GRAND FORKS, N.D.--North Dakota senior guard Kayla Bagaason went a blistering 9-for-13 from the field and led all players with 23 points in an 86-56 exhibition victory over Jamestown College Thursday night at the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center. The win helped the Fighting Sioux extend their undefeated winning streak against the Jimmies to 17 games.

Bagaason, a native of Clearbrook, Minn., also went 3-for-4 from three-point range and grabbed five rebounds for the Sioux, who made their 2009-10 debut.

"We can't look behind, we have to look ahead and I think that's how we played today," said Bagaason.

Three other Sioux joined Bagaason in double-figure scoring, including junior Alys Seay (G, Grand Forks, N.D.) and sophomore Mallory Youngblut (G, Davenport, Iowa), who each had 14 points. Rounding out the trio was senior captain Whitney Ledger (F, Bismarck, N.D.) who finished with 11 points in her first game since the 95-67 win over Houston Baptist on Feb. 2, 2009.

Freshman guard Nicole Smart, who made her collegiate debut, finished with eight points and a game-high six assists against only two turnovers.

Smart was one of six new faces on the court in Thursday's win over Jamestown. Others included: Carly Rothfusz (G, Eden Prairie, Minn.), Katie Houdek (F, Grafton, N.D.), Shyla Kuehl (F, Hustisford, Wis.), Kate Sharkova (F, Borisov Minsk Region, Belarus), and Jenna Gillett (F, Tolna, N.D.).

"Nicole did really well today and she's been getting better and better everyday in practice," said Bagaason. "She did well today and took care of the ball. I think her confidence is going to keep coming.

"Shyla has been improving as well. She's learning the Sioux-post moves and she should be a great threat off the bench for us this year."

UND shot 51 percent (25-for-49) from the field compared to 45.7 percent (16-for-35) for the Jimmies. The Sioux were particularly effective from long range, going 8-for-18 from beyond the arc.

UND kicked out to an early 10-4 lead three and a half minutes in the first half thanks to a string of shots by Bagaason, Ledger and Youngblut. The Jimmies managed to keep themselves within the six-point range for a few more minutes, but a three-pointer by Smart at 13:53 jumpstarted UND to a 9-3 run.

Jamestown crept closer, but each time the visitors scored, the home team answered right back. With a 31-18 lead heading into the final five minutes of the half, the Fighting Sioux held the Jimmies to just nine points to head into the locker room with a 42-28 advantage.

Back on the court, the Sioux went back to work as they held JC to just one basket in the first three minutes. Jamestown brought themselves within 19 points with 13 minutes left to go as Krista Shaikoski and Katie O'Neill hit consecutive three-pointers, but UND answered with seven unanswered points to take a 67-41 lead with 10:27 left on the clock.

Within the seven-minute mark, Jamestown went on its biggest run of the game thanks to good shooting at the charity stripe. The Jimmies out-scored UND 3-10 to bring the score to 70-52. But their luck was quickly changed as the Sioux went on a 16-4 run to finish the game with an 86-56 victory over Jamestown.

The Sioux open the regular season on Wednesday, Nov. 4 against Minnesota, Crookston at home in the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center. Tipoff is schedule for 7 p.m.

- Go Sioux -