RIPON, Wis. – After winning the MWC Championship and MWC Tournament last season St. Norbert is the favorite to repeat in the 2011-12 Midwest Conference Preseason Women’s Basketball Coaches Poll.
The Green Knights captured its 10th MWC Championship last season and aim for its third straight this year after garnering eight first place votes and 80 points in this season’s poll. Tournament runner-up Monmouth was a distant second place with 68 points and claimed a first place vote while Lake Forest (62 points) and Carroll (55 points) are all picked to play in this year’s tournament. Ripon received 51 points and the final first place vote and sits in fifth place with Illinois College in fifth place with 42 points. Grinnell (40 points) is firmly in the seventh spot while Beloit (24 points), Knox (19 points) and Lawrence (nine points) round out the poll.
Only five All-MWC performers return from a year ago headlined by first team selections Sam Schuring (Lake Forest) and Krista Pelky (St. Norbert). Janelle Groer (Carroll), Jamie Kuhl (St. Norbert) and Haley Jones (Junior) are all second team performers that return this year.
There are two new faces on the bench this season in the MWC. Jennifer Randall takes over at Beloit while Tara Carr will lead the Lawrence squad this season. St. Norbert’s Connie Tilley is back for her 35th season as she holds 554 career wins while Brenna Kelly starts her 25th season for the Lady Blues after picking up her 300th win last season.
| Place |
School (First Place Votes) |
Points |
| 1 |
St. Norbert (8) |
80 |
| 2 |
Monmouth (1) |
68 |
| 3 |
Lake Forest |
62 |
| 4 |
Carroll |
55 |
| 5 |
Ripon (1) |
51 |
| 6 |
Illinois C. |
42 |
| 7 |
Grinnell |
40 |
| 8 |
Beloit |
24 |
| 9 |
Knox |
19 |
| 10 |
Lawrence |
9 |
Team Previews:
St. Norbert College Green Knights
2010-11 Record: 23-3, 17-1
Returning All-MWC: Krista Pelky (1st), Jamie Kuhl (2nd)
St. Norbert earned a clean sweep in the 2010-11 season by winning its 10th MWC Championship and entering the NCAA Tournament for the eighth time by winning the MWC Tournament. Connie Tilley takes the helm of the Green Knights for her 35th season and returns two of her top three scorers in Krista Pelky and Jamie Kuhl. Pelky finished ninth in the league averaging 12.0 points per game while Kuhl was 11th in scoring (10.6 ppg) and sixth in rebounding (7.0 rpg). The Green Knights were one of the top scoring teams in the league (65.1 ppg) while limiting opponents to a conference-low 51.8 points per game that led to a +13.3 average margin of victory. Krista Hawkinson averaged 5.2 points and 1.5 rebounds per game and will join Pelky and Kuhl as top returners for the 2011-12 season. St. Norbert excelled form the charity stripe a year ago by leading the league with a 75% conversion rate and also finished second in the league shooting 34% from behind the arc.
Monmouth College Fighting Scots
2010-11 Record: 16-9, 13-5
Returning All-MWC: Haley Jones (2nd)
Monmouth earned a second place finish in the MWC last season and barely lost out in the MWC Tournament championship game in a 56-54 overtime loss to St. Norbert. Seventh year head coach Melissa Bittner hopes to get the Fighting Scots back to the MWC Tournament while also working towards capturing the first MWC Championship in school history. All-MWC First Team pick Haley Jones returns to lead Monmouth after finishing seventh in the MWC averaging 12.1 points per game and shooting 45% from the field (11th in MWC) in almost 33 minutes per game. Zipporah Williams was third in the league in rebounding (7.9 rpg) while averaging 10.1 points per game and Colleen Forest led the league with 2.9 three point field goals made per game. The Fighting Scots were fourth in scoring average (65 ppg) and second in scoring defense (57.8 ppg) while leading the league in field goal defense (36%).
Lake Forest Forest Foresters
2010-11 Record: 13-10, 11-7
Returning All-MWC: Sam Schuring (1st)
Lake Forest was narrowly edged out for a spot in the 2010-11 MWC Tournament and looks to win a conference championship for the first time since 2006-07. The Foresters finished last season as the conference’s top scoring team, averaging 68.5 points per game, and finishing second in the league with a +7.3 scoring margin. Head coach Tamlyn Tillis is back for her fourth season and welcomes back All-MWC First Team selection Sam Schuring to the squad. Schuring finished fifth in the league with 13.4 points per game and second with 109 assists (4.7 apg). Schuring was also tops in the league in assist/turnover ratio at 1.5. Alex Messacar was the Foresters’ top deep threat last season, finishing second in the MWC with 1.9 three pointers per game, while also averaging 9.9 points per contest. Liz Radtke averaged 6.3 points and 3.8 rebounds per game while starting in 22 contests.
Carroll University Pioneers
2010-11 Record: 15-9, 11-7
Returning All-MWC: Janelle Groer (2nd)
Kris Jacobson returns for her 14th season as coach of the Carroll women’s basketball programs and aims for the school’s first MWC Championship since the 2005-06 season after a third place finish last year. The Pioneers have to deal with the loss of the conference’s leading scorer as Lyndsey Seewald graduated her 19.9 points per game. The team looks to continue its strong offensive play from last season despite the loss of Seewald when they were second in the MWC in scoring offense (67.9 ppg) and first overall in field goal percentage (44%). All-MWC Second Team selection Janelle Groer will try to pick up the scoring slack after averaging 16.2 points and 5.9 rebounds per game, finishing third in the league in scoring. Emily DeNoyer appeared in 24 games as a freshman and scored 7.7 points per game and shot 46% from the field while Kelly Menden will step in after averaging 4.4 points and 2.9 rebounds per game in 22 starts.
Ripon College Red Hawks
2010-11 Record: 9-14, 8-10
Returning All-MWC: None
Despite a youth movement in the 2010-11 season head coach Julie Johnson is hoping to turn that experience into a MWC Tournament appearance for Ripon. The Red Hawks return 12 of the 14 players that saw time on the court last season which equals 82% of its scoring and 75% of its rebounding. Back in the fold this season is top scorer Katie Raymond who was the only player to average double figure points (10.9 ppg) while averaging 3.7 rebounds per game. Ripon finished last season second in the MWC in three point field goal defense (28%) while finishing fifth in scoring defense at 58.3 points per game. Kacie Cullen (9.1 ppg, 3.0 rpg) and Brittany Johnson (6.3 ppg, 2.8 rpg) both will strengthen the offense after solid seasons. Erin Lind will provide an added boost as she returns after missing all of the 2010-11 season with an injury. Lind was a two-time All-MWC First Team performer her freshman and sophomore year and averaged 15.2 points per game in the 2009-10 season.
Illinois College Lady Blues
2010-11 Record: 13-11, 11-7
Returning All-MWC: None
Brenna Kelly is back for her 25th season and looks to replace the Lady Blue’s top three scorers from a season ago on a team that qualified for the MWC Tournament. Kelly lost All-MWC First Team selection Rachel Macon and All-MWC Second Team selection Carrie Walberg due to graduation but will look to Paige Cullison to fill the offensive void. Cullison is the top returning scorer averaging 4.8 points per game while hitting 21 three-point shots in 24 minutes of action per night. Alex Gabriel appeared in all 24 games last season and averaged 2.8 points and 3.0 rebounds per game to join Cullison. The Lady Blues hope to continue its good shooting from last season, finishing third in the conference in field goal percentage (42%) while also finishing fourth in both field goal percentage defense (38%) and scoring defense (58 ppg).
Grinnell College Pioneers
2010-11 Record: 9-13, 8-10
Returning All-MWC: None
Grinnell missed out on a trip to the MWC Tournament by three games and look to get back into the four team tournament under fourth year head coach Kate Gluckman. Grinnell relied on strong defense last season that held opponents to only 57.9 points per game and 38% shooting. The Pioneers also were third in the league in rebounding margin (+4.2) led by Michelle Briggs who was second in the conference with 8.0 rebounds per game. Briggs also averaged 8.0 points per game and was a strong under the hoop blocking a conference-best 84 shots (4.0 bpg). Rebecca DeGroot appeared in all 22 games and scored 5.7 points per game while pulling down 5.1 rebounds per game, including 46 total offensive rebounds. Toluwaloju Alabi gives Gluckman another strong presents underneath as she averaged 5.0 rebounds per game and chipped in 5.4 points in almost 22 minutes of action per night.
Beloit College Buccaneers
2010-11 Record: 8-15, 6-12
Returning All-MWC: None
Under the guidance of first year head coach Jennifer Randall Beloit is in search of a trip back to the MWC Tournament after a seventh place finish last season. Randall starts the season without her two top scorers from 2010-11 and will rely on Kandace Fox for a majority of the scoring. Fox finished the season averaging 9.8 points per game, having a team-high 26 steals. Kirstin Acosta and Jenna Larsen both averaged 4.0 rebounds per game for a team that finished fourth in the league with a +1.0 rebounding margin. The Bucs also finished third in the league with 5.1 three-point baskets a game with Fox hitting 32 three’s and Lauren McNanna converting 43% (26-61) of her chances. Sarah Stariha will run the offense after scoring 5.7 points per game as she also finished the season sixth in the conference with 2.9 assist per game and draining 80% of her free throws.
Knox College Prairie Fire
2010-11 Record: 6-17, 5-13
Returning All-MWC: None
Knox earned a ninth place finish in the MWC last season but was only three games out of sixth place under fourth year head coach Emily Cline. Krystyna Williams is the top returnee for the Prairie Fire after finishing 12th in the conference in scoring (10.6 ppg) and seventh in rebounding (7.0 rpg). Kelly Rickets will join Wiliams in the front court after finishing third on the team in scoring last season (9.3 ppg) and also average 4.7 rebounds per game. Sara Johnson and Kristin McDonald will be the backcourt duo after both seeing time in all 23 games last season. Johnson scored 7.0 points per game while dishing out 61 assists and McDonald scored 4.7 points per game and was fourth on the team in rebounding (4.2 rpg).
Lawrence University Vikings
2010-11 Record: 0-23, 0-18
Returning All-MWC: None
Tara Carr takes over at Lawrence for her first season and guides a youthful team that is comprised of no seniors and only one junior. Junior guard Cathy Kaye is the team’s leading returning scorer after averaging 8.3 points per game last season. Kaye led the team in three-point shooting a season ago by hitting 43.5 percent of her shots from beyond the arc. Sophomore Alex Deshler is the top returning rebounder after finishing 11th in the conference with 6.3 rebounds per game. Deshler averaged 7.7 points per game and ranked eighth in both assists (2.5 apg) and steals (2.1 spg).
[PDF Release]
[2010-11 Statistics]
[2010-11 All-MWC]
[Past Women's Basketball Seasons]