SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – South Dakota State’s Noah Freidel and Kansas City’s Naomie Alnatas captured November’s TicketSmarter Summit League Athlete of the Month honors, league officials announced Thursday.
Freidel was instrumental in the Jackrabbits’ 7-2 start to the season during November as he averaged 20.3 ppg in five starts. The Tea, S.D., native shot 50.8 percent from the field (61-for-120), including 34-of-75 from 3-point range. His 183 total points were the most by a Division I player and his 34 3-pointers made were second nationally.
The third-year sophomore scored in double figures in all nine contests, including six games with 20 or more points. He scored a season-high 25 points in wins at Stephen F. Austin on Nov. 14 and versus George Mason on Nov. 24 in the Mammoth Sports Construction Crossover Classic at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, S.D.
Alnatas had quite the start to her senior season, leading the Roos to six wins in the opening month. The Cayenne, French Guiana native leads the nation in three-point percentage at 68.2 percent after going 15-for-22 from beyond the arc in seven games. Alnatas averaged a league-best 19.3 ppg game and leads the league in total assists (38), assists per game (5.4), free throw percentage (87.5), assist/turnover ratio (1.9) and total points (135).
The Roo senior’s most recent performance saw her and the Roos defeat UT Arlington 85-76 at the UNLV Thanksgiving Classic in Las Vegas, Nev., where she scored a season-high 38 points, registered seven assists, grabbed four rebounds and tallied three steals in the victory. She went 12-for-19 from the field, including 6-for-7 from three-point range for her second career 35-plus point game.
Alnatas is the first Roo to win the league's female monthly honor since May of the 1995-96 academic year when track standout Sheri Pewitte claimed the honor.
FEMALE ATHLETE OF THE MONTH
Naomie Alnatas, Kansas City
Sr. | Basketball | Cayenne, French Guiana
- Leads the nation in three-point field goal percentage (68.2%) and averaged 19.3 ppg in seven November contests
- Ranked second in the league in field goal percentage (53.5) and leads the league in turnover ratio, total assists, assists per game, total points, points per game and free throw percentage
- Scored a season-high 38 points in win over UT-Arlington in Las Vegas, which is the highest-output by a Summit League player this season
- This is the first monthly honor of Alnatas’ career
Also nominated: Ryan Cobbins, North Dakota State; Sadie Limback, Omaha; Elizabeth Juhnke, South Dakota; Crystal Burk, South Dakota State; Danni Nichols, Western Illinois
MALE ATHLETE OF THE MONTH
Noah Freidel, South Dakota State
So. | Basketball | Tea, S.D.
- Averaged 20.3 ppg over nine games with five starts, shooting 50.8 percent (61-for-120) from the field, including 34-of-75 on three pointers
- Currently leads NCAA Division I in total points (183) and second nationally in three pointers made (34)
- Scored in double figures in all nine games, including six games with 20-plus points
- This is the first monthly honor of Freidel's career
Also nominated: Evan Gilyard II, Kansas City; Max Abmas, Oral Roberts; Adam Fisher, South Dakota; Riley Miller, St. Thomas; Luka Barisic, Western Illinois
2021-22 Summit League Athletes of the Month
August/September
Male: Dante Brigida, Soccer, Oral Roberts
Female: Sadie Limback, Volleyball, Omaha
October
Male: Gabe Peters, Cross Country, South Dakota State
Female: Sydney Sharp, Soccer, Denver
November
Male: Noah Freidel, Men’s Basketball, South Dakota State
Female: Naomie Alnatas, Women’s Basketball, Kansas City
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