MOSCOW, Idaho - Idaho is back on the road for the fourth time in the first four games for the Vandals. Idaho has won back-to-back games after opening with close losses to power-five level teams. Idaho is one of the top rebounding teams in the NCAA, but has struggled with turnovers. Riverside distributes the ball well, but also struggles with turnovers. The Highlanders are 1-4 and 0-4 against DI schools.  

ABOUT IDAHO
Idaho led most of the game against Southern Utah en route to a 66-53 win. Three Vandals currently average double figures Rosie Scheweizer and Hope Hassmann are Idaho's leading scorer with 13.5 ppg. Jennifer Aadland is averaging 10 points and 11.8 rebounds per game. First-year head coach Arthur Moreira picked up his first DI win against SUU.

ABOUT UC RIVERSIDE
Shelley Duchemin leads the Highlanders with 13.6 points per game. Three other players are averaging at lead 7.0 ppg. The Highlanders for nearly 20 turnovers per game. The lone win of the season for UCR was a 84-45 win over DIII Whittier. All of the first four losses were on the road. Head coach Brad Langston in 19-18 in his second season. UCR was 18-14 last season and played in the WNIT.

GRADUATE TRANSFERS
Three Vandals; Olivia Nelson, Rosie Schweizer and Jennifer Aadland bring extensive experience into the fray for Idaho.Nelson has started in every game during her four year career at Central Missouri (117). Jennifer Aadland has 98 starts in 99 career games for Augustana (S.D.) The two met early last season with Central Missouri coming out on top. Aadland scored 16 points while Nelson scored a career-high 29. 

Schweizer has 93 games under her belt, including six starts for West Coast Conference team Pacific. 

ALL-FRESHMAN TEAM TRANSFERS
Kelbie Washington and Hope Hassmann both earned All-Freshman Team honors for their respective teams. Hassmann played and started all 31 games for Fullerton last season, scoring 302 points and dishing out 87 assists. 

Washington was a All-Big 12 honoree at Oklahoma and earned National Freshman of the Week honors. She missed the last two seasons with an illness. 

INTERNATIONAL IMPACT
Five players on this year's roster are international, including two from Brazil, home of head coach Arthur Moreira and one from Portugal, who shares the Portuguese language with Brazil. 

Vitória Carvalho and Ana Beatriz Passos hail from Brazil. Ana Pinheiro is from Portugal. Anja Bukvic from Belgrade Serbia and Rosie Schweizer is from Australia. 

ICCU ARENA
The Vandals enter the fourth season of play at the amazing ICCU Arena in Moscow. The $51 million arena sits just over 4,200 fans and includes the latest technology for fan and student-athlete experience. The Vandals are 20-19 all-time in the Arena.

COACHING STAFF
First-Year Head Coach Arthur Moreira compiled a coaching staff of former co-workers, opponents and trusted recruiters. 

His first move was to retain and promote Drew Muscatell. Muscatell was promoted to Associate Head Coach during the offseason. He enters his seventh season as an assistant for the Vandals and has worked for three different head coaches. 

Moreira added former Montana Assistant Coach Lindsey Foster to his staff. Foster was a coach at Montana for one season, before that, she was the head coach at DII Academy of Art in San Francisco. 

Derek Saich served as the Director of Operations and Assistant Coach at Moreira's former school San Francisco. The two worked together for two seasons at USF. 

The final assistant is Denise Rosario, an experienced junior college coach from South Plains Junior College in Texas. She has extensive international recruiting connections, hailing from Minas Gerais, Brazil. 

NET HISTORY
During the 2020-21 season, women's basketball introduced daily NET rankings for Division I. In that season, the Vandals reached their highest ranking of 126 on 3/11/21. They finished with an overall ranking of 133, improving 86 spots compared to their starting position of 219.

In the past two seasons, Idaho struggled in the rankings unable to surpass the 200 mark. The highest ranking in 2021-22 was 202 (2/5/22) and the highest in 2022-23 was 205 (3/5/23). 

In 2023-24, Idaho had its highest start at 167 and kept climbing. On 1/10/24, the Vandals ranked at 125, breaking the program record. 

REBOUND LEADERS
After playing a pair of tough, long power-five level teams, you would think that Idaho would have been dominated on the boards, but the Vandals have outrebounded all four opponents, including a 52-36 advantage over Washington State. The Vandals stand atop the Big Sky for team rebounds. Jennifer Aadland has led the way, averaging 11.8 rebounds per game, including 18 rebounds against Washington State. 

PRESEASON BIG SKY POLLS
The Vandals were picked eighth in the Big Sky Coaches Poll and seventh in the Big Sky Media Poll. No Idaho players were named to the Big Sky Preseason All-Conference Team. Northern Arizona was picked to win the league in both polls. 

Idaho was picked in the same spot a season ago and finished sixth in the league. 

FORMER BIG WEST FOES
Idaho and 6-4 all-time against UC Riverside. The two teams were in the same league from 2001-02-2004-05. The two teams last played in 2012.
 
NEWCOMER IMPACT 
All five starters in game three were newcomers for the Vandals. Of Idaho's 76 points, 59 came from players who were not on the roster a year ago. The best overall game came from Jennifer Aadland who tallied 12 points, 10 rebounds, three assists, four steals and two blocks in the game.

REBOUNDING LEADER
Jennifer Aadland is second in the nation in defensive rebounds and is ninth in rebounds per game. She had a career-high 18 rebounds against WSU and has been in double figures in three of four games.