
A sophomore from Malta, Mont., Knudsen is also already in the top-10 in the league in three other categories including tied for fourth with 3.8 assists per game (109 total), sixth with 2.0 steals per game (57 total) and her free throw percentage of .804 has her seventh in the GNAC. She is also just one made field goal shy of entering the top-10 in school history for most field goals made in a single season.
 
Along with Knudsen, freshman Quinn Peoples averages 10.0 points per game off 290 total points. A forward from Butte, Mont., Peoples has registered most of her points off three-pointers this season as she has drained a team-best 59 three's which is good enough for fourth-best in the league at 2.0 per game. She is just two treys away from entering the top-10 in school history for most three-pointers in a single season.
 
Underneath the basket, a trio of freshman has been battling hard all season for the Yellowjackets highlighted by Janiel Olson. Olson leads the team and is fifth in the league with 8.3 boards per game as she has led the team in rebounding in 22 games this season. Her 241 total rebounds is third-most in the league.
 
Also under the basket for the Yellowjackets, Kayleen Goggins averages a team-third-best 7.2 points per outing along with a team-second-best 4.4 rebounds per game while Monica Grimsrud has batted away 19 shots this season which has her 10^th in the conference in the category.
 
Northwest Nazarene enters Thursday's game with the conference's fifth-best scoring offense, averaging 70.3 points per outing, while giving up 63.8 points per outing which has the Crusaders fourth in the league.
 
The Crusaders are led by Briaunna King with a league fourth-best 15.7 points per game and Megan Hingston who averages 14.8 points per outing which is good enough for eighth in the GNAC. King also leads the team and is third in the conference with 9.6 rebounds per game and is currently shooting at a .471 clip while Hingston is second on the team with a .451 shooting performance.
 
Chelsie Luke leads the team from three-point range with 29 total treys and a .345 shooting performance. She also averages 10.3 points per game.
 
The winner of Thursday's game between the Yellowjackets and Crusaders will advance into the semifinals to play the second-seeded Western Washington University Vikings. The semifinal showdown will take place on Friday, March 2 at 5:15 p.m.
 
First and semifinal rounds Wednesday through Friday will be able to be followed live through New Media TV Sports. A link to the games has been posted on MSUB's schedule. The championship games on Saturday will be carried by Root Sports.