Jacks tip off season with Utah Valley

The South Dakota State University women's basketball team will open the 2010-11 season Friday night, hosting Utah Valley in the first round of the Preseason WNIT.
Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. at Frost Arena on the SDSU campus.
Should SDSU win Friday, it would host the winner between James Madison (Va.) and Hampton (Va.) at 7 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 15. If SDSU loses Friday, the Jackrabbits would host a consolation quadrant Nov. 19 and 20 at Frost Arena. Teams are guaranteed to play three games in the 16-team tournament, which began in 1994 and is run by Triple Crown Sports of Fort Collins, Colo.
The Jackrabbits compiled a 22-11 overall record during the 2009-10 season. SDSU made its second consecutive NCAA?Tournament appearance by winning the Summit League Championship postseason tournament.
Utah Valley, 0-2 in exhibition games this fall, also claimed a postseason tournament title last season, winning the inaugural Great West Conference championship on its home floor. The Wolverines ended the season on a five-game winning streak to end the campaign with a 10-22 overall record.
Following is a complete schedule for the Preseason WNIT (all times Central):
First Round - Friday, Nov. 12
• Austin Peay (Tenn.) at Purdue (Ind.), 4 p.m.
• Lamar (Texas) at Missouri State, 5:30 p.m.
• Saint Francis (Pa.) at Toledo (Ohio), 6 p.m.
• Hampton (Va.) at James Madison (Va.), 6 p.m.
• Valparaiso (Ind.) at DePaul (Ill.), 7 p.m.
• Utah Valley at South Dakota State, 7 p.m.
First Round - Saturday, Nov. 13
• Central Florida at Florida, 3 p.m.
• Iona (N.Y.) at Charlotte (N.C.), 4 p.m.
Second Round - Sunday, Nov. 14 or Monday, Nov. 15 (at campus sites)
• Purdue/Austin Peay winner vs. Toledo/Saint Francis winner
• South Dakota State/Utah Valley winner vs. James Madison/Hampton winner
• DePaul/Valparaiso winner vs. Missouri State/Lamar winner
• Charlotte/Iona winner vs. Florida/Central Florida winner
Semifinals - Wednesday, Nov. 17 or Thursday, Nov. 18 (at campus sites)
Consolation Games - Friday, Nov. 19 and Saturday, Nov. 20 (at campus sites)
Championship - Sunday, Nov. 21 (at campus site)

THE SERIES: Friday's game will mark the third meeting between South Dakota State and Utah Valley in women's basketball. The Jackrabbits came away with two narrow victories during the 2006-07 season, when both squads competed as Division I?independents. SDSU claimed a 79-78 victory in Orem, Utah, in the inaugural meeting, then held on for a 61-59 victory in the rematch later in the season at Frost Arena.
Utah Valley is the second Great West Conference opponent the Jackrabbits have faced. Last season, SDSU defeated the University of South Dakota, 67-48, at Frost Arena.

JACKRABBITS ONLINE: Audio and video coverage of Friday's game is scheduled to be available free of charge at GoJacks.com, the official website of SDSU athletics. Free streaming will be available for all WNIT games.
Radio coverage begins at 6:30 p.m. Central Time on the Jackrabbit Sports Network, with Tyler Merriam calling the play-by-play and former assistant coach Laurie Melum providing color commmentary. Network stations carrying Friday's game include WNAX 570 AM in Yankton, KJJQ?910 AM in Brookings and .

JACKRABBIT INSIDER: Throughout the 2010-11 women's basketball season, head coach Aaron Johnston will be a guest on the "Jackrabbit Insider," a weekly behind-the-scenes look at South Dakota State University athletics.
The half-hour television show which features interviews with Jackrabbit coaches and student-athletes, airs Sundays at 10:30 p.m. on Sioux Falls-based KTTW?FOX?7. The show is also broadcast on FOX Sports North at 6 p.m. Tuesdays and on FOX?College Sports Central at 9:30 p.m. Tuesdays. Online, the show can be viewed at GoJacks.com.

EXHIBITION RECAPS: The Jackrabbits went 2-0 in the exhibition season, defeating a pair of opponents from the NCAA?Division II Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference.
SDSU 83, St. Cloud State (Minn.) 62
Kristin Rotert scored 23 of her game-high 29 points in the first half and Jennie Sunnarborg scored all 17 of her points in the second half to lead South Dakota State to an 83-62 victory over St. Cloud State (Minn.) in exhibition action Oct. 31 at Frost Arena.
A senior from Salem, Rotert opened the game with back-to-back three-pointers as the Jackrabbits never trailed in the contest. St. Cloud State pulled to within a basket on three different occasions late in the half, the last at 27-25 on a layup by Christina Steele with just under four minutes to play.
SDSU finished the half with a 14-4 run, highlighted by eight points from Rotert and a three-pointer by Jill Young.
Sunnarborg began the second half by scoring the Jackrabbits' first nine points as SDSU built a 50-31 advantage. The lead grew to as many as 27 midway through the second half, although the Huskies trimmed the margin to 15 in the closing minutes.
Rotert's 29-point outing came on the strength of 5-of-7 shooting from three-point range and an 8-of-9 effort at the free throw line.
Ashley Eide turned in a double-double with 12 points and a game-high 10 rebounds for the Jackrabbits, who held a 48-31 advantage on the boards, including a 17-10 edge on the offensive end. Young added 11 points on 3-of-7 shooting from three-point range.
St. Cloud State, coached by former Jackrabbit player and assistant coach Lori Fish, also placed four players in double figures. Christina Steele, who was a perfect 7-for-7 from the field, and Sam Price each tallied 14 points for the Huskies. Jessica Benson added 12 points off the bench and Talisha Barlow chipped in with 10 points. Benson grabbed a team-high six rebounds.
SDSU ended the afternoon 26-of-61 from the field, 42.6 percent, including 9-of-17 from three-point range. The Jackrabbits also were efficient at the free throw line, converting 22-of-27 attempts for 81.5 percent.
St. Cloud State shot 38.3 percent from the field, 23-of-60 overall and 4-for-12 from long range. The Huskies went 12-of-17 on free throws, 70.6 percent.
SDSU 63, Bemidji State (Minn.) 47
The South Dakota State University women's basketball team survived a cold shooting night, closing exhibition play with a 63-47 victory over Bemidji State (Minn.) on Nov. 4 at Frost Arena.
Neither team shot well in the first half; the Jackrabbits began the game 4-for-21 from the field before ending the half 9-of-32, 28.1 percent. BSU made only 5-of-23 first-half attempts, 21.7 percent. SDSU led 26-16 at intermission.
The Beavers trimmed the deficit to nine points early in the second half before SDSU gradually extended its lead. The Jackrabbits' biggest lead of the night was 24 points, 62-38, in the closing minutes.
Jill Young led SDSU with 11 points, followed by Kristin Rotert with 10. Katie Lingle was a basket shy of a double-double with eight points and a game-high 10 rebounds. Fellow Pierre native Steph Paluch also tallied eight points as all 11 Jackrabbit players to see action scored.
SDSU finished the night 24-of-62 from the field, 38.7 percent, including a 4-for-20 effort from beyond the arc. The Jackrabbits' shooting struggles extended to the free throw line, where they made only 11-of-20 attempts, 55 percent.
Bemidji State received 10 points each from Anna Hebrink and Ellie Wessling. The Beavers shot 31.3 percent overall from the field, 15-of-48, and were 2-of-14 on three-pointers. At the line, BSU was 15-for-20, 75 percent.
The Jackrabbits held a 44-34 rebounding advantage.

OPENING SUCCESS: The Jackrabbits' 73-71 overtime victory over Gonzaga (Wash.) in the 2009-10 season opener at Frost Arena on Nov. 12, 2009, marked the 17th consecutive season SDSU opened with a win.
The last time the Jackrabbits lost a season opener was during the 1992-93 season, when they fell 74-72 to Moorhead State (Minn.).

COUNTDOWN TO 100: The Jackrabbit senior class of Macie Michelson, Kristin Rotert and Jennifer Schuttloffel enters the 2010-11 season with a chance to join an exclusive group of SDSU players to earn 100 victories during their careers. The trio have been a part of Jackrabbit teams that have combined for a 77-21 record through their first three seasons.
Only two other senior classes have won 100 games during their careers:
• 2009-10 senior class of Alison Anderson, Maria Boever and Ketty Cornemann -combined 102-27 in their four-year careers;
• 2004-05 senior class of Stephanie Bolden, Sarita DeBoer, Brooke Dickmeyer and Shannon Schlagel - 107-26 overall record.

SUMMIT LEAGUE DOMINANCE: South Dakota State has built an impressive Summit League résumé through its first three seasons in the 10-team conference.
Since joining the league at the start of the 2007-08 season, the Jackrabbits have compiled a 47-7 record in Summit League regular season games en route to outright league titles with records of 16-2 in 2007-08 and 17-1 during the 2008-09 season. SDSU also is a perfect 6-0 in Summit League postseason tournament games, winning back-to-back titles in 2009 and 2010. Note: the Jackrabbits were not eligible for the conference tournament in 2008 as it was completing its final season of transition to Division I status).
In additions, SDSU has gone 26-1 at home against league foes and has won at least one game on every other Summit League member's home court.

PRESEASON POLLS: The South Dakota State University women's basketball team has been picked to finish second in the Summit League preseason poll, which was released in October.
Defending league regular season champion Oral Roberts (Okla.) received 26 of 30 first-place votes to take the top spot with 438 points in the poll conducted by league coaches, sports information directors and select media. SDSU tallied the other four first-place votes to place second with 393 points. Oakland (Mich.) was third with 336 points, followed by IPFW in fourth with 285 points and North Dakota State fifth with 274.
The bottom half of the conference consists of UMKC (253), Southern Utah and Western Illinois tied for seventh (162), IUPUI (99) and Centenary (La.) 48.
During the 2009-10 season, the Jackrabbits finished the regular season tied with Oakland for second place with a 14-4 mark. SDSU later knocked off top-seeded Oral Roberts in the finals of the Summit League Championship, 79-75 in overtime, to earn its second consecutive trip to the NCAA Tournament.
SDSU guard Kristin Rotert was the lone Jackrabbit player on the preseason all-league team. A senior from Salem, Rotert is the Jackrabbits' top returning scorer after averaging 12.6 points per game during the 209-10 season. She enters her senior campaign with 1,051 points and ranks fourth in career three-pointers with 190.
The Jackrabbits also are receiving national attention as they are ranked 15th in the inaugural preseason Women's Mid-Major Top 25 poll sponsored by CollegeInsider.com.
Gonzaga (Wash.) received 12 first-place votes and 709 pointsto earn the top spot, while Wisconsin-Green Bay earned 11 first-place votes and 693 points to stand second. The Jackrabbits received 276 points in the balloting conducted among 31 mid-major women's basketball head coaches.
SDSU is scheduled to play at least four teams ranked in the mid-major top 25 during the upcoming 2010-11 season: Nov. 24 vs. 13th-ranked Illinois State, Nov. 28 at ninth-ranked Middle Tennessee State, Jan. 4 at fourth-ranked Arkansas-Little Rock, and a pair of matchups against Summit League rival Oral Roberts (Okla.). The Jackrabbits will host Oral Roberts on Jan. 8, and will travel to Tulsa, Okla., on Feb. 7.
In addition, the Jackrabbits could face third-ranked James Madison (Va.) in the second round of the Preseason WNIT. The Dukes claimed seven first-place votes in the balloting. Other opponents receiving votes in the poll include Northern Iowa and Oakland(Mich.).

TEAM PREVIEW: After making four consecutive postseason appearances at the Division I level, including back-to-back NCAA Tournament berths, South Dakota State University women's basketball coach Aaron Johnston doesn't believe the Jackrabbits have reached their full potential.
"We're still trying to find ways to take big strides forward," said Johnston, who enters his 11th full season as head coach with a 247-76 career record, including a 142-43 mark since the Jackrabbits moved to Division I at the start of the 2004-05 campaign.
"The players' focus and effort has been everything we've wanted it to be and we've seen positive benefits from changes to our off-season routine and workouts," Johnston said, noting that the team took advantage of an NCAA rule change allowing teams to begin practice about two weeks earlier than past years. "We've also put a huge emphasis on the basic
fundamentals - passing, dribbling and individual moves -and more on individual player development as we strive for more flexibility on offense and defense."
The Jackrabbits return three starters from last year's squad that shook off some early season struggles to post a 22-11 overall record en route to their second consecutive Summit League tournament title.
The starting backcourt of Macie Michelson and Kristin Rotert remains intact, with both players entering their third season in a starting role.
A senior from Lynd, Minn., Michelson led the team with 124 assists last season and added 8.6 points per game. However, Michelson is expected to miss the first couple weeks of the season as she recuperates from off-season foot surgery.
"Macie has been an unsung component of our success," Johnston said. "We'll need Macie to score a little more and we'd like to see her become more of a focal point than a great complementary player."
Rotert finished the 2009-10 season second on the squad with an average of 12.6 points per game and led the team with 72 three-pointers en route to earning honorable mention all-Summit League recognition. One of three players to join the 1,000-point club last season, the Salem native enters her senior campaign ranked 27th in career scoring with 1,051 points and fourth in career three-pointers with 190.
"Kristin has become a real complete player," Johnston said. "She certainly has the ability to be a go-to player."
The third member of the senior class, Jennifer Schuttloffel, moved into the starting lineup for the final six games of the season, averaging 6.2 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game.
"Jennifer really brought a lot of toughness to our team and still does. She performed very well for us and we're going to need to expand her role for us."
Juniors Jennie Sunnarborg and Jill Young, who each started nearly half the season, also will be counted on to fill expanded roles this season. Sunnarborg, who was the lone Jackrabbit to earn Summit League Player of the Week honors last season, has the ability to be a force on both ends of the court. She posted a pair of double-doubles and led the team with 41 blocked shots, while averaging 7.6 points and 4.1 rebounds per game. Sunnarborg played in all 33 games, with 13 starts.
Young, who may see time at point guard in Michelson's absence, has excelled as a shooting guard her first two seasons in an SDSU uniform.
The Mitchell native already ranks 10th on the SDSU career three-point list with 144. Last
season, Young averaged eight points and three rebounds per game, while ranking second on the squad with 68 assists in 33 games, including 14 starts.
The remaining eight players on the roster are either sophomores or freshmen.
The lone player with starting experience among the underclassmen is sophomore forward Leah Dietel. The Jordan, Minn., product started four of the 23 games in which she played, averaging 3.7 points and 3.7 rebounds. Dietel missed the last month of the regular season due to injury, but came back with an impressive sixpoint, three-rebound performance in the NCAA Tournament against Oklahoma.
Fellow sophomores Ashley Eide, Katie Lingle and Steph Paluch also gained valuable experience during the 2009-10 season.
Eide was an efficient performer on the offensive end, shooting a team-best 59.3 percent from the field while averaging 5.2 points in only 11 minutes of action per game.
Both Pierre natives, Lingle provided depth in the post while Paluch contributed at both guard spots.
"All these players have shown growth," Johnston said.
The freshman class is made up of four players, including Watertown native Tara Heiser, who redshirted during the 2009-10 season.
The incoming freshman unit consists of guard Gabrielle Boever, forward Hannah Strop and wing Megan Waytashek. Boever's status for the 2010-11 campaign is in question as she recovers from knee surgery, while Strop and Waytashek are both expected to contribute right away, according to Johnson.
As has been the norm throughout their Division I pursuits, the Jackrabbits will play a challenging schedule this season.
"It is a very difficult schedule - like it always is - but a very fun schedule with the teams we're able to bring to Frost Arena, continuing our series with Middle Tennessee State and traveling to new places like Kansas State and Washington State," Johnston said.
Highlighting the non-conference portion of the home schedule are a Dec. 16 matchup against Arizona State and a Dec. 18 meeting with Iowa in the annual Shrine Game.
The Jackrabbits will tip off the season Nov. 12 by hosting Utah Valley in the opening round of the Preseason WNIT. SDSU is in line to host additional rounds of the 16-team tournament, which runs through Nov. 21.
"I think it will be a good opportunity. It is a chance to start the season at home and it really adds a lot of value to the early part of the schedule," Johnston said. "We'll know a lot about ourselves in a short period of time."
In all, four SDSU opponents played in the NCAA Tournament last season, while three
others participated in the Women's NIT postseason tournament.
Summit League play begins Dec. 4, when the Jackrabbits host North Dakota State as part of a doubleheader. The Jackrabbits have been dominant at home under Johnston, compiling a 72-6 (.923 winning percentage) record at Frost Arena during the Division I era.
If the Jackrabbits are to continue their success within the Summit League - SDSU has won 47 of 54 conference regular season games and all six postseason tournament contests since joining the leagueduring the 2007-08 season - they will do so in a more competitive environment.
"I think the level of competition has gotten better across the board - it's gotten to be far more competitive every night," Johnston said. "Last year was a perfect example; there was a small margin between the teams in the top half. I expect that will continue."

773 AND?COUNTING: SDSU's victory over Oakland in the 2009 Summit League championship game was the 750th in the women's basketball program's history. Since the modern era of women's basketball at South Dakota State University began with a
6-0 mark during the 1966-67 season, the Jacks have gone on to compile an overall record of 773-344 (.692 winning percentage).
SDSU has posted 24 consecutive winning seasons.The Jackrabbits' last losing season was an 11-16 campaign during the 1985-86 season.

100 D-I WINS: Since moving up to the NCAA Division I ranks at the start of the 2004-05 season, the Jackrabbits have posted a winning record against D-I opponents. In its six seasons competing at the Division I level, SDSU has compiled a 124-43 mark (.743 winning percentage) versus D-I opposition. The Jackrabbits have posted victories over 51 different Division I teams representing 19 conferences plus independents.

TOUGH AT HOME: For the first time since Aaron Johnston's first full season as head coach - 2000-01 - the Jackrabbit women's basketball team during the 2009-10 season lost more than one home game.
In his tenure as Jackrabbit head coach, Johnston has led the Jackrabbits to a 128-14 record (.901 winning percentage) at Frost Arena, including a 72-6 mark at home during the Division I era. The Jackrabbits have put together winning streaks of 15, 15 and 22 in the process.
Since the start of the 2001-02 season, SDSU has a 117-9 home record, losing an average of just one game at Frost Arena each full season. The Jackrabbits capped the 2008-09 regular season with a 14-0 record - a mark that stands as the first undefeated home season in school history.
A loss to Western Kentucky early in the 2009-10 campaign snapped a 35-game regular season home winning streak, as well as a 15-game overall winning streak that began after the Jackrabbits lost to Creighton (Neb.) in the opening round of the 2008 Women's NIT.
SDSU's loss to Oral Roberts on Jan. 4, 2010, marked its first home loss to a Summit League opponent. The Jackrabbits are 26-1 at Frost Arena against Summit League foes since joining the league in 2007-08.

ROTERT ON CAREER LISTS: Senior wing Kristin Rotert enters her final season ranked on the career lists for points and three-pointers.
The Salem native ranks fourth all-time at SDSU with 190 three-pointers. Rotert, who has made at least one three-pointer in 25 consecutive games and who sank a trey in 32 of the team's 33 games last season, ended the 2009-10 campaign with a team-high 72 three-pointers, including 14 in three Summit League tournament games. She stands four away from tying Megan Vogel (194 three-pointers from 2004-07) for third place.
Rotert set a then-freshman record with 58 three-pointers during the 2007-08 season and ranked second on the team with 60 treys as a sophomore.
Also last season, Rotert became the 29th player in Jackrabbit women's basketball history to score 1,000 points, reaching the milestone in the Summit League tournament semifinal against Western Illinois. She enters the 2010-11 season 27th on the all-time scoring list with 1,051 points.

YOUNG FOR 3: Junior guard Jill Young has been another top-notch long range shooter for the Jackrabbits, entering the season 10th on the all-time three-point chart with 144.
The Mitchell native ranked third among NCAA?Division I players during the 2008-09 season by shooting at a 46.1 percent (82-of-178) clip from three-point range. Young's 82 made three-pointers also set a Jackrabbit freshman record, eclipsing the mark of 58 set by Kristin Rotert during the 2007-08 campaign.
For her career, Young is shooting 41.5 percent from three-point range, 144-of-347.

COACH AARON JOHNSTON: Now in his 11th season as head coach of the South Dakota State University women's basketball team, Aaron Johnston has taken the Jackrabbit program to the top of NCAA Division II and is leading SDSU to national prominence at the Division I level.
Johnston enters the 2010-11 season with a career record of 247-76 (.765 winning percentage), ranking second on the SDSU career victories list behind his predecessor, Nancy Neiber, who compiled a 301-140 record in 16 seasons from 1985-2000. Johnston posted his 200th career victory on Dec. 4, 2008, against Centenary (La.) His career totals have included a 47-7 record (.870 winning percentage) in Summit League regular season games and a 16-6 mark (.727 winning percentage) in postseason games.
The Summit League Coach of the Year in each of the Jackrabbits' first two seasons in the 10-team league, Johnston was named a finalist for the 2009 Naismith Award as the nation's top coach. SDSU tied a school record for victories in a season with 32 during the 2008-09 campaign and gained national attention by vaulting into the top 25 in December after non-conference victories over the likes of Wisconsin, Utah, Minnesota and Gonzaga (Wash.). The Jackrabbits were ranked in the final 13 USA Today/ESPN regular season coaches' polls, climbing as high as 14th in the coaches' poll and 16th in the Associated Press poll. SDSU finished the 2008-09 season ranked 19th in the coaches' poll.
Along the way to a 32-3 overall record, the Jackrabbits received national media coverage from CBS Sports, USA Today, ESPN.com and The New York Times.

SIGNEES: Head coach Aaron Johnston announced Wednesday that three high school standouts have signed a National Letter of Intent, indicating they will enroll at South Dakota State University next fall and compete for the Jackrabbit women's basketball program.
Signing Wednesday, the first day of the November signing period, were:
• Mariah Clarin, 6-foot-1, post, Princeton, Minn.;
• Megan Stuart, 6-2, wing/forward, Roseville, Minn., and
• Rachel Walters, 6-1, wing/forward, Sioux Falls, S.D
"We are very pleased to be adding three new Jackrabbits to our family," Johnston said. "Rachel, Mariah and Megan are great fits for our University, community, and basketball program.Our fans will love watching them compete in the yellow and blue."

Clarin has been a starter since her freshman year at Princeton High School and reached the 1,000-point mark during her junior season. A two-time all-Mississippi 8 Conference selection, Clarin led the league in scoring at 19.9 points per game and averaged 13 rebounds and 3.7 blocks per game as a junior, when she was selected to the honorable mention Class 3A All-State Team by the Minnesota Basketball News. Clairn also has played at the AAU level for the Minnesota Stars and the North Tartan 15U and Elite squads - the latter of which won the state AAU championship this past season.
In addition, Clarin was a member of the school-record 4x400-meter relay in track and field and has been an academic all-conference honoree.

Stuart has lettered in three sports at Roseville Area High School, earning all-state honors in basketball and track and field. On the court, Stuart averaged 18.6 points per game as junior en route to earning honorable mention all-state recognition from the St. Paul Pioneer Press and Minnesota Coaches Association, as well as all-Suburban East Conference accolades. She enters her senior season with 912 points.
Her extensive AAU basketball experience with the Minnesota Starts Borowicz team includes winning back-to-back Adidas National Tournament titles and finishing in the top four of the Disney Showcase in July 2010. The Stars won the state title in 2009 and finished as runners-up in 2010.
In other athletic pursuits, Stuart has lettered twice in volleyball and placed in the top 10 at the state track and field meet in both the triple jump and 4x200-meter relay. Stuart also has excelled in the classroom, earning academic all-state honors in all three sports.

Walters played a key role on Washington High School teams that won Class AA state titles in 2008 and 2010. A first-team all-state selection and member of the Sioux Falls Argus Leader First Five during her junior season, Walters averaged 13 points and seven rebounds per game, making 46 three-pointers. She also has been named an all-city each of the past two seasons and earned three academic letters.
Walters also was honored on the Miss Basketball All-America Team in both 2009 and 2010, as well as earning a spot on the Dakota Showcase Miss Basketball All-Tournament Team each of the last two years.

ACADEMIC SUCCESS: The South Dakota State women's basketball team continued to make the grade during the 2009-10 season.
As it has throughout its Division I pursuits, the Jackrabbits posted another high finish in the Women's Basketball Coaches Asocciation's Academic Top 25 Honor Roll, placing second among D-I programs with a 3.622 team GPA. Overall, SDSU ranked seventh across all divisions of women's college basketball.
Individually, 12 Jackrabbit women's basketball players were honored on the all-Summit League Academic Team, tying with North Dakota State for the most selections.
To be honored on the Academic All-Summit League Team, student-athletes must have a 3.0 or better grade-point average in the semester of their championship event and must use a year of eligibility. Student-athletes are recognized as a Distinguished Scholar by compiling a 3.6 GPA or higher, with eight Jackrabbit players earning that distinction.
Overall, Jackrabbit student-athletes garnered a conference-best 154 Academic All-Summit League awards during the spring semester.
In addition, seven SDSU women's basketball players were honored on the Commissioner's List of Academic Excellence by The Summit League.
In order for a student-athlete to be selected to the Commissioner's List of Academic Excellence, he or she must carry at least a 3.0 cumulative grade-point average, achieve sophomore academic standing at the institution, have used a year of eligibility and be on the squad list in the sport in which he or she is nominated.
The Jackrabbit women's basketball team's seven awards helped SDSU claim the inaugural Summit League Institutional Academic Achievement Award. The Jackrabbits earned the award by placing 69 percent of eligible student-athletes on the Commissioner's List for Academic Excellence, edging North Dakota State with 68 percent.

THE ROSTER: The 2010-11 SDSU women's basketball roster features 13 players from two different states. Of the 13 players, seven are from South Dakota and six are from Minnesota. By class, three are seniors, two are juniors, four are sophomores, one is a redshirt freshman and three are incoming freshmen.

A LOOK AHEAD: The Jackrabbits will continue play in the Preseason WNIT, either hosting a second-round game on Monday, Nov. 15, or a consolation quadrant Nov. 19-20.

Calendar

Upcoming Events

Recent Results

Players Mentioned

Alison Anderson

Gabrielle Boever

Leah Dietel

Ashley Eide

Tara Heiser

Katie Lingle

Steph Paluch

Hannah Strop

Jennie Sunnarborg

Megan Waytashek

Jill Young

Completed Event: Women's Basketball versus No. 6 Washington on March 20, 2026 , Loss , 54, to, 72

Completed Event: Women's Basketball versus -/RV No. 1 North Dakota State on March 8, 2026 , Win , 64, to, 51

Completed Event: Women's Basketball versus No. 3 South Dakota on March 7, 2026 , Win , 74, to, 59

Completed Event: Women's Basketball versus No. 7 Kansas City on March 5, 2026 , Win , 75, to, 61

Completed Event: Women's Basketball versus South Dakota on February 28, 2026 , Win , 82, to, 49

Completed Event: Women's Basketball at -/RV North Dakota State on February 25, 2026 , Win , 59, to, 44

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