Rochester, Mn-
Five women's basketball teams in the Minnesota College Athletic Conference had student-athletes named to the NJCAA Division III Women's Basketball All-America teams released on April 11.
All-America selections are made by the NJCAA Division III Women's Basketball Committee, and athletes land in either a First Team, Second Team, Third Team or Honorable Mention squad.
Leading the charge for the MCAC was Northland Community & Technical College standout Megan Swedberg. The sophomore center from Ogema, Minnesota was a dominant force in the paint and on the boards for the Pioneers. Swedberg averaged 11.6 rebounds and 19.6 points in 2017-18, and was named to the MCAC All-Defensive team, along with Divisional, Regional and All-State notoriety. Her standout performance over the winter earned her First Team All-America honors and Swedberg continued the NCTC tradition of strong post play. In 2016-17, Northland was led by current NCAA Division I student-athlete ShaRon Miller, who plays for Grand Canyon University in Phoenix, Arizona. Like Miller, Swedberg was dialed-in shooting from the floor at a 58.3% success rate while also logging in nearly 27 minutes per game on the floor for the Pioneers.
(Megan Swedberg, NCTC)
On the second team, the MCAC is represented by Katherin Ihnen of Minnesota West Community & Technical College. Ihnen re-wrote the record books at MnWest in 2017-18 and helped lead her LadyJay team to the Southern Division regular season title and the Region XIIIA championship game, where they fell to Rochester Community & Technical College in double-overtime. Ihnen averaged 21.6 points per game, good for second overall in the Conference and led the MCAC in rebounds per game with 13.7 an outing. A three-sport athlete at the college level, Ihnen also suits up for the Minnesota West volleyball and softball teams. Read more on Katherin Ihnen's career at Minnesota West by clicking here.
(Katherin Ihnen, Minnesota West)
Two MCAC standouts earned Third Team status; Daeja Monroe of Rainy River Community College and Kaylee Porisch from Anoka-Ramsey Community College.
Monroe was the leading per-game scorer in the MCAC this past season, clocking in at 25.3 points per contest, almost five more than the next closest competitor. A freshman from Cypress Falls HS in Houston, Texas, Monroe poured in 583 total points for the Voyagers, while shooting 50.5% from the field and hitting from the three-point mark 35.2% of the time. Also a great free-throw shooter, Monroe hit 107 of her 136 attempts from the charity stripe, good for a 78.7% average. Rainy River finished tied with Northland CTC for the Northern Division regular season title this past season, producing a 17-7 overall record and 10-2 MCAC Northern Division mark.
(Daeja Monroe, Rainy River Community College)
Kaylee Porisch (Coon Rapids HS, Coon Rapids, Mn) was an integral part of the Anoka-Ramsey campaign, helping lead the Golden Rams to a 9-5 Southern Division mark and 11-16 overall record. Porisch logged the second-most playing time in the MCAC, as she was on the court for 976 minutes in 2017-18. In that time she was productive on both offense and defense, scoring 579 total points and grabbing 276 boards. Porisch dominated the lane for Anoka-Ramsey, leading the MCAC and all of NJCAA Division women's hoops with 91 blocked shots on the year. Anoka-Ramsey wrapped up the regular season by going 5-2 in February and earned a trip to the NJCAA Region XIIIA semi-finals amongst a crowded and competitive field of teams, including Ridgewater College and Western Technical College.
(Kaylee Porisch, Anoka-Ramsey CC)
The final MCAC product on the All-America teams is Nautika Kotero, from Rochester Community & Technical College. Kotero was part of the Yellowjacket squad which won the NJCAA Region XIIIA championship and booked their ticket to the NJCAA National Championship tournament in Rockford, Illinois, hosted by Rock Valley College. Kotero started all 28 contests this year, and helped run the floor at both ends of the court for Rochester. The sophomore guard from Wabasha-Kellogg High School had 69 steals on the season defensively, while dishing out 157 assists to her teammates. Kotero also got in on the scoring actions for RCTC, shooting 42.4% from the field and averaging 15.8 points per game. She was reliable from the foul line, hitting 74.4% of her free throws and hauling in 5.4 rebounds a game. Rochester finished the season with 23-9 overall record and 12-3 Conference ledger.
(Nautika Kotero, RCTC)
The complete NJCAA Division III All-America teams are listed below. The full press release is available at: http://www.njcaa.org/sports/wbkb/2017-18/div3/all-americans/index
For more information on women's basketball in the Minnesota College Athletic Conference, please go to: http://www.mcacsports.org/sports/wbkb/index
For more on MCAC Women's Basketball during the 2017-18 season, please visit:
Player Statistics: http://www.mcacsports.org/sports/wbkb/2017-18/leaders
Division Standings: http://www.mcacsports.org/sports/wbkb/2017-18/standings
To Follow Minnesota College Athletic Conference sports in 2018, please go to: www.mcacsports.org
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This release sponsored in part by Gopher Sport.
Gopher Sport, based in Owatonna, is an industry leader in Physical Education, sports and fitness equipment. Gopher Sport is dedicated to providing programs and departments with the products to improve fitness, develop skills, create fun and reach a high standard of learning and living. Gopher Sport has diligently served teachers, coaches and athletic directors around the world for over 65 years.
About the Minnesota College Athletic Conference
The Minnesota College Athletic Conference is the organizational body for NJCAA-affiliated two-year technical and community college athletic programs in the Minnesota State system. The mission of the Minnesota College Athletic Conference is to advance intercollegiate athletics by providing an engaging and supportive environment for success of our student athletes and competition among member institutions. The MCAC is committed to the guiding principles of encouraging the development and success of student athletes, promoting the integrity, honesty and loyalty to member schools as well as upholding the sustainability of conference athletic programs.