Charger News
Grider
Grider
Mon, Apr 26, 2010 | Women's Basketball
The Briar Cliff women's basketball team, under the direction of head coach Mike Power, recently handed out its 2009-10 team awards. The team's Most Valuable Player Award went to senior Liz Grider (Chaska, MN). Grider, the leading scorer in the nation, finished off the season with a single season school record 925 points and scoring average of 25.7 ppg. 
The NAIA and Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC) Player-of-the-Year also led the Chargers with 79 three-pointers, a school record 240 free-throws made and 96 steals. She was second on the team with 5.2 rpg, 111 assists and 33 blocked shots.
 
Junior Morgan Brown (Fort Dodge, IA) was awarded the team's Hustle Award, while junior Michelle Determan (Lincoln, NE) received the Defensive Award. Brown, an honorable mention all-conference selection, started 32 games this season and averaged 11.3 ppg. In addition, she had 4.1 rpg and chalked up 83 steals and 73 assists. Determan also earned all-conference honorable mention honors and averaged 6.7 ppg. She led the team with 113 assists and was third on the team in steals with 75. The team's Sixth Man Award went to freshman Kelsey Evans (Willmar, MN). Evans logged minutes in 35 games, and was a starter in four of those contests. She tallied 63 steals and 52 assists and averaged 6.3 ppg and 3.1 rpg. The Chargers' Most Improved Player Award went to freshman Kela Cihak (Avon, SD), who saw action in 33 games. She was 29-38 from the free throw line for an average of 76.3 percent and contributed 3.3 ppg off the bench.
 
At the junior varsity level, freshmen Maddie Borer (Atkinson, IA) and Becky Bowman (Denver, CO) earned end-of-the-season recognition. Borer was named the JV MVP, while Bowman was selected as the unit's most improved player.
 
A few other Chargers also earned honors during the 2009-10 campaign. Sophomore Megan Salcedo (Omaha, NE) earned second team all-conference accolades and was the team's top shooter, connecting on 67.6 percent of her attempts. Salcedo was second on the team in scoring with an average of 12.3 ppg. Junior Kendra Collins (Le Mars, IA) and seniors Cat Nelson (Sioux City, IA) and Sam Pearson (Newcastle, NE) were recognized as 2010 Daktronics-NAIA Scholar-Athletes. In order to obtain this status, recipients had to have a cumulative grade point average of at least 3.5 and have been nominated by their coach. Collins saw action in 18 games, while Nelson played in seven. Pearson averaged 1.4 ppg and totaled 14 assists and 14 steals in 23 contests.
 
The Chargers finished the 2009-10 season with a record of 28-8. They were 13-5 in the GPAC and 13-3 at the Newman Flanagan Center. The Chargers qualified for the NAIA Div. II Women's Basketball National Championship and advanced all the way to the Fab Four for the third time in school history. They led the nation with 3,092 points, but were second in the nation with a scoring average of 85.9 ppg. They were also second in the country in steals (584), fourth in rebounds (1,516), fourth in assists (592) and fifth in field goal percentage (44.8 percent).
 
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