February 12, 2026

THIS WEEK'S PREVIEW
MADISON, S.D. - The Dakota State University Trojan women's basketball team (21-3 overall record, 16-2 Frontier Conference, No. 6 ranking in the NAIA Women's Basketball Coaches' Top 25 poll) carries their nine-game winning streak to western Montana for a pair of games this weekend.  The Trojans visit Montana Western (10-12 overall record, 8-10 Frontier Conference) Friday evening at Straugh Gymnasium in Dillon, Mont.

On Saturday, DSU plays their final regular season road contest as they travel north on Interstate 15 to Montana Tech (18-4 overall record, 14-4 Frontier Conference, No. 17 in the national poll) in the NAIA's Top 25 battle.  The game takes place at Kelvin Sampson Court at Valley Bank Arena in Butte, Mont. 

Both games tip off at 6 p.m. (Central Time)/5 p.m. (Mountain Time).

QUICK HITS
*Dakota State takes their final regular season trip to the state of Montana this weekend.  The Trojans won the first Frontier Conference meetings earlier this season with Montana Western and Montana Tech.  DSU returns to Montana two weeks later for the conference postseason tournament in Butte.

*Three Frontier Conference teams are undefeated at home this season, including Dakota State with 12-0 home record.  Montana Tech is 11-0 record at home this season, while Rocky Mountain (Mont.) is 10-0 record at home.  Montana Western is 6-4 record at home.

*There are four regular season contests remaining on the Frontier Conference schedule.  DSU plays two road games this weekend and returns home next weekend for the final two home regular season games.  

*Dakota State has won 81 times in the last 86 league games (.931 winning percentage) in combined conference records from the North Star Athletic Association and the Frontier Conference since the 2020-21 season.

Scoring Offense	65.4	80.3	70.6
Scoring Defense	64.7	59.5	57.0
Scoring Margin	0.7	20.8	13.7
Field Goal %	.399	.439	.421
Field Goal Def. %	.372	.360	.336
Free Throw %	.695	.639	.714
Rebounds Per Game	36.6	42.4	43.9
Rebounds Margin	-1.4	6.0	9.7
3-point FGs Made Per Game	7.5	10.0	5.5
3-point FG %	.335	.328	.294
Assists Per Game	13.7	17.7	14.5
Blocks Per Game	2.9	4.1	4.2

SCOUTING THE BULLDOGS
Ryan Sullivan is in his inaugural season as the head women's basketball coach for Montana Western. He previously led the girls' basketball program at Sheridan High School in Sheridan, Wyo., capturing back-to-back state championship appearances and a state title. Sullivan is an alum of Montana Western, graduating with a degree in social science in 2018.

Since the first meeting between the Bulldogs and Trojans this season, Montana Western has gone 3-2 record, with losses against nationally ranked No. 12 Montana Tech and No. 23 Rocky Mountain (Mont.). 

They come into this weekend on a three-game winning streak, picking off (RV) Carroll on the road, before defending Straugh Gymnasium and picking up wins against Bismarck State (N.D.) and Dickinson State (N.D.) last weekend.

The Bulldogs rank third in the Frontier Conference in 3-point field goal percentage (33.5 percent) and fifth in turnovers forced per game (15.6).

The all-time series is tied at 1-1.  Their first all-time series meeting was held in Arizona on Dec. 21, 2021.

SCOUTING THE OREDIGGERS
Jeff Graham enters his fourth season as the head women's basketball coach for Montana Tech. Under Graham's leadership, the Orediggers have steadily increased their win total each year, culminating last season with the first national tournament appearance for the program in over a decade.

The Orediggers enter this weekend's Frontier Conference with an overall record of 18-4.  Since the Trojans and Orediggers last met in January, Montana Tech has posted a 4-2 record in conference play, with their most recent contest being a dominant 93-60 win against Bismarck State.

Montana Tech ranks second in the Frontier conference in scoring defense at 57.0 points per game. The Orediggers are also third in scoring offense (70.7 points per game) and first in total rebounding (44.0 rebounds per game).

DSU leads the all-time series 2-0, with both meetings being held at DSU Fieldhouse including the 2025 NAIA Women's Basketball National Tournament's First Round.

LAST TIME OUT
Dakota State continued their home court dominance as they ballooned their winning streak to nine games after sweeping a pair of Montana teams at DSU Fieldhouse last weekend.  DSU's nine-game winning streak is tied for 10th longest winning streak in the Trojan women's basketball record book with the 1978-79 squad.

DSU avenged their only Frontier Conference setbacks, defeating both No. 23 ranked Rocky Mountain (Mont.) and (RV) Carroll (Mont.).  The Trojans earned a 15-11 lead after the first quarter and extended their lead to 39-28 by halftime.  DSU led as many as 15 points in the game and maintained their double-digit lead until the Battlin' Bears trimmed their deficit into single digit in the fourth quarter.  Dakota State held on to defeat RMC 69-62, earning first win over Rocky Mountain in the all-time series meeting.

Tabor Teel posted a double-double of 17 points and pulled down a career high 18 rebounds (12 defensive rebounds) for DSU.  Bria Wasmund added 14 points.  Cierra Watkins registered 13 points, five rebounds, and three assists.  Caitlin Dyer scored eight points.  DSU outrebounded RMC 46-35 in the game.

Dakota State kept Carroll scoreless to open the game and raced to a 15-2 lead midway through the first quarter.  The Trojans never trailed in the game, leading 22-9 after the first quarter, limiting the Saints to 21.4 percent from the field in the first quarter.  CC trimmed their deficit to 10 points in the second quarter, featuring defensive battle.  DSU led 29-19 by halftime.

The Trojans broke the game open in the third quarter, highlighted by a 20-3 scoring outburst to push the lead beyond 20 points.  DSU carried a commanding 55-26 lead after three quarters and limited the Saints to 22.2 percent from the field (12-of-54 field goals) for a 70-34 victory.

Watkins led the Trojans with 14 points and added eight rebounds.  Wasmund had 16 points, three rebounds, and three assists.  Teel posted 10 points and a game-high 13 rebounds (12 defensive rebounds).  Ella Carstensen scored eight points off the bench, while Dyer contributed eight points and three assists.  

TEEL EARNS SEVENTH FRONTIER CONFERENCE WEEKLY AWARDS
More awards are piling up for Dakota State's senior forward Tabor Teel as she collected her seventh weekly Erck Hotels/Frontier Conference Women's Basketball weekly awards.  This is the sixth time this season that she had received the Defensive Player-of-the-Week after guiding the Trojans to a 2-0 weekend at home.

Teel continued to be a defensive force in fueling No. 7 Dakota State to a pair of home victory over ranked No. 23 Rocky Mountain (Mont.) and (RV) Carroll (Mont.).  The Trojans lifted their overall record to 21-3 and 16-2 record in the Frontier Conference contests.  Twelve (12) of her 18 rebounds were defensive rebounds.

She followed up with 13 rebounds (12 defensive rebounds) in DSU's 70-34 rout over Carroll.  The Trojans held the Saints to their season low points (34) and field goal percentage (22.2 percent).  Teel had posted double-double in both games.  

For the week, Teel averaged 15.5 rebounds (12.0 defensive rebounds), 1.5 steals, and 1.0 block per game for Dakota State.  She also averaged 13.5 points per game, earning a double-double average for the week.

DAKOTA STATE EXTENDS STREAK IN NAIA'S TOP 10 RANKINGS
Dakota State extended their consecutive streak of being ranked inside the NAIA's Top 10, climbing one spot from No. 7 to No. 6 in the sixth edition of the NAIA Women's Basketball Coaches' Top 25 national poll.  The national poll was announced Wednesday morning by the national office.

DSU went 4-0 record since the previous national poll on Jan. 28, extending their winning streak to nine games after earning road wins at Valley City State (N.D.) and Mayville State (N.D.), followed by home wins over No. 23 Rocky Mountain (Mont.) and Carroll (Mont.). 

The Trojans had produced their sixth consecutive season of 20-plus wins, holding an overall record of 21-3 prior to their contests in Montana this weekend.  Dakota State registered 428 points to the national poll, ranking in the NAIA's Top 10 throughout the season and ranked as high as No. 4 earlier this season.

Three other Frontier Conference teams are ranked inside NAIA's Top 25.  Montana Tech dropped four spots from No. 13 to No. 17 with 18-4 overall record and 219 points.  Rocky Mountain remained No. 23 with 16-8 overall record and 103 points.  Carroll returned to the NAIA's Top 25 at No. 25 with an overall record of 16-8 and 75 points. 

MSU-Northern received votes recognition with 14 points with an overall record of 16-7.

The Trojans have been especially dangerous from beyond the arc, hitting double-digit threes in numerous games—including 16 against Northwestern (Iowa) and 15 versus Providence (Mont.)—while also displaying impressive overall shooting efficiency with outings like a 65.1% performance at Bellevue (Neb.). Their offense has topped 90 points six times, highlighted by a 105-57 rout of Bellevue and a 100-75 win over Bethel (Kan.). 

Even in tight battles, such as the narrow losses at Carroll and Rocky Mountain, Dakota State showed resilience and the ability to compete deep into tough road environments.

2025-26 DSU Trojan Women's Basketball Team Leaders

• Points/Points Per Game: Tabor Teel – 380 points (15.8 points per game)
• Field Goal Percentage: Cierra Watkins – 57.1 percent (106-of-215 field goals)
• 3-point Field Goal Percentage: Caitlin Dyer – 38.3 percent (46-of-120 3-point field goals)
• Free-Throw Percentage: Caitlin Dyer – 75.0 percent (33-of-44 free-throws)
• Rebounds: Tabor Teel – 261 rebounds (10.9 rebounds per game)
• Assists/Assists Per Game: Tabor Teel – 95 assists/4.0 assists per game
• Steals/Steals Per Game: Bria Wasmund – 49 steals/2.0 steals per game
• Blocked Shots: Tabor Teel – 42 blocked shots (1.8 blocks per game)