River Forest, Ill. -- Basketball Season is here at Concordia University Chicago, and for the women's team action kicks off Saturday, November 6th, when the Cougars host the Eagles of University of Wisconsin La-Crosse in CUC's season and home opener. 

Fourth year head coach Lauren Martin is looking to build off the momentum of the team's previous season where the Cougar's finished with an overall record of 3-8, but their 3-4 conference record snuck the team into the NACC South Division's last playoff berth. Despite being knocked out in the first round of the tournament by No.1 seed Benedictine University, making the tournament was a step in the right direction for the Cougars, as it was the team's first appearance with Martin at the helm and first appearance in general since 2018. 

Martin will be leading a group that features three returning All-NACC honorees. Juniors Bailey Steinkamp (Cary, Ill.), Mikalah Ellis (Chicago, Ill.), and Jaylene Wade (Lansing, Ill.) all impressed last year. Steinkamp finished second on the squad in points per game, rebounds per game, and steals while being named an All-NACC Honorable Mention. Ellis, the reigning NACC South Defensive Player of the Year, led the team in rebounds per game as she was also named an All-NACC Honorable Mention. Meanwhile, Wade was named to the All-NACC South 1st-Team.

Supporting this dangerous trio of juniors will be a Cougars team bursting with youth, as 16 of the 26 roster members are underclassmen, including eight freshmen. Leading this young group will partially fall on the Cougars three seniors this year: Marie Baumgartner (Addison, Ill.), Katie Jensen (Downers Grove, Ill.), and Jada Dixon (Gary, Ind.). Sarah Ludwig (Roselle, Ill.) will also be returning to the team for her 5th-year. 

It is set to be an exciting year for a hungry Cougars team ready to make some noise in the conference; a year that also includes the return of the Concordia Invitational Tournament after its absence last year due to Covid-19. CIT will take place at Concordia University Nebraska this year in Seward, Nebraska on January 28th and 29th. After the Invitational, the Cougars will play six more games, finishing the regular season with a River Forest rivalry match against Dominican University on February 19th at home. However, this year's women's team hopes that match-up is not their last of the season as they hope to return to the conference tournament for a second straight year, a feat this team has not accomplished since 2017-2018.

Make sure to catch all this season's action on cougars.com/coverage.