Tuesday, March 4, 2014
PORTLAND, Ore. – Living up to the hype of Preseason Player of the Year, Montana State Billings senior guard Bobbi Knudsen was a unanimous pick as the 2013-14 Great Northwest Athletic Conference Player of the Year after leading the Yellowjackets to the regular season title and the No. 1 overall seed entering the GNAC Championships.
Knudsen earned first team honors for the third year in a row matching a feat accomplished just twice previously - by centers Rebecca Kielpinski of Alaska Anchorage (2007-09) and Nayo Raincock-Ekunwe of Simon Fraser (2011-13).
Joining Knudsen among the top award winners were teammates Janiel Olson and Chelsea Banis, who were picked as GNAC Defensive Player of the Year and GNAC Newcomer of the Year, respectively. MSUB head coach Kevin Woodin received GNAC Coach of the Year honors, after leading the Yellowjackets to a 23-6 overall record and a 15-3 mark in GNAC play.
Alaska Fairbanks freshman Jordan Wilson took home the GNAC Freshman of the Year award, after averaging 15.2 points per game in her debut collegiate campaign.
Unanimously selected to the first team were Knudsen, Simon Fraser guard/forward Erin Chambers, and Seattle Pacific forward Katie Benson. Megan Hingston of Northwest Nazarene, Katie Colard of Western Washington, and Olson of Montana State Billings also received first-team all-conference honors. Benson and Hingston each earned first-team accolades for the second time.
Knudsen leads MSUB and is ranked fourth in the GNAC in scoring with 17.0 points per game, and she leads the conference and ranks fifth across NCAA Division II in assists per game with 5.9. Knudsen is also averaging 5.2 rebounds per game and is shooting 84.6 percent from the foul line.
Chambers, the GNAC scoring leader with 22.7 points per game, is currently ranked No. 8 in the NCAA in that category and is shooting 48.7 percent from the field this season. The junior is also shooting 83.2 percent from the foul line and is averaging 4.2 rebounds per game.
Benson is the second-leading scorer and rebounder in the GNAC, averaging 19.4 points and 9.1 rebounds per game. The senior is shooting 50.4 percent from the floor, and her 38 blocks are the sixth-most in the conference (1.5 per game).
Leading NNU in scoring, Hingston is currently sixth in the GNAC in that category at 16.0 points per game. The senior is also No. 6 in the conference in rebounding at 7.5 per contest, and contributed to NNU’s NCAA fourth-best free-throw shooting mark of 79.0 with a personal total of 80.7 percent from the line.
One of the premier 3-point shooters in the GNAC, Colard leads the Vikings in scoring with 13.9 points per game on 40.4 percent from beyond the arc. The junior ranks third in the GNAC in that category and eighth in overall scoring.
Olson is the current GNAC leader in rebounds per game and is the only player to average in double figures in that category at 10.4 per contest. The junior is also scoring 8.5 points per game, and has contributed 28 steals and 36 assists this season.
Among the second-team all-GNAC honorees were Western Oregon junior Dana Goularte, and Western Washington senior Sarah Hill.
Goularte is the third-leading scorer in the GNAC with 17.8 points per game, and also ranks in the top-5 in the conference in blocks (2.0, 3rd) and rebounding (8.2, 4th).
Hill is WWU’s top rebounder and ranks third in the GNAC with 9.0 per contest. She is also averaging 10.4 points per game and leads the team with 50 blocks this season.
SPU junior Suzanna Ohlsen, Saint Martin’s senior Chelsea Haskey, and UAA senior Kylie Burns and freshman Kiki Robertson rounded out the second team.
Ohlsen is averaging 13.9 points per game and leads the GNAC in free-throw shooting at 91.1 percent. Haskey leads SMU with 13.0 points per game, 6.8 rebounds per game, and 40 steals.
Burns is the Seawolves’ second-leading scorer at 12.2 points per game and leads the team with 6.8 rebounds. Robertson’s 86 steals are the most in the GNAC with her average of 3.3 being the fourth-best mark across Division II, and her team-high 132 assists are second-most in the GNAC.
2013-14 GNAC ALL-CONFERENCE TEAM
First Team: +**Bobbi Knudsen, Montana State Billings (G, 5-8, Sr., Malta, MT - Malta); +Erin Chambers, Simon Fraser (G/F, 6-1, Jr., Mission, BC – Heritage Park); +*Katie Benson, Seattle Pacific (F, 6-2, Sr., Snohomish, WA - Snohomish); *Megan Hingston, Northwest Nazarene (G, 5-9, Sr., Keizer, OR - McNary); Katie Colard, Western Washington (G, 5-9, Jr., McCleary, WA - Elma); Janiel Olson, Montana State Billings (F, 5-10, Jr., Billings, MT – Billings West). +Unanimous *Repeater **Two-time repeater
Second Team: Dana Goularte, Western Oregon (F, 6-0, Jr., Port Orchard, WA – South Kitsap); Sarah Hill, Western Washington (F, 6-3, Sr., Richmond, VA – Maryland-Baltimore County); Suzanna Ohlsen, Seattle Pacific (G, 5-7, Jr., Monroe, WA - Monroe); Chelsea Haskey, Saint Martin’s (F, 6-1, Sr., Olympia, WA – Black Hills); Kylie Burns, Alaska Anchorage (F, 5-9, Sr., Kansas City, KS – Bishop Ward); Kiki Robertson, Alaska Anchorage (G, 5-7, Fr., Honolulu, HI – Mid-Pacific Institute).
Honorable Mention: Chelsea Banis, Montana State Billings (C, 6-4, Sr., Fairfield, MT – Montana State); Jordan Wilson, Alaska Fairbanks (F, 5-11, Fr., Henderson, CO – Prairie View); Chelsie Luke, Northwest Nazarene (G, 5-9, Sr., Meridian, ID - Meridian); Jessica VanDyke, Central Washington (G, 5-9, Sr., Chester, MT - Carroll); Katie Lowen, Simon Fraser (G, 5-6, Jr., Lethbridge, AB – Catholic Central); Jenni White, Western Washington (G, 5-5, Jr., Spokane, WA – East Valley); Kayleen Goggins, Montana State Billings (F, 6-1, Jr., Shepherd, MT - Shepherd).
GNAC Player of the Year – Bobbi Knudsen, Montana State Billings (G, 5-8, Sr., Malta, MT - Malta). GNAC Defensive Player of the Year – Janiel Olson, Montana State Billings (F, 5-10, Jr., Billings, MT – Billings West). GNAC Newcomer of the Year – Chelsea Banis, Montana State Billings (C, 6-4, Sr., Fairfield, MT – Montana State). GNAC Freshman of the Year – Jordan Wilson, Alaska Fairbanks (F, 5-11, Fr., Henderson, CO – Prairie View). GNAC Coach of the Year – Kevin Woodin, Montana State Billings.