The Bemidji State women's basketball team opens postseason play today.
The Beavers will take on the University of Mary in Bismarck, N.D. at 7 p.m. in the quarterfinal round of the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Basketball tournament.
Only the top eight teams in the NSIC reach the tournament and Bemidji State is the No. 6 seed. Mary is seeded No. 3.
Other quarterfinal matchups face No. 8 Southwest Minnesota State at No. 1 Concordia-St. Paul; No. 5 MSU, Moorhead at No. 4 Winona State at No. 7 Northern State at No. 2 Wayne State.
Semifinal play continues next Friday at the highest remaining seeds. Should BSU win, it would advance to play the winner of the Northern State/Wayne State matchup.
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Concordia St.-Paul is the favorite to win the tournament. The Golden Bears won the NSIC regular season crown with a 16-2 NSIC record (25-2 overall).
Concordia is ranked No. 3 in the North Central regional basketball rankings, behind only powerhouses South Dakota and North Dakota.
Bemidji State has not had success against Mary this season.
The Marauders swept both meetings this season, a 99-93 defeat at BSU on Jan. 12 and an 86-64 loss on Feb. 15 in Bismarck.
Probable starters for today's game are Amy Lawson at point guard, Heidi Matzke at guard, Karlee Simonson at guard, Colleen McKay at forward/center and Stephanie Peterson at center.
Lawson and Matzke are averaging 14 points per game this season. Peterson averages 11 points per game and seven rebounds per game.
The Marauders are led by all-conference forward Nicci Landdeck, a 5-foot-11 senior who averages 15 points per game and six rebounds per game.
If the Beavers are on top of their game, the Marauders are beatable.
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Mary lost its final game of the regular season last week, an 87-77 loss to Northern State.
The Beavers struggled at the end of the season, losing three straight before closing out the season with a thrilling 60-51 win over Upper Iowa at BSU Gymnasium.
The Beavers trailed most of the game until a late rally, sparked by the strong shooting of Lawson and Kristina Salscheider, pushed the Beavers ahead in the final minutes of the game.
Following the game, many of the players seemed energized by the win. BSU needed something positive to happen and head coach Mike Curfman acknowledged the win was a shot of confidence for the Beavers heading into the postseason.
Saturday's game will mark the first playoff game for BSU since 2004, when the Beavers defeated Winona State for its first post season victory in eight attempts.
A win Saturday would mark the first victory over Mary in the last four meetings.
