Tuesday, March 23, 2021

ATLANTA – She was named the GNAC Freshman of the Year in 2018-19 and a Second Team All-GNAC selection in 2019-20. Now, Saint Martin’s junior forward Claire Dingus can add “All-American” to her resume.

One of 25 honorable mention selections to the 2021 Women’s Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) Division II All-America Team, Dingus becomes the first NCAA All-American in Saint Martin’s women’s basketball history.

Dingus was named the GNAC Women’s Basketball Player of the Week three times in the abbreviated 2020-21 season. The Spokane Valley, Washington, native averaged a double-double, finishing second among conference players with 17.5 points per game and third with 10.2 rebounds per game. She also finished the season with 2.2 assists and 1.9 steals per game to go with a .559 field goal percentage.

A two-time GNAC All-Academic selection, Dingus recorded five double-doubles in 2020-21, highlighted by a 25-point, 16-rebound performance in a 69-64 win at Northwest Nazarene on Jan. 29. She also had a monster double-double of 25 points and 15 rebounds in an 84-59 rout of Northwest (Wash.) on Feb. 20.

Dingus’ top scoring performance came in an 85-69 loss at NNU on Jan. 30, just a day after her big 25-point, 16-rebound game. She scored 28 points on 13 of 16 from the field to go with six rebounds, an assist and a steal. Her 28 points are tied for the 2020-21 GNAC single-game high with Seattle Pacific’s Rachel Berg.

Saint Martin’s finished the COVID-19-shifted season with a 7-6 record, making it the second straight winning season for the Saints.

The WBCA presents the Player of the Year award annually to the top player in five of the six WBCA membership divisions. The Player of the Year and the 10-member Coaches’ All-America Team in each division are selected by a committee of WBCA member coaches in that division.