PITTSBURG — The Pittsburg State University women's basketball team is set to partake in the Nova Southeastern University Holiday Invitational in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., this weekend.
 
Pittsburg State, the No.8 team in the most recent WBCA/NCAA Division II National Top 25 Poll will begin play against the host school, Nova Southeastern, on Thursday (Dec. 19) with tipoff from Rick Case Arena set for 1 p.m. (CST). The Gorillas will then end the week with a matchup against Colorado Mesa University Friday (Dec. 20) at 11 a.m.
 
Following the trip to Florida, Pitt State will resume MIAA play against newcomer Arkasnas-Fort Smith (Jan. 2) and Northeastern State (Jan. 4) at John Lance Arena/Whetzel Court.

Head Coach Amanda Davied
In her seventh year as head coach of her alma mater, Davied owns a 124-59 (.678) record. During her tenure as head coach, she has guided the Gorillas to the Division II National Tournament three times (2024, 2023 & 2019) with her debut season marking the first coach in program history to guide the Gorillas to a 20-win season. Davied has deep ties to the program first as a player (1999-03), graduate assistant (2003-04) and assistant coach (2004-18) while serving as the lead assistant from 2007-18 for current Division I, University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV), head coach Lane Lord.

A Peek at The Gorillas
Pitt State is off to a 6-1 start to the season. The Gorillas, ranked No. 8 in the most recent WBCA/NCAA Division II Top 25 poll, have won nine straight games since a season-opening loss to No. 15 Ferris State on Nov. 2. Pitt State posed a 98-40 victory over Science & Arts in their last game Tuesday (Dec. 10). Karenna Gerber leads the team with 15.6 points and 8.1 rebounds a game while shooting a team-best .583 from the field. Macie Mays at 14.5 points a game and .553 percent from the field ranks second among team ranks. Grace Pyle has gone 26-of-80 from three-point attempts this season for .325 while averaging 13.1 points a game and hauling in 3.7 rebounds. Maycee James leads the team with 3.8 assists and 2.6 steals a game while also averaging 5.0 points a game, shooting .800 from free throws. Harper Schreiner is second on the team with 3.1 assists a game while adding 7.9 points a game. The bench unit is lead by Savannah Campbell with 7.0 points and 2.7 rebounds a game. Sydney Holmes averages 5.1 points, 3.7 rebounds and 1.8 assists a game. Hannah Nilges is the shooter off the bench with 4.4 points a game while going 13-of-30 from three-point attempts for .433. 

KG Demonstrates Greatness Nightly
Senior forward Karenna Gerber is a consistent presence on both ends of the floor with her effort and talent being on full display over her career. She ranks first in career double-doubles (25) at Pittsburg State, second in field goal percentage among qualified shooters (.585), second in rebounds (708), third in blocks per game (1.51) and blocks (154), sixth in rebounds per game (6.9), 10th for free throws attempted (412), 11th in free throws made (310), 12th in points (1,340) and 13th for field goals made (515).

GP Chasing After Legends 
Senior guard Grace Pyle has proven over the past two seasons to be one of the better shooters in the MIAA and figures to be in contention to be recognized as one of the best shooters in the conference this campaign. For her career, the McPherson, Kan., native ranks fifth in team ranks for made three-pointers (193) passing Drew Roberts (2009-13) against Arkansas Tech (Nov. 27). Pyle is also 16th in points scored (1,172) with Terry Barto (1984-87) at 1,226 next to be surpassed. Already the sixth Gorilla to accomplish back-to-back 50 or more made three-pointers in a season, Pyle is gunning to join Jenni Miller (1994-97), Mikaela Burgess (2015-18), Shelby Lopez (2017-19) and Tristan Gegg (2020, 22-23) as Gorillas to accomplish the feat in three seasons.

Schreiner's Game
Junior guard Harper Schreiner has specialized in assists and steals through 73 career games for the Gorillas. Schreiner so far has dished out 297 assists and recorded 109 steals to be ninth in career assists charts and tied for 28th for steals. Last season the Eudora, Kan., native dished out 139 assists and nabbed 54 steals to lead the team in each category. Against Central Missouri (Feb. 7, 2024) she became the fourth player in program history to record 100 assists seasons as a freshman and sophomore (Amanda Davied, Kaylee DaMitz & Leslie Dudley) and the eighth time overall a player had back-to-back 100 assists seasons. This season, Schreiner at Rogers State (Dec. 7) recorded the first seven steal game in program history since Megan Ripperton   did so against New Mexico Highlands (Dec. 4, 2004). Schreiner is now one of 15 individuals in program history to record a seven or more steal performance in a game.

M&M Express
Sophomore guard/forward Macie Mays had one of the better freshman campaigns in Pitt State history last season finishing the season averaging 11.2 points and grabbing 3.3 rebounds while shooting .534 from the field and .419 from three. This season she is elevating her game with averages of 14.5 points, 3.9 rebounds and 1.4 assists a game while shooting .553 from the field (57-of-103) and is 22-of-25 from free throws (.880).

What's Up Holmes
Senior guard Sydney Holmes successfully completed her first season in the starting lineup last campaign and looks to put together another solid year for the Gorillas as a senior. For her career, Holmes has appeared in 100 games with 572 points scored, 424 rebounds corralled and 128 assists dished out while shooting .442 from the field.

Savy In The Paint
Junior forward Savannah Campbell gained valuable experience in her sophomore campaign that has helped her lead the charge off the bench this season. The Rolla, Mo., native is averaging a team-best 7.0 points a game off the bench, going 25-of-51 from the field (.490).

Nilges The Marksmen
Senior guard Hannah Nilges introduced herself to the Pitt State faithful with a career-day against the Southern Nazarene University Crimson Storm (Nov. 3), going 6-of-8 from three for a career-high 20 points. This season she is 13-of-30 from deep (.433) ranking second on the team in makes and attempts. The Jefferson City, Mo., native spent her first three collegiate seasons at Division I Drake University where she appeared in 44 games as a Bulldog.

MJ Is Everywhere
This season the junior guard from Goddard, Kan., Maycee James has showcased multiple impactful performances on both ends of the court. Against Northwestern Oklahoma (Nov. 21) she finished with 10 assists, seven rebounds, six steals and six assists. It marked the third time in the last five years a Gorilla finished a game with 10 assists joining Harper Schreiner (at Lincoln, Dec. 18, 2023) and Kaylee DaMitz (vs. Missouri Western, Dec. 17, 2020). The six steals were also the most since Paige Imhoff collected as many steals vs. Arkansas-Fort Smith (Nov. 18, 2017). This season she is up to 38 assists, 26 steals and five blocks.

Clara From Three
Freshman guard Clara Swearingen against SNU (Nov. 3) went 2-of-2 from three-point range for her first collegiate points, she has also made two three-pointers in three games this season. So far this season she is 7-of-20 from three-point attempts (.350). The Nevada, Mo., native averaged 23 points a game on her way to Conference Player of the Year honors last school year at Nevada H.S.

Gerber Becomes Double-Double Queen
With her first double-double of the 2024-25 season against Ferris State, senior Karenna Gerber set a team record for double-doubles in a career. The Haltstead, Kan., native passed PSU Hall of Famer LaTonya (McGee) Mekha (1983-86) with her 22nd career double-double against the Bulldogs. To date, Gerber has 25 career double-doubles.

Polls And Scrolls
The Gorillas, the preseason No. 1 pick in the 2024-25 MIAA Coaches Poll, posted a 24-8 record (15-7 MIAA) a year ago. Pitt State captured the MIAA Postseason Tournament crown and advanced to the NCAA Division II National Tournament. This season the Gorillas were also listed 13th in the initial WBCA/NCAA Division II Coaches Poll and the next two releases before  being positioned in eighth in the last two poll updates.

Trio Named All-MIAA
Last season Pitt State had three named to the All-MIAA teams in Karenna Gerber, Grace Pyle and Harper Schreiner. Gerber and Pyle were first-team representatives and the only duo to be listed in the first, second or third teams among the association. Schreiner was an honorable mention for the second year in a row. 

Another Trip To The Big Dance
In the Gorillas 35 years of competing at the Division II level the women's basketball team has qualified for 13 National Tournament appearances. In those 13 appearances, Pitt State is 9-13 (.409) with two Elite Eight appearances in 2012 and 2016.

A Long Time Coming 
For the first time in program history the Gorillas won the MIAA Tournament in 2024 after finishing as runners up in 2016 and 1992. Pittsburg State is a three-time MIAA regular season champion claiming the title in the 2016-17, 1995-96 and 1991-92 seasons.

Sharks Report
Nova Southeastern enters the weekend at 7-2 overall, 2-1 in the Sunshine State Conference (SSC). The Sharks in their last game lost 74-55 against Barry University for their first lost in conference action since Feb. 28, where they fell to No. 16 University of Tampa, 76-74 in overtime. This season NSU was picked to finish second in the SSC Preseason Poll behind Tampa. Aubrey Stupp is the only double figure scorer this season at 14.4 with a team-high 5.1 rebounds while going 41-of-43 from free throws (.953) in 21.4 minutes a game. Payton Graber leads the team with 1.7 steals and 4.0 assists a game in 21.4 minutes while going 11-of-27 from three-point attempts (.407) to lead the team in attempts, makes and percentage from distance. Mercedes Simmons is second on the team with 9.4 points a game while shooting 33-of-65 from the field (.508) in 14.4 minutes. As a team the Sharks hold opponents to a .235 shooting percentage from three-pointers going 20-of-85 while forcing 191 turnovers for 21.2 a game.

Mavericks Scout
Heading into the weekend Colorado Mesa is 6-3 overall and 2-2 in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC). In their last game against the Colorado School of Mines (Dec. 14) the Mavericks secured a 67-48 win on the road. CMU was picked to win the RMAC based on the conferenc's Preseason Poll behind a strong returning core of four players including RMAC Player of the Year Olivia Reed and RMAC Freshman of the Year in Mason Rowland. Reed this season is averaging 18.2 points and 11.8 rebounds a game while going 70-of-128 from the field (.547). Rowland played in the first three games of the season and averaged 15.7 points and 5.0 rebounds a game before being sidelined. Riley Hayes is second on the team with 13.6 points a game going 31-of-85 (.365)from three-point attempts to lead the team in attempts and makes. As a team the Mavericks have converted on 118-of-144 free throw attempts (.819) while opponents are shooting .402 from the field and .340 from three-point attempts this season.

A Brief Two-Part Series History
This weekend's contests against the Nova Southeastern University and Colorado Mesa University programs will mark the first meeting against the Gorillas.