The Concordia Chicago (2-6) women's basketball team faces their final opponent of the regular season this weekend in the cross-town Division Street Rivalry against Dominican University (2-2) on Friday and Saturday nights.

These are vital games for the Cougars, who remain in contention for the Northern Athletic Collegiate Conference divisional tournament. The Cougars are currently fourth in the South Division with a 2-3 conference record, the Dominican Stars are 2-1 and ranked ahead of the Cougars based on winning percentage.

The Cougars lead the all-time series against the Stars 16 to 9, but couldn't secure a win in the last three meetings. Having lost their most recent three games this season, the Cougars will hope to break both streaks on Friday night. 

A bright spot in recent games, however, has been the play of senior guard Marie Baumgartner (Addison, Ill.), who stepped up with 25 points and 16 rebounds in the last two games, shooting 9-12 from the field.

Sophomore guard Mikalah Ellis (Chicago, Ill.) also continued her strong play, scoring in double figures in three of four games played, including a team and personal season-high 14 against Benedictine. 

In addition to Baumgartner and Ellis, several other Cougars hope to finish out what have been consistently strong seasons. The trio of sophomore guards Tara Hastings (New Lenox, Ill.), Bailey Steinkamp (Cary, Ill.) and Jaylene Wade (Lansing, Ill.) all average over 11 PPG and contributed over 10 assists, with Hastings being the only Cougar to start every game this season. Steinkamp and Wade both started every game they each played.

As a team full of young players, the Cougars will hope these final regular season games are not only a springboard into the postseason but further building blocks for the future in preparation for a full season beginning this fall.

The games on Friday and Saturday will tip off at 5 p.m. A stream for those games can be found on the Dominican Athletics' website.