No. 1 North Dakota State rolled past No. 8 Omaha in the quarterfinal round of the 2026 Summit League Women’s Basketball Championships Thursday in Sioux Falls, 87-37.
It was back and forth scoring between the Bison and the Mavericks, with the Bison up one at the first media break. They led at the end of the first frame thanks to a balanced scoring effort from Marisa Frost, Karrington Asp, and Molly Lenz.
Despite a close first quarter, NDSU gained momentum quickly and outscored Omaha 22-8 in the second, going into the halftime break up 22. Avery Koenen and Frost combined for 27 points in the first half. The Mavericks were led by Avril Smith at the break.
The Bison came out of the break in explosive fashion, outscoring the Mavericks 34-7, leading 76-26 going into the final frame. NDSU closed out their quarterfinal appearance with a 50-point win over Omaha.
When asked about Frost’s performance, Coach Jory Collins praised her recovery.
“I’m grateful we’ve been in the position here to have a day in between games.. Marisa has been under the weather.. It was great, I could tell today in the first couple possessions that she had her burst back.”
Frost tallied 28 points for the Bison, while Koenen added 23 points and seven boards. Asp totaled 11 points and eight rebounds, and Abby Graham added 10 points.
The Bison will face either No. 4 Oral Roberts or No. 5 St. Thomas at 12 p.m. in the semifinal round on Saturday at the Denny Sanford Premier Center in Sioux Falls.
Omaha was led by eight points apiece from Reagan Juenemann and Ali Stephens. Sarai Estupiñan added five points.
Stephens commented on her role changing in her junior season.
Super exciting. Kind of stepping into that leader role this year.. Give them as much confidence as I can as well… I’m super proud of all of them and super proud of this team too.”
Coach Jamie Carey shared about her experience with Estupiñan, as she added her from the transfer portal.
“Interestingly enough, she grew up just down the street from where I lived when I worked at the University of Texas. When she walked on our campus at UTSA, we were really impressed by her. She helped our program raise a level without her even really knowing it… it was a no brainer for me when she went into the portal.”
Carey also spoke about her first year in the Summit League.
“This has been a great experience. I’m appreciative of what the Summit League has done for Omaha and the teams in our league.. Certainly appreciative to have been a part of it.”
Omaha finishes the season 6-27 overall, and 3-13 in the conference.