New Landscape, New Tigers: With NAIA combining to one division, DWU looks to revamp playstyle

MITCHELL, S.D. – The landscape of the 2020-21 season will look a little different for fans of the Dakota Wesleyan University women's basketball team, as the NAIA has moved to one division for basketball. With so many questions about what the season will look like, one item remains the same, the Great Plains Athletic Conference will still be one of the most competitive conferences in the nation.

 Despite the combination of two divisions, don't be surprised if previously classified Division II schools are competitive from the get-go. In the NAIA Preseason Polls, nine teams in the top-25 are previous DII programs, including fellow GPAC schools Dordt University, Concordia University and Morningside College.

 The postseason also underwent a facelift. The postseason begins with opening round games played on campus sites from March 12-13, 2021. Following those games, the final 16 teams head to Sioux City, Iowa from March 18-23 to crown the national champion.

 In order to reach the postseason, teams are preparing to play different schools than in previous years. Tougher competition might appeal to the ratings committee, which has in turn caused teams to play schools they never have before or have not played in a long time. One example of this is DWU playing Carroll College (Mont.) this season. The Tigers and Saints have only played once before in 2014, with DWU winning the matchup. The Tigers also host Montana Tech University, a team they have never played before.

 The two other non-conference matchups for the Tigers will be at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, S.D., where DWU kicks off its season. DWU opens the season against Valley City State University and plays Presentation College just one day later on Nov. 8 in the annual Sanford Pentagon NAIA Basketball Classic.

 "The neat thing about going one division is that instead of 32 teams making the national tournament, 64 teams get in now," head coach Jason Christensen said. "In turn, that makes things more difficult. Some of those DI schools are very good. This season will be a lot more competitive, but competition is always good."

 If the Tigers plan to return to the postseason for a sixth-straight season, they will have to find new scoring threats. DWU graduates its top four scoring threats, including All-Americans Kynedi Cheeseman and Sarah Carr, who combined to average 36.4 points per game.

 Despite losing key pieces from last season, the Tigers have a plethora of talent returning, along with an impressive transfer. Junior Kaylee Kirk (Balaton, Minn.) has been a steady presence on the court and looks to continue that this season. She averaged 4.9 points, 5.4 rebounds and 4.2 assists per game last year. She also ranked 19^th in the NAIA with 80 total steals and 21^st nationally with 134 total assists.

 Other players that Christensen will look to include second-year players Matti Reiner (Tripp, S.D.) and Rynn Osthus (De Smet, S.D.). Reiner played in 30 games and started nine, while averaging 3.6 points and 2.3 rebounds per game. She recorded career highs in points with 15-point outings twice last season. Osthus looks to continue her career after a strong freshman campaign seeing action in all but one contest, while scoring 2.5 points per game and tallying 2.0 rebounds per game.

 "This year's team is going to be a whole new makeup," Christensen commented. "This is probably the most athletic team that I've had. We might struggle offensively, but defensively we will be pretty good. So hopefully our defense helps our offense out."

 A crucial piece that Christensen added in the offseason was Presentation College transfer Jada Campbell (Alexandria, S.D.) who enters her junior season on the court. At PC, Campbell recorded 21 double-doubles as she averaged 16.4 points and 13.9 rebounds per game in her sophomore season. She finished third in the NAIA in rebounds, on her way to being named the North Star Athletic Association Defensive-Player-of-the-Year. Standing at 6-foot-4, Campbell adds size to the Tiger front court that Christensen says will be crucial.

 "Not only does she bring height, but she has some speed and can get up and down the court," Christensen mentioned of his transfer. "Her inside presence is going to be huge."

 Other returners Christensen will turn to for depth include juniors Haylee Mork (Aberdeen, S.D.), Grace Imbery (Aberdeen, S.D.) and Natalie Gottlob (Salem, S.D.) and sophomore Sydnaya Dunn (Sioux Falls, S.D.).

 The Tigers look to use a lot of depth this season, so the Tiger faithful will have to learn a lot of names quickly. Some of those names include Haidyn Pitsch (Prior Lake, Minn.), Aspen Hansen (Dell Rapids, S.D.), Mya Wilson (Sioux Falls, S.D.), Korynn Clason (Cambridge, Neb.), Hannah Behrens (Brandon, S.D.) and Anna Campbell (Lead, S.D.).

 In the GPAC preseason polls, the Tigers were selected to finish sixth. This is the lowest the Tigers have been picked since the 2015-16 season when DWU made the GPAC Championship Game and made a run to the national quarterfinals. However, Christensen said it doesn't bother him because they still have to play the game.

 "I take it one game at a time," Christensen said. "I know our kids were not happy being picked sixth. But I haven't been caught up in it. You still have to go out and prove yourself night in and night out to be where you want to be."

 Whether the same will be true for the 2020-21 Tigers is yet to be determined. But one thing remains true, the Tigers can never be counted out.