University of St. Thomas Athletics
Monday, November 2
Cedar Falls, Iowa
6:00 p.m. CT
at
Northern Iowa
Photo by: Kason Zetah
10/28/2026 11:40:00 AM | Women's Basketball
ST. PAUL, MINN. – It is the dawning of a new era for the University of St. Thomas women's basketball team. With a new coach at the helm, the Tommies will officially open the 2026-27 season at the University of Northern Iowa on Monday, November 2. St. Thomas will then return to Lee & Penny Anderson Arena for its home opener at Lee & Penny Anderson Arena on Wednesday, November 4, 2026.
GAMEDAY CENTRAL:
HOW TO WATCH: TOMMIES at UNI
TV/STREAMING: St. Thomas will open the 2026-27 season on ESPN+.
LIVE STATS: Live stats will be available on unipanthers.com.
HOW TO WATCH: TOMMIES vs. BETHEL
TICKETS: Tickets for the season opener vs. Bethel can be purchased on tommiesports.com/tickets. The first 500 fans will receive a FREE 2026-27 schedule magnet, featuring All-Summit League returner Alyssa Sand (Albany, Minn. / Albany)
TV/STREAMING: The game will be broadcast on Midco Sports Plus with commentary by Joe Kolar.
LIVE STATS: Live stats will be available on tommiesports.com.
FOLLOW THE TOMMIES: Follow St. Thomas women's on X (@tommiewbball) and Instagram (@tommiewbball) for all the latest updates. Also, make sure to follow Tommie Athletics on TikTok (@TommieSports).
GIVE TO ST. THOMAS: The early giving period of Tommie Give Day officially opened on Tuesday, October 27. Give to Tommie women's basketball now.
KEY STORYLINES:
DAWNING OF A NEW "PEAR"A: Mandy Pearson (PEER-son) was hired as the fifth head coach in Tommie women's basketball history on March 31, 2026. Pearson enters her 20th season as a head women's basketball coach, spending the previous 19 years at Saint Mary's University (2007-2015) and Minnesota-Duluth (2015-2026). In 19 seasons, Pearson has compiled an overall record of 310-213, including a 208-105 mark with the Bulldogs. In her 11 seasons in Duluth, Pearson was a six-time NCAA Tournament participant and the national runner up in 2022-23. She was named the NSIC Coach of the Year in 2019-20 and coached three-time WBCA All-American, D2CCA All-American and 2023 NCAA Division II Honda Athlete of the Year Brooke Olson. Olson succeeded Pearson as head coach at UMD.
THE FEW, THE PROUD: St. Thomas was one of just 14 Division I women's basketball programs that did not lose a single player to the transfer portal. The other institutions? UCLA, South Carolina, Green Bay, Cornell, Harvard, Marist, Drake, Stonehill, Southern Indiana, Army, Navy, South Dakota State, and Florida A&M.
PRESEASON EXPECTATIONS: St. Thomas was picked to finish fourth in the Summit League Preseason Coaches Poll, and junior forward Alyssa Sand received Preseason All-Conference honors. Sand was the first player in the Tommies DI era to earn First Team All-Conference and All-Defensive Team honors following her sophomore season last year and was named to the All-Freshman team in 2024-25.
GAMEDAY CENTRAL:
HOW TO WATCH: TOMMIES at UNI
TV/STREAMING: St. Thomas will open the 2026-27 season on ESPN+.
LIVE STATS: Live stats will be available on unipanthers.com.
HOW TO WATCH: TOMMIES vs. BETHEL
TICKETS: Tickets for the season opener vs. Bethel can be purchased on tommiesports.com/tickets. The first 500 fans will receive a FREE 2026-27 schedule magnet, featuring All-Summit League returner Alyssa Sand (Albany, Minn. / Albany)
TV/STREAMING: The game will be broadcast on Midco Sports Plus with commentary by Joe Kolar.
LIVE STATS: Live stats will be available on tommiesports.com.
FOLLOW THE TOMMIES: Follow St. Thomas women's on X (@tommiewbball) and Instagram (@tommiewbball) for all the latest updates. Also, make sure to follow Tommie Athletics on TikTok (@TommieSports).
GIVE TO ST. THOMAS: The early giving period of Tommie Give Day officially opened on Tuesday, October 27. Give to Tommie women's basketball now.
KEY STORYLINES:
DAWNING OF A NEW "PEAR"A: Mandy Pearson (PEER-son) was hired as the fifth head coach in Tommie women's basketball history on March 31, 2026. Pearson enters her 20th season as a head women's basketball coach, spending the previous 19 years at Saint Mary's University (2007-2015) and Minnesota-Duluth (2015-2026). In 19 seasons, Pearson has compiled an overall record of 310-213, including a 208-105 mark with the Bulldogs. In her 11 seasons in Duluth, Pearson was a six-time NCAA Tournament participant and the national runner up in 2022-23. She was named the NSIC Coach of the Year in 2019-20 and coached three-time WBCA All-American, D2CCA All-American and 2023 NCAA Division II Honda Athlete of the Year Brooke Olson. Olson succeeded Pearson as head coach at UMD.
THE FEW, THE PROUD: St. Thomas was one of just 14 Division I women's basketball programs that did not lose a single player to the transfer portal. The other institutions? UCLA, South Carolina, Green Bay, Cornell, Harvard, Marist, Drake, Stonehill, Southern Indiana, Army, Navy, South Dakota State, and Florida A&M.
PRESEASON EXPECTATIONS: St. Thomas was picked to finish fourth in the Summit League Preseason Coaches Poll, and junior forward Alyssa Sand received Preseason All-Conference honors. Sand was the first player in the Tommies DI era to earn First Team All-Conference and All-Defensive Team honors following her sophomore season last year and was named to the All-Freshman team in 2024-25.
Players Mentioned
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