Feb. 20, 2015 - For eight Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference women's basketball teams, the "second season" begins tomorrow and brings with it the hope of advancing to the NCAA Division III tournament. And while that fact by itself is motivation for each team to bring its best effort, a traditional rivalry definitely adds some spice.

The Cougars of Concordia University Chicago and the Falcons of Concordia University Wisconsin are no strangers to each other. The two sides have played twice in conference play with each team winning its home game. In addition, CUC and CUW saw each other twice more at last month's Concordia Invitational Tournament although they did not go head-to-head. It is hard to imagine that either team has any secrets left to unveil when the #5 Cougars and the #4 Falcons take the floor Saturday at the R. John Buuck Fieldhouse for a 7:00 tipoff.

For CUC head coach Rusty Rogers, it's all about the execution. "We did a lot of things well both times we played them, but we were not perfect by any means. But even when we were not at our best, we were very competitive against them. Our players, along with Melissa (Taylor, assistant coach) and I, know that we can play better, and I think we will bring that on Saturday."

Both teams come into the postseason with some momentum. Following a pair of losses to Benedictine and Wisconsin Lutheran, the top two seeds in the tournament, the Cougars rebounded with solid homecourt wins against Aurora and Marian, followed by Tuesday's 72-54 win over local rival Dominican. In this stretch, Coach Rogers has received some tremendous production from guards Morgan Jahnke (Fox Lake, IL/Grant Community) and Courtney Lofink (Orange, CA/Orange Lutheran). In addition, Miranda Rogers (Cypress, TX/Houston Christian) and Lauren Orr (O'Fallon, MO/Lutheran St. Charles) have packed a lot of punch off the bench as they have comined for a sizzling 19-38 (.500) from behind the three-point line. 

The Cougars finished the regular season with a 15-10 record, the 15 wins already the third-highest total in the program's history (18 is the all-time best, set by two different teams in the 1980s). A look at the NACC stats page shows CUC leading the conference in steals with 13.7 per game. The Cougars are second to Wisconsin Lutheran in points per game (74.6) and assists per game (15.7), and second to Marian in total three-point shots made (178).

Concordia Wisconsin is 19-6 on the season, having won four of their last five. Their lone blemish in that stretch was a two-point loss to MSOE. The Falcons' strength is in their defense, their 56.0 points per game allowed ranking second to WLC. Their offense averages 64.0 points, putting them at sixth in the conference.

A look back at the two regular-season games: Concordia-Chicago won 80-68 on Nov. 25 at Geiseman Gymnasium as freshman Jaela DeJean (Houston, TX/Houston Christian) shredded the Falcons' defense with 20 points in the first half. The Falcons limited DeJean to just two points aftere halftime, but Jahnke picked up the scoring load, scoring 12 of her 16 points. Jahnke would also finish the game with seven rebounds and six assists. The Cougars introduced the Falcons to the new style of ball with a tenacious press and nine steals, led by Hailey Lindblom's (Minneapolis, MN/Richfield) four and Lofink's three.

Concordia Wisconsin took the rematch in early January by a final score of 75-68. CUW's tandem of guard Madelyn Landgraf (23 points) and forward Brianna Wagner (20 points, 16 rebounds) was too much for CUC who received 15 points and four steals from DeJean.

Saturday, however, will be a new ball game - literally and figuratively. The intensity figures to be on a par with a CIT game, and this game could easily be on a par with some of the best CUC-CUW clashes in recent years in any of the sports. While the Falcons have the advantage of the home floor in this contest, look for the Cougars to be more than ready for this challenge.

"This moment is something we have been striving for all season, and now that moment is here," says Rogers. "Our players are confident, their focus and energy are at a high level, and I look forward to seeing how all of that unfolds on Saturday night."