River Forest, Ill. – The Dominican University Women's Basketball team finishes a back-to-back in the Igini Sports Forum this Saturday. The Stars will host the Sabercats of Maranatha Baptist University.
Series History vs. Maranatha Baptist:
All-Time Record/Streak: 7-2/W2
-Dominican and Maranatha first played on 1/26/2008 in Watertown, Wis., with the Sabercats getting the upper hand on the Stars 73-70.
-After that first loss, DU went on a 5-game win streak from 2009 to 2011.
-In the last two games between DU and MBU, the Stars won 80-33 and 70-37.
-Dominican is 4-1 in the Igini Sports Forum against the Sabercats.
-The Stars average 73.56 points per game against Maranatha.
-DU is 5-1 in conference play against MBU, but Maranatha left the NACC after the 2012-2013 school year.
DU in Review:
- The Stars are 3-4 (0-3 NACC) on the 2025-26 season.
-DUWBB is 1-2 inside the Igini Sports Forum.
-DU is 1-2 coming off a loss.
-Dominican went 5-20 overall in their 2024-2025 season, while going 1-15 inside the Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference (NACC).
-DUWBB missed the tournament last season and aims to get back into the NACC tournament for the first time since the 2021-2022 season.
- The Stars won their opening game for the first time since the 2019-2020 season.
- Head coach Tethnie Carrillo enters her 2nd full season at Dominican and has a career record of 148-231.
Last Time Out:
-The Stars returned to the Igini Sports Forum, hosting the Cougars of Concordia Chicago in the first game of a doubleheader on Wednesday night. DUWBB fell to their rivals 66-55.
-Freshman Eva Herbig posted career highs in points (15), field goals made (5), and 3-point field goals made (5).
-Junior Kaitlyn Milison posted 11 points and 4 rebounds.
-Junior Lia Saunders contributed 8 points, 4 rebounds, and 3 steals.
-Sophomore Allanah Jackson notched 6 points, 5 rebounds, and 3 steals.
-Freshman Kennedy Yost tallied 6 points, 3 rebounds, and 3 assists.
Familiar Faces:
-Dominican returns Junior Aya Deiri, who has been a huge factor on the defensive side for the Stars. In the 2024-2025 season, Deiri played 502 minutes, playing 23 games and collecting 73 rebounds as a guard. Aya also added 26 steals and 3 blocks, solidifying her presence on the defensive end.
-Junior Lia Saunders is a crucial returning player for this DUWBB squad. Saunders started in all 25 games last season and played in 653 minutes, which led the team. Lia was all over the floor for Dominican, collecting 153 points, 62 assists, 85 rebounds, 36 steals, and shooting 74% from the charity stripe.
-Junior Kaitlyn Milison is back on the hardwood for Dominican, playing in 25 games last season. Milison stretched the floor as a power forward for Dominican, knocking down 8 threes last season and shooting 38.8% from the floor. Kaitlyn picked up 159 points and 8 blocks.
-Sophomore Maya Kasuboski is back in her sophomore season after playing in 23 games last season. Kasuboski hit 9 threes in her minutes and is hoping to take the sophomore step for this DU squad. Maya helped on the boards last season, collecting 34 rebounds.
-Senior Kamila Gajkowska is back for the Dominican University Women's Basketball. Gajkowska played in 25 games and started in 11 of those games, doing all the dirty work for the Stars. Kamila collected 24 steals and 13 blocks, with 96 total rebounds, with 33 of those being offensive rebounds. The senior shot 78.6% from the charity stripe in her 452 minutes of action.
Shining Stars:
-Junior Lia Saunders is the leading point scorer for the Stars with 86 points on the season. Saunders has also collected 14 assists in her 201 minutes played.
-Junior Aya Deiri has continued to be all over the floor for Dominican. She has collected 35 points, 32 rebounds, 13 assists, and 9 steals in her 168 minutes of play.
-Freshman Kennedy Yost was a huge addition for the Stars earlier on. Yost is third on the team in points with 53. The freshman has also grabbed 38 rebounds, 13 of them on the offensive side. Kennedy is also shooting 78.6% from the charity stripe.
-Freshman Allannah Jackson fills up the stat sheet in more ways than one. Jackson has 20 assists, 39 rebounds, 24 steals, and 30 points.
-Freshman Emily Bouaphanh is a key player for Dominican off the bench, bringing the energy every time she steps on the floor. Bouaphnah has 34 points and 10 steals in the freshman campaign.
-Junior Teagan Dahl has found her stride in a Stars uniform, being the second leading scorer on the team with 62 points. Dahl is shooting 60% from downtown, hitting 9 threes on the season. The junior has also recorded 11 steals and 28 rebounds.
-Freshman Eva Herbig has been a flamethrower from deep for the Stars, as she is shooting 41.7% from deep with 10 made threes.
Scouting Report:
-Maranatha Baptist is 0-9 to start their 2025-2026 season, with a game tonight on the road at Andrews University.
-The Sabercats are in the midst of a 5-game road trip. The game at the Igini Sports Forum will be the last game of the road trip.
-MBU has only scored over 50 points once this season, and it was their first game of the year against Kansas Christian.
-Maranatha Baptist is scoring 36.9 points per game, while their opponents are scoring 84.1 points per game.
