WBB News

Tanaeya Worden, a 5-6 junior guard from Sioux City, received the Most Valuable Player Award for the Morningside College women’s basketball team at the Mustangs’ awards banquet.

Worden was Morningside’s leading scorer this past season with an average of 17.8 points per game for the Mustangs’ highest scoring average since Megan Cloud averaged 19.6 points per game during the Mustangs’ 2004-05 NAIA Division II National Championship season. Worden was the Mustangs’ leading scorer in 22 of their 33 contests and had the team’s top individual scoring performance of the season with 31 points in an 80-72 victory against Hastings College on Jan. 30.

Aside from leading the team in scoring, Worden also topped the Mustangs with 123 assists and 103 steals for norms of 3.7 assists and 3.1 steals per game. Worden also averaged 2.4 rebounds per game and made 213 of 485 field goal attempts for 43.9 percent, 68 of 191 3-point field goal attempts for 35.6 percent, and 92 of 126 free throw attempts for 73.0 percent.

Worden also received the Mustangs’ Offensive Most Valuable Player Award.

The Mustangs’ Defensive Most Valuable Player Award went to Leslie Foral, a 5-10 senior guard from Chadron, Neb. Foral, who amassed 296 steals during her Morningside career, ranked second on the team with 77 steals for an average of 2.5 per game. Foral was the Mustangs’ co-rebounding leader with an average of 5.1 caroms per game and ranked second on the team with 69 assists for an average of 2.2 per game to compliment a 6.5-point scoring average. Foral also received the Mustangs’ Hustle Award.

The Mustangs’ other award winners were:

“Athlete” Award – Sarah Culp, a 5-7 senior guard from Newell, Iowa.

Sixth Man Award – Roni Miller, a 5-11 senior forward from Lawton, Iowa.

Most Improved Player Award – Katie Sponder, a 5-9 senior guard from Le Mars, Iowa.

Morningside posted a 21-12 record during the 2009-10 season for its seventh consecutive 20-win season and made its eighth consecutive appearance in the NAIA Division II National Tournament. The Mustangs have a 211-41 record for a .837 winning percentage over the last seven seasons and were NAIA Division II National Champions in 2004, 2005, and 2009.

Worden Is Mustangs' Top Scorer During 2009-10 Campaign


Tanaeya Worden	Brittany Williamson

Tanaeya Worden, a 5-6 junior guard from Sioux City, was the leading scorer for the Morningside College women’s basketball team during the 2009-10 season.

Worden scored 586 points for an average of 17.8 points per game for the Mustangs’ highest scoring average since Megan Cloud averaged 19.6 points per game during the Mustangs’ 2004-05 NAIA Division II National Championship season. Worden led the Mustangs with 29 double figure scoring performances and was their top scorer in 22 of their 33 contests. She had the Mustangs’ top single-game scoring performance of the season with 31 points in an 80-72 victory against Hastings College on Jan. 30. Worden made a team-high 213 field goals and 92 free throws.

Aside from her scoring exploits, Worden also led the Mustangs with 123 assists and 103 steals for averages of 3.7 assists and 3.1 steals per game.

Worden, who joined the Mustangs this season as a transfer from NCAA Division II Christian Brothers University, already ranks 43rd on Morningside’s all-time career scoring list with her 586 points this season.

Brittany Williamson, a 6-0 senior forward from Ruthven, Iowa, was the Mustangs’ leading rebounder with 168 caroms for an average of 5.1 per game. Williamson, who also averaged 9.0 points per contest, had the Mustangs’ top individual rebounding performance of the season with a 13-board haul against Briar Cliff University on Jan. 9. Williamson also led the Mustangs with 17 blocked shots and was their best free throw shooter with 56 free throws in 70 attempts for 80.0 percent.
Williamson finished her career as the 15th leading scorer and 14th leading rebounder in Morningside history with 1,270 career points and 577 career rebounds, respectively.


Leslie Foral	Laura Nelson

Leslie Foral, a 5-10 senior guard from Chadron, Neb., also averaged 5.1 rebounds per game to tie Williamson for team honors. Foral, who also averaged 6.5 points per game, finished her career with 549 rebounds for the 16th highest total in Morningside history. She finished her career in 26th place on the Mustangs’ all-time scoring list with 869 career points.

Laura Nelson, a 5-10 senior guard from Jefferson, Iowa, made a team-high 74 3-point field goals in 215 attempts for 34.4 percent en route to a 7.9-point scoring average in predominately a reserve role. She led the Mustangs’ reserves with her 7.9-point scoring average. Nelson finished her career as the 21st leading scorer in Morningside history with 957 career points.

Roni Miller, a 5-11 senior forward from Lawton, Iowa, led the Mustangs in field goal accuracy with 84 field goals in 157 attempts for 53.5 percent en route to a 7.4-point scoring average off the bench. Miller, who also averaged 4.2 rebounds per game, finished her career as the 36th leading scorer and 24th leading rebounder in Morningside history with 736 career points and 420 career rebounds, respectively.

The Mustangs’ most accurate 3-point shooter was Chelsie Trask, a 5-9 freshman guard from Rockford, Iowa, who made 48 of 128 3-point field goal attempts for 37.5 percent. Trask was the Mustangs’ second leading scorer with an average of 10.8 points per game.

Former North Prep All-Stater Jalyssa Ceasar To Join Mustangs

caesar Jalyssa Ceasar, a 5-10 forward from Sioux City and a former two-time first-team prep all-stater at Sioux City North High School, will transfer to Morningside College with sophomore eligibility and join the Mustangs’ women’s basketball team announced Morningside women’s basketball head coach Jamie Sale.

Ceasar was at NCAA Division II Metropolitan State College of Denver this year, where she played in four games before leaving the team. Ceasar averaged 8.8 points and 6.0 rebounds per game at Metropolitan State. She made 11 of 24 field goal attempts for 45.8 percent and 13 of 19 free throw attempts for 68.4 percent.

She made an impressive debut at Metropolitan State when she led the Roadrunners with 17 points and a game-high 15 rebounds in a 60-52 exhibition game victory at NCAA Division I University of Northern Colorado. Ceasar made eight of 11 field goal attempts and had four steals in the contest. Ceasar was the Roadrunners’ leading rebounder in three of the four games she played with 10 caroms against West Texas A&M University and six rebounds in games against Fort Lewis College and Adams State College. She also led the team with 14 points in the Dec. 5 game against Fort Lewis.

Ceasar scored 1,120 points during her career at North High School for the seventh highest five-player girl’s basketball scoring total in Sioux City prep history at the time of her graduation. She helped lead the Stars to Class 4A state championships in 2007 and 2009.

Ceasar earned first-team Class 4A all-state honors from both the Iowa Newspaper Association (INA) and the Des Moines Register in addition to first-team All-Missouri River Activities Conference (MRAC) and first-team All-Northwest Iowa and All-Metro laurels from the Sioux City Journal last year when she led North to a 25-1 record and a state championship. She scored a game-high 17 points in North’s 51-45 victory against Ames in the state title game and was named the captain of the Class 4A all-tournament team after she scored a tournament-high 54 points in the Stars’ three victories.

Ceasar was the Stars’ leading scorer and rebounder last season with averages of 18.3 points and 8.6 rebounds per game. She also topped the team with 93 steals for a norm of 3.6 per game. Ceasar connected on 196 of 317 field goal attempts for 61.8 percent and converted 77 of 116 free throw attempts for 66.4 percent.

She led North with averages of 13.5 points and 8.8 rebounds per game as a junior en route to first-team INA and third-team Des Moines Register all-state laurels. Ceasar also had 65 steals for an average of 2.6 per game and made 134 of 225 field goal attempts for 59.6 percent. Ceasar received first-team Sioux City Journal All-Northwest Iowa and All-Metro honors and first-team All-MRAC laurels in addition to her all-state honors.

Ceasar received fifth-team Sioux City Journal All-Northwest Iowa honors and honorable mention All-MRAC recognition as a sophomore when she averaged 9.6 points and a team-high 6.2 rebounds per game for a North team that posted a 24-2 record en route to Iowa’s Class 4A state championship. She drilled 101 of 168 field goal attempts for 60.1 percent and had 57 steals for an average of 2.1 per game.

One of Ceasar’s best games as a sophomore was a 25-point, nine-rebound performance in the Stars’ 71-57 victory against Des Moines Roosevelt in the state championship game.

Ceasar will join former North teammate Tanaeya Worden, a 5-6 guard who will be a senior next season, on the Morningside roster. Morningside posted a 21-12 record during the 2009-10 season for its seventh consecutive 20-win season and made its eighth consecutive appearance in the NAIA Division II National Tournament. The Mustangs have a 211-41 record for a .837 winning percentage over the last seven seasons and were NAIA Division II National Champions in 2004, 2005, and 2009.

Worden A Second-Team All-American

Tanaeya Worden, a 5-6 junior guard from Sioux City, has been named to the 2010 NAIA Division II Women’s Basketball All-America Team Second-Team.

Worden was the Mustangs’ leading scorer this season with an average of 17.8 points per game for the Mustangs’ highest scoring average since Megan Cloud averaged 19.6 points per game in the 2004-05 campaign. Worden was the Mustangs’ leading scorer in 12 of their final 15 games of the season. She scored 20 points or more in 16 of the Mustangs’ 33 contests, including seven of the final 10 games of the season. Worden led the Mustangs with 29 double figure scoring performances and was their leading scorer in 22 of their 33 contests. Worden scored 31 points in the Mustangs’ 80-72 victory against Hastings College on Jan 30 for the Mustangs’ top individual scoring performance of the season.

Aside from her scoring exploits, Worden also led the Mustangs with 123 assists and 103 steals for averages of 3.7 assists and 3.1 steals per game to go along with a norm of 2.4 rebounds per contest. Worden made 213 of 485 field goal attempts for 43.9 percent, 68 of 191 3-point field goal attempts for 35.6 percent, and 92 of 126 free throw attempts for 73.0 percent.

Worden joined the Mustangs this season as a transfer from NCAA Division II Christian Brothers University. She is already in 43rd place on Morningside’s all-time scoring list with 586 career points after only one season with the team.

Click here for the complete 2010 NAIA Division II All-America Team.

Five Mustangs Named Daktronics-NAIA Scholar-Athletes

Five Morningside College women’s basketball players have been named 2010 Daktronics-NAIA Scholar-Athletes.

They are:

Emily Christen, a 6-1 junior forward from Anselmo, Neb. Christen has a 3.65 cumulative grade point average (GPA) with a major in mathematics teaching. Christen was also a Daktronics-NAIA Scholar-Athlete in volleyball this year.

Sarah Culp, a 5-7 junior guard from Newell, Iowa. Culp has a cumulative 4.00 GPA with a major in business administration.

Roni Miller, a 5-11 senior forward from Lawton, Iowa. Miller has a 3.76 cumulative GPA with a major in biology.

Katie Sponder, a 5-9 senior guard from Le Mars, Iowa. Sponder has a 3.64 cumulative GPA with majors in elementary education and special education.

Brittany Williamson, a 6-0 senior forward from Ruthven, Iowa. Williamson has a 3.74 cumulative GPA with majors in chemistry and biology.

Student-athletes must be of at least junior academic status and have a minimum GPA of 3.50 in order to be eligible for Daktronics-NAIA Scholar-Athlete honors.

Click here for the complete list of 2010 Daktronics-NAIA Women's Basketball Scholar-Athletes.

College Of The Ozarks 3-Point Shooting Too Much For Mustangs


Leslie Foral	Bobbi McManaman

Morningside has been known for its prolific 3-point shooting during its climb to rank among the elite women’s basketball programs in the nation. But on Friday night it was the 3-point shooting of College of the Ozarks that did the Mustangs in when the reigning NAIA Division II National Champions bowed out of the 2010 national tournament with a 92-74 second round loss.

The Bobcats, ranked sixth in the nation, bombed the 11th-ranked Mustangs into submission with their 3-point shooting as they drilled 14 of 24 shots from beyond the 3-point arc for a sizzling 58.3 percent. Ozarks shot 54.1 percent overall as the Bobcats stretched their winning streak to 19 games to move into Saturday’s NAIA II Quarterfinals, where a win against No. 7 Indiana Wesleyan University would put them in the Final Four for the fifth year in a row. Ozarks will take a 29-4 record into its Saturday contest.

A pair of Ozarks 3-point flurries did the Mustangs in. The score was tied 25-25 before Maranda Vaught, Kayla Messick, Tara Larue, and Megan Jewell all made 3-pointers during an 18-2 Bobcat scoring run that put Ozarks on top 43-27. Then, after Morningside closed within five points at 54-49 in the second half, Vaught buried 3-pointers on three consecutive trips down the floor to put the Bobcats up 63-49 with 11:54 left to stymie the Mustangs’ final rally.

The sophomore Vaught was the ringleader of the Bobcats’ 3-point shooting assault as she made five of 10 attempts from beyond the arc to lead her team with 20 points. Vaught entered the national tourney with a scoring average of only 6.5 points per game. Teammates Morgan Smith and Emily Bell each added 12 points and Melissa Duval joined them in double figures with 11 tallies.

Tanaeya Worden scored 26 points for Morningside, which closed the books on a 21-12 season. Leslie Foral was next with 13 points and freshman Bobbi McManaman came off the bench to match her career scoring high with 11 tallies. Worden was the Mustangs’ leading scorer in 12 of their final 15 contests of the season.

Defense and rebounding have been pivotal in the Bobcats’ success this season and they shined in both areas to take down a Morningside team that had won three of the last six NAIA II national titles. College of the Ozarks had pressured its opposition into a shooting mark of just 35.4 percent and outrebounded its foes by roughly nine caroms per game coming into the tournament. Morningside connected on only 22 of 77 floor shots for 32.5 percent against the Bobcats and was pounded on the boards by a 54-31 margin.

Madison Culpepper and Morgan Smith led the Bobcats’ board dominance with 13 and 10 rebounds, respectively. Smith also had a game-high six assists.

Foral, Roni Miller, and Brittany Williamson each had five rebounds for the Mustangs. Foral also had a game-high six steals.

Morningside turned the ball over only eight times in the contest compared to 25 miscues by the Bobcats.

Morningside took an early 3-2 lead on a 3-pointer by freshman guard Shelby Beaudette and stretched its lead to 11-6 after a hoop by the freshman McManaman.

Ozarks answered with a six-point run to go up 12-11 before the Mustangs regained the lead at 17-14 on a 3-pointer by Laura Nelson with 12:16 left in the half for their final lead of the night.

Worden made two free throws to tie the score at 25-25 with 7:52 left in the opening half before the Bobcats went on their pivotal 18-2 run to take the lead for good.

The Mustangs closed within 43-33 after three-point plays by Miller and Foral on successive trips down the floor. A steal and layup by Foral, a free throw by Katie Sponder, and a jump shot by Worden right before the buzzer pulled the Mustangs within 45-39 at the intermission.

Morningside got within five points, 45-40, when Trask made the second of a two-shot foul on the Mustangs’ first possession of the second half and later closed within five again, 54-49, on a Trask free throw with 13:18 left to set the stage for Vaught with her three straight 3-pointers.

The Bobcats’ lead eventually grew to 21 points, 88-67, after Duval made a 3-pointer with 3:33 left.

Box Score

Mustangs Open National Title Defense With 83-45 Romp


Tanaeya Worden	Chelsie Trask

Morningside opened defense of its NAIA Division II women’s basketball national championship with an 83-45 romp past 19th-ranked Kansas Wesleyan University in Wednesday’s first round action at the NAIA II Women’s Basketball National Championship in Sioux City’s Tyson Events Center/Gateway Arena.

The 11th-ranked Mustangs won for the fifth time in their last six games to improve to 21-11 and set up a marquee matchup against No. 6 College of the Ozarks, 28-4, in a second round game at 5:15 p.m. on Friday that will pit two of the nation’s most successful women’s basketball programs over the last few years. Morningside has four Final Four appearances and three national championships to its credit over the past six seasons, while the Bobcats have been to the Final Four each of the past four seasons, including title game appearances in 2006, 2007, and 2008.

Tanaeya Worden sparked the Mustangs’ opening round victory with a game-high 16 points and seven steals to go along with five rebounds and three assists. Worden led the Mustangs in scoring for the 11th time in the last 14 games.

Chelsie Trask also had a big night with 15 points, while Bobbi McManaman, Lindsay Determan, and Roni Miller came off the bench to add nine, eight, and eight points, respectively.

The Mustangs’ defensive pressure took its toll on Kansas Wesleyan as the Coyotes shot a dismal 30.4 percent for the game and committed 28 turnovers en route to their lowest point total of the season. The Coyotes’ Shelby Babcock and Montric Santee, who entered the contest as the team’s two leading scorers with averages of 13.4 and 13.1 points per game, respectively, went scoreless for the night and combined to get off only seven shots in the contest.

Morningside shot just 39.4 percent, but heated up in the second half when it connected on 51.6 percent of its attempts following a dismal 30.0 percent shooting in the first half.

The Mustangs dominated the boards by a 52-36 margin with one of their most impressive rebounding displays of the season. Leslie Foral led the way with eight rebounds, followed by Emily Christen with a season’s high six caroms. Christen finished just one shy of her career rebounding high, which came in last year’s national tournament opening round victory against the University of Maine-Fort Kent.

Morningside raced to a 16-4 advantage by the 15:05 mark of the first half after the Coyotes misfired on nine of their first 10 shots of the game. Worden did most of the scoring damage for the Mustangs with 10 of their first 16 points, including a 3-pointer and two steals that she converted into layups.

Kansas Wesleyan scored seven straight points to close with 16-11 before the Mustangs’ Laura Nelson ended the Coyotes’ mini run with a 3-pointer to push the Mustangs’ cushion back to 19-11. The Mustangs pushed their lead back into double figures when McManaman fed Worden with a nifty pass that resulted in a fastbreak layup to make it 29-18 with 5:47 left in the half.

The Coyotes closed within 29-20 before the Mustangs went on a 7-0 run to end the half.

Morningside made just three of 16 3-point attempts in the first half, but bombed in four of six 3-point attempts to start the second half and stretched its advantage to 59-31 after a free throw by Katie Sponder near the 13-minute mark.

The Mustangs pushed their lead beyond 30 points when Determan made 3-pointers on successive trips down the floor to make it 69-37 with 7:59 left in the game. Morningside opened its largest lead of the game with 3:10 left when Sarah Culp made two free throws to put the Mustangs up by 40 points, 79-39, and led by 40 again after a Christen hoop made it 83-43 with 1:23 left.

Box Score

Worden Named To All-GPAC First-Team


Tanaeya Worden	Chelsie Trask

Tanaeya Worden, a 5-6 junior guard from Sioux City, has been named to the All-Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC) Women’s Basketball First-Team as selected by the league’s head coaches.

Worden is the leading scorer for a Morningside team that will make an eighth consecutive appearance in the NAIA Division II National Tournament next week in Sioux City’s Tyson Events Center/Gateway Arena. She is averaging 17.5 points per game for the Mustangs’ highest scoring average since Megan Cloud averaged 19.6 points per game in the 2004-05 campaign. Worden has been the Mustangs’ leading scorer in 10 of their last 13 games and has averaged 19.2 points per game during that stretch. She has scored 20 points or more in 15 of the Mustangs’ 31 contests, including six of their last eight contests. Worden has a team-high 27 double figure scoring performances and has been the Mustangs’ leading scorer in 20 of their 31 contests. She scored 31 points in the Mustangs’ 80-72 victory against Hastings College on Jan 30 for the Mustangs’ top individual scoring performance of the season.

Aside from her scoring exploits, Worden also leads the Mustangs with 116 assists and 93 steals for averages of 3.7 assists and 3.0 steals per game to go along with a norm of 2.3 rebounds per contest. Worden has made 196 of 445 field goal attempts for 44.0 percent, 64 of 178 3-point field goal attempts for 36.0 percent, and 88 of 120 free throw attempts for 73.3 percent.

Aside from Worden, the Mustangs’ Chelsie Trask was named to the All-GPAC second-team and Brittany Williamson and Roni Miller were each named to the All-GPAC honorable mention list.

Trask, a 5-9 freshman guard from Rockford, Iowa, is the Mustangs’ second leading scorer with an average of 10.8 points per game to compliment an average of 2.7 rebounds per contest. She is the Mustangs’ most accurate 3-point shooter with 44 treys in 118 attempts for 37.3 percent and has made 107 of 264 overall field goal attempts for 40.5 percent and 76 of 101 free throw attempts for 75.2 percent. Trask has 42 assists and 38 steals.

Williamson, a 6-0 senior forward from Ruthven, Iowa, is the Mustangs’ leading rebounder with an average of 5.1 caroms per game and the team’s third leading scorer with a 9.3-point scoring average. She had 13 rebounds against Briar Cliff University on Jan. 9 for the Mustangs’ top individual rebounding performance of the season. Aside from leading the Mustangs in rebounding, Williamson also tops the Mustangs with 17 blocked shots and in free throw accuracy with 51 free throws in 63 attempts for 81.0 percent. She has made 118 of 236 field goal attempts for 50.0 percent and has 40 assists and 26 steals.

Williamson is the 15th leading scorer and 14th leading rebounder in Morningside history with 1,261 career points and 568 career rebounds, respectively.

Miller, a 5-11 senior forward from Lawton, Iowa, is averaging 7.5 points and 4.2 rebounds per game off the Mustangs’ bench. She has provided a team-high 10 double figure scoring performances off the bench this season and has five double figure efforts in the last eight games. She leads the Mustangs in field goal accuracy with 79 field goals in 147 attempts for 53.7 percent and has converted 76 of 100 free throw attempts for 76.0 percent. Miller has 36 assists and 40 steals.

Miller is the 36th leading scorer and 25th leading scorer in Morningside history with 725 career points and 412 career rebounds, respectively.

Morningside has a 20-11 record this season for its school-record seventh consecutive 20-win season. The Mustangs finished fourth in the GPAC regular season standings with a 12-6 league mark and were ranked 11th in the nation in the final NAIA Division II poll.

Click here for the complete 2009-10 All-GPAC Women's Basketball Team

Worden Repeats As GPAC Player Of The Week

Tanaeya Worden, a 5-6 junior guard from Sioux City, Iowa, has been named the Hauff Mid-America Sports/Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC) Women’s Basketball Player of the Week for the second week in a row.

Worden averaged 22.0 points and 5.0 rebounds per game to lead the 11th-ranked Mustangs to a pair of triumphs last week. She scored 22 points to go along with a season’s high six rebounds in an 85-76 overtime win at No. 7 Briar Cliff University and had 22 points, four rebounds, and three assists in a 76-41 victory at Nebraska Wesleyan University. Worden scored 15 of the game’s first 19 points against Nebraska Wesleyan to help the Mustangs go on a 19-0 scoring run to open the contest. She made four of five 3-point field goal attempts in the Nebraska Wesleyan game.

Worden has been the Mustangs’ leading scorer in each of their last six games and in nine of their last 11 contests. She has averaged 20.5 points per game over the last 11 games to raise her season’s scoring average from 16.3 to 17.9 points per game for the Mustangs’ highest scoring average since Megan Cloud averaged 19.6 points per game during the 2004-05 campaign.

Morningside finished the regular season with a 19-10 record and will host a GPAC Tournament Quarterfinal round game on Thursday at 7 p.m. against the winner between Tuesday’s first round game between No. 21 Concordia University and Dana College.

Worden Named GPAC Player Of The Week

Tanaeya Worden, a 5-6 junior guard from Sioux City, Iowa, has been named the Hauff Mid-America Sports/Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC) Women’s Basketball Player of the Week.

Worden averaged 19.5 points, 5.5 assists, and 2.5 steals per game in the Mustangs’ two contests last week. She scored 28 points to go along with five assists and one steal in an 87-83 loss at fourth-ranked Northwestern College last Wednesday and had 11 points, six assists, and four steals in last Saturday’s 78-52 victory against Dana College.

Worden has been the Mustangs’ leading scorer in each of their last four games and in five of their last seven contests. She has averaged 20.2 points per game over the last nine games to raise her season’s scoring average from 16.3 to 17.6 points per game for the Mustangs’ highest scoring average since Megan Cloud averaged 19.6 points per game during the 2004-05 campaign.

Morningside, ranked 11th nationally in the latest NAIA Division II poll, will take a 17-10 record into a game against No. 7 Briar Cliff on Wednesday at Briar Cliff.

Kalene Anderson To Join Mustangs

Kalene Anderson, a 6-0 forward from Bancroft, Neb., will attend Morningside College next year and compete for the Mustangs’ women’s basketball team announced Morningside women’s basketball head coach Jamie Sale.

Anderson is a senior at Bancroft-Rosalie High School, where she helped lead the school to back-to-back Class D-1 state championships and a combined record of 54-1 over the 2007-08 and 2008-09 seasons. Anderson, a two-time first-team All-Lewis & Clark Conference performer, has scored 996 points during her prep career to put her just four points shy of the 1,000-point milestone.

Anderson set Bancroft-Rosalie’s single-game scoring record earlier this season when she poured in 39 points in a 66-54 victory against Ponca on Jan. 30. She made a school-record 15 free throws in the contest.

This season she is averaging a career-high 17.9 points, 9.7 rebounds, and 3.0 steals per game. Anderson has made 127 of 260 field goal attempts for 48.8 percent and converted 69 of 104 free throw attempts for 66.3 percent.

Anderson received third-team Huskerland Preps Class D-1 all-state honors in addition to honorable mention all-state recognition from the Omaha World-Herald and the Lincoln Journal-Star as a junior when she averaged 13.3 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 2.9 steals per game. She drilled 159 of 247 field goal attempts for a career-high 64.4 percent.

She averaged 9.9 points, 4.9 rebounds, and 2.2 steals per game and made 111 of 218 field goal attempts for 50.9 percent as a sophomore.

At Morningside, Anderson will be reunited with former Bancroft-Rosalie teammate Shelby Beaudette, who is a freshman on this year’s Mustang roster. Morningside won NAIA Division II National Championships in 2004, 2005, and 2009 and won five consecutive Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC) regular season titles from 2005-09.

Mustangs Retire Jerseys Worn By Bartel And Gass


Autumn Bartel	Dani Gass

Two of the greatest women’s basketball players in Morningside College history were honored prior to the start of the Mustangs' game against Dakota Wesleyan University on Nov. 24 when the college retired the jerseys worn by Autumn Bartel and Dani Gass.

Bartel and Gass were the standouts for a 2008-09 Morningside team that ranks as one of the all-time best in NAIA Division II history. They led the Mustangs to a 38-0 record and the NAIA II National Championship as Morningside became only the second team in history to capture the NAIA II national title with an undefeated record. Morningside had a combined record of 121-22, won four Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC) regular season championships, and won two GPAC post-season tournament championships during their four-year careers. Morningside was undefeated over the final 55 regular season games of their careers.

Both players were named to the 2009 NAIA II All-America first-team. Gass was also named the NAIA Division II National Player of the Year and the GPAC Player of the Year, while Bartel was named the Most Valuable Player of the NAIA II National Tournament and was last year’s GPAC Defensive Player of the Year.

Bartel was the Mustangs’ leading scorer during their national championship season with an average of 15.2 points per game for the highest scoring average of her career. She also ranked second on the team with career-high totals of 160 assists and 112 steals for averages of 4.2 assists and 2.9 steals per game. Bartel turned her game up a notch over the second half of the campaign when she put together a streak of 28 consecutive double figure scoring performances and was the Mustangs’ leading scorer in 11 of their final 18 games. She tied a Morningside single-game record for field goal accuracy when she went eight-for-eight in a 75-59 victory against Hastings College on Jan. 17.

Bartel graduated as the fifth leading scorer in Morningside history with 1,731 career points and she collected 476 career rebounds for the 19th highest total in school history. She earned first-team NAIA II All-America honors as a senior and was an honorable mention All-American as a junior. Bartel earned first-team All-GPAC honors as a senior and was a second-team All-GPAC selection as a freshman and junior.

Gass is the only three-time NAIA II first-team All-American and four-time first-team All-GPAC selection in Morningside history. She was also the 2006 GPAC Freshman of the Year. Gass finished her career as the fourth leading scorer and second leading rebounder in Morningside history with 1,802 career points and 1,094 career rebounds to become only the second player in Morningside history to amass over 1,000 career points and 1,000 career rebounds. She is Morningside’s all-time leader with 451 career steals. She was Morningside’s leading rebounder in 105 of the 143 games she played during her career.

Gass averaged 11.6 points per game and led Morningside with 287 rebounds, 203 assists, and 141 steals for averages of 7.6 rebounds, 5.3 assists, and 3.7 steals per game during the Mustangs’ 2008-09 national championship season. She dealt a career-high 12 assists in wins against Northwestern College and Hastings College to finish one shy of the Mustangs’ single-game record.

Mustangs Ranked No. 1 In The Nation

Morningside College is ranked No. 1 in the nation in the NAIA Division II pre-season women’s basketball poll released on October 26.

The Mustangs are the reigning NAIA Division II National Champions after they posted a 38-0 record last season to become only the second team in history to win the NAIA II crown with an undefeated record. Morningside returns three starters – Leslie Foral, Laura Nelson, and Brittany Williamson – from last year’s championship team.

Morningside defeated Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC) rival Hastings College 68-63 in last year’s national title game. Hastings is ranked fourth in the NAIA II pre-season poll, while the GPAC’s Northwestern College is ranked second. The University of Sioux Falls is ranked 15th and Concordia University is ranked 22nd to give the GPAC five schools in the NAIA pre-season Top 25.

Morningside will open the season this weekend with games at Minot State University on Friday and 10th-ranked Dickinson State University on Saturday. The Mustangs will go into the season riding a 55-game winning streak in regular season contests.

Click here for the complete NAIA II Pre-Season Top 25.

Mustangs Are GPAC Pre-Season Favorite

Morningside has been tabbed the favorite to win the 2009-10 GPAC women’s basketball championship by the league’s head coaches.

The Mustangs received seven of a possible 13 first place votes and top the GPAC Coaches’ Pre-Season Poll with 139 points for a two-point margin over Northwestern College, which received the other six first place votes.

The Mustangs, who have won at least a share of the GPAC’s regular season championship for five years running, are coming off a banner 2008-09 season where they posted a 38-0 record and became only the second team in history to capture the NAIA Division II National Championship with an undefeated record.

Morningside returns 10 letterwinners, including three starters, from last year’s National Championship team.

The Mustangs will open the season on Oct. 30 with a 5:30 p.m. game against Minot State University in Minot, N.D.

Poll Results