Friday, October 27, 2023
by Thomas Lal

PORTLAND, Ore. –  After leading Western Washington to a regular-season title and the program’s third conference championships victory, Brooke Walling leads the 2023-24 Great Northwest Athletic Conference Women’s Basketball Preseason All-Conference Team as the Preseason Player of the Year.

The senior forward was a vital player for the Vikings throughout the 2022-23 campaign, leading WWU and ranking ninth in the conference with 13.6 points per game. Walling also pulled down an average of 9.2 rebounds per contest to lead the team and rank second in the GNAC.

Western Washington and Montana State Billings lead all teams with three selections to the preseason all-conference team followed by Alaska Anchorage, Central Washington and Simon Fraser with two players each. Saint Martin’s, Seattle Pacific and Western Oregon each have one player on the team.

Walling played some of her finest basketball last season in front of the Bellingham faithful as the Vikings became the first women’s basketball team to win the GNAC Championships as a host. Across two games at the conference championships, she averaged 16 points, nine rebounds and two assists per game while shooting 72.2% from the field. Walling put together her best performance of the tournament when it mattered most, coming through with 22 points, eight boards, two assists and a block while draining 10 of 14 from the field to be named the GNAC Championships MVP.

Walling is one of three Vikings to be named to the preseason all-conference team along with sophomore guard Mason Oberg and junior guard Riley Dykstra. Oberg ranked third for the Vikings with 8.2 points and 1.9 rebounds per game last season while shooting  42.7% from the field and 42.4% from three-point range. Dykstra started every game for WWU a season ago, averaging 7.7 points, 2.8 assists and 2.6 rebounds per game.

Preseason favorite Montana State Billings also picked up three selections to the team. Senior guard Kortney Nelson earned second-team all-GNAC honors a season ago while averaging 8.2 points, 3.4 assists and five rebounds per contest. Nelson is joined on the team by senior guard Shayla Montague and junior forward Dyauni Boyce who were both all-GNAC honorable mentions last season. Boyce was MSUB’s top scorer last season, averaging 10.7 points per game while shooting 42% from the field. Montague, meanwhile, was among the best long-range threats in the game, ranking fourth in the conference with 2.2 three-pointers per contest while shooting 40.1% from beyond the arc.   

Alaska Anchorage is represented by a pair of unanimous selections in senior forward Vishe’ Rabb and junior guard Jazzpher Evans. Rabb was a dominant presence on the hardwood for the Seawolves last season, leading the team and ranking fifth in the GANC with 16.8 points and 6.3 rebounds per game to earn first team all-GNAC honors and be named the 2022-23 GNAC Newcomer of the Year. Evans was a key turnover creator for UAA, ranking sixth in the conference with 1.8 steals per contest while also averaging 9.4 points per game.

Central Washington also landed two players on the team with junior guard Sunny Huerta and sophomore guard Asher Cai both being named unanimous selections. Huerta earned first team all-GNAC honors last season with a dominant offensive campaign where she averaged 18.4 points and 3.2 assists per game while shooting a GNAC-leading 45.7% from the field. Cai comes into the season as the reigning GNAC Freshman of the Year. In her debut season, Cai put up 14 points and 2.5 assists per game while pulling down an average of 5.5 boards per contest.

Simon Fraser senior guard Jessica Wisotzki and junior forward Gemma Cutler were also unanimous selections to the preseason team. Wisotzki paced the Red Leafs with 21 points and 4.4 rebounds per contest to earn first team all-GNAC honors a year ago. Cutler, meanwhile, was the top rebounding player for SFU, pulling down 8.7 rebounds per game and averaging 10.7 points to be named an all-conference honorable mention last year.

Saint Martin’s is represented by second team all-conference guard and unanimous selection Anjel Galbraith. The senior from Vallejo, Calif., was among the GNAC’s elite last season, ranking sixth with an average of 15.4 points per game and leading the conference with 5.6 assists and 2.5 steals per contest.

Seattle Pacific junior center Schuyler Berry was named to the preseason all-conference team on the heels of a season where she was the Falcons’ most accurate shooter. Berry shot 47.2% from the field to lead the team to rank fourth on the squad with 7.4 points per game. She was also a big presence in the paint pulling down 1.5 offensive rebounds per contest.

Western Oregon’s Cali McClave completes the preseason all-conference team as a unanimous selection after earning second team all-GNAC honors a year ago. McClave was among the league’s leading scorers last season, ranking fourth in the conference with 17.2 points per game. She was also a key defensive presence for WOU, averaging five rebounds and 2.2 steals per contest.

The 2023-24 regular season tips off on Friday, Nov. 3 with Montana State Billings hosting the D2CCA Tournament in Billings and Simon Fraser hosting the D2CCA Canadian Tip-Off Classic in Burnaby where Central Washington and Alaska will also feature. The conference slate begins on Nov. 30 with all 10 GNAC teams in action. The complete conference schedule for 2023-24 can be found online here.