Townsend scored 14 points as men's first-year head coach Paul Brenegan won his initial game at North Park, 59-47 over visiting Milwaukee School of Engineering (MSOE) last Friday. On Saturday, Je'Shawn Stevenson scored 17 points and Townsend added 12 in a 68-50 loss at Division II Lewis University.

Martin scored 19 points on Saturday as the NPU women's team defeated host Carroll College 69-51 in the third-place game at the Kilgour Tournament in Waukesha, Wisconsin. On Friday, coach Jack Surridge's team lost a 52-49 heartbreaker in overtime to eventual tourney champion Davenport University of Michigan despite 14 points by Tiffany Campbell.

The NPU men's and women's programs begin their seasons with their top returning scorers. Townsend (a junior guard) paced the Vikings during a 8-17 campaign a season ago with a 13.4 points per game average and led the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (CCIW) in free throw percentage.

Brett Mathisen, a junior forward, averaged nearly 10 points per contest as his team's top inside scoring threat and center Larry Moore led the CCIW in field goal percentage two seasons ago. Mathisen had 13 points and five rebounds in the MSOE win and Moore produced 11 points and 10 rebounds in the Lewis loss.

After playing at Concordia University of Mequon, Wisconsin, on Tuesday, the men's team hosts St. Norbert College of Wisconsin at 7:30 p.m. Saturday before playing in Madison, Wisconsin, at 3 p.m. Sunday against Edgewood College.

For the women, Martin has provided offensive spark off the bench for a squad that returns all five of its starters, including first-team All-CCIW center Megan Slattery and Campbell, a second-team choice a season ago. Slattery scored eight points and pulled down nine rebounds in the Carroll game and Campbell added 14 points.

Two other returnees played well over the weekend. Laura Mount had 12 points against Carroll and 11 against Davenport and three-year starter Shandrel Young had nine points and 10 rebounds in the Davenport loss. The other returning starter, Redina Hall, is the team's defensive specialist while freshman Meghan Hunstock of Minneapolis, Minnesota, has already seen significant minutes as a post player.

At 7 p.m. Wednesday, the Vikings play a nonleague away game against MSOE before hosting Marian College of Wisconsin in a 2 p.m. Saturday nonleague contest.

While winter teams at NPU were beginning play, players on some of the fall sports teams were honored last week by the CCIW after the culmination of their seasons. John Born was named Coach of the Year by his peers and six players on NPU's men's soccer team were All-Conference selections.

Sophomore Austin Person of Omaha, Nebraska, was named the first-team goalie while senior defender Henrik Wihlborg (a two-time pick), midfielder John Sheridan and freshman forward P.J. Eriksson were also named to the first team. Forward Matt Moncada and defender Adam Sinovic were the second-team picks for the Vikings, which won their first CCIW playoff championship earlier in November and finished 14-3-2 overall.