Back to Missouri: Skylights on their way

It was of little surprise that the Montana State University-Northern Skylights were announced as part of the field of 32 teams heading to next week’s NAIA national tournament in Independence, Missouri. After all, the Skylights have had an incredible season.

Still, it was nice when Northern head coach Chris Mouat heard it became official Wednesday afternoon. This will be the Skylights’ third straight trip to the national tourney, the fourth under Mouat and the 13th overall for the Northern program.

And this season, the Skylights (23-8) certainly earned it.

“I think, going into the season, we didn’t really have an identity yet,” Mouat said. We knew we would be competitive, but because of the great players we lost, we weren’t sure how we would be. But I felt like, those two wins against Dickinson State, and the win over Wayland Baptist, that showed that we had a chance to be very strong again this season.

“We’ve had to overcome a lot, and I think that’s what I admire most about this team,” he continued. “We’ve had some injuries and setbacks and things, but they never quit, they kept moving forward and they showed a lot of resiliency and character and that’s a big reason why we are where we are right now.”

Where Northern will be in less than a week is playing a first-round game against No. 19 Benedictine (26-6). The Skylights finished 16th in the final NAIA Women’s Coaches Poll, and were selected as the No. 6 overall at-large team. They were given the No. 4 seed in the region, which includes No. 1 overall seed Our Lady of Lakes.

But, seeding aside, the Skylights have already proven they can play with anybody, and nowhere was that more obvious than when they made a run to last year’s Elite 8 at the national tournament, before losing All-American A’Jha Edwards and All-Conference point guard Taylor Cummings to graduation.

However, Northern proved it could play with anybody still, and a third-place finish in the Frontier Conference this winter, a league which is again sending four teams to the national tournament, is proof of that.

“It was tough, it was very hard to win games in this league, especially on the road,” Mouat said. “And we only lost back-to-back games once all year. We always bounced back from a setback and that speaks to the character of this team. And, we were able to put together some good stretches on the road, and you have to do that to stay competitive in this league. So, I think, going 3-3 on that last six-game road trip, that was probably the biggest thing that helped us get here.”

Northern did put some impressive stretches together. After rising all the way to No. 2 in the NAIA in December, MSU-N faltered at Rocky, but came right back and went 5-1 in its first six Frontier games at home. Back-to-back road losses at UGF and Carroll College, two teams in the field, followed, but MSU-N rolled right back into contention by winning a huge road game at Lewis-Clark State, then coming home to finish 3-1 in its final four games, including consecutive wins over the nationally-ranked Argos, Saints and Warriors. The Skylights then closed things out by reaching last weekend’s Frontier semifinals, and that was more than enough for Northern to secure an at-large berth in the national tournament for the third straight year — something no other team presently in the Frontier has done.

“I’m very proud of what this team has achieved,” Mouat said. “We were the only team to beat LC on their floor, we were able to win the most games against the other three teams going to the national tournament, and we’re the only team in our league to make it to the national tournament for the third year in a row.

“But, more importantly,” he continued, “I’m just proud of how hard this team has worked, of how well they’ve come together. They found their own identity, and part of that is, how much they care about each other. This team is very close, and it shows in the way they have played this season. So I’m really happy and excited for them that they get this opportunity again.”

The Skylights will begin play at the national tournament next Wednesday at 11:30 a.m. M.S.T. against Benedictine. The winner will take on either No. 1 Our Lady of Lakes or William Woods. Frontier champion LC State also drew a No. 4 seed and will play Oklahoma City in the first round, while UGF is a No. 5 seed and will face Central Methodist. Carroll College is a No. 6 seed and plays Freed-Hardeman.