The race for women’s Summit League Player of the Year is turning out like a trip to the ice cream store. Staring out at the freezer there are a lot of options and you have some hard decisions to make. Cookies and cream, mint chocolate chip, lavender honey, something tried and true like vanilla or chocolate? Whatever you end up deciding, you can’t really go wrong. 
 
That’s the same with the array of players having great seasons that have put themselves in the mix for the league’s highest individual honor. Voters will have the difficult task of poring over a number of deserving cases, from several players with eye-popping statistics to others helping drive a pair of impressive team seasons. Here are five of the players voters will surely be considering: 
 
Naomie Alnatas, Kansas City
Could Alnatas follow Ericka Mattingly as just the second Roo to be named POY? The French Guiana native has a strong case as she’s spearheaded a resurgent season for Kansas City. Alnatas’ name is splashed across the league leaderboards, as she’s first in the Summit in scoring (19.3 ppg) and assists (5.2 apg), and seventh in field goal percentage (49.5%). The explosive point guard recently had a stretch of five consecutive 20-point or more games, capped off by averaging 29.5 points per game in wins over St. Thomas and Western Illinois. She’s helped lead a seven-game winning streak that has put Kansas City in a strong position to nab the league’s three seed heading into Sioux Falls. The team success plus the astounding production may well leave Alnatas holding the hardware at the end of the day. 
 
Kacie Borowicz, North Dakota 
The case for Kacie Borowicz reads much the same. The Rosseau, Minn. native has been borderline unstoppable as a scorer throughout the year, and is second in the league in both points (18.9) and assists (4.5 apg) per game. Mallory Bernhard talked about how Borowicz has been much more than a scorer this year, and has gotten her teammates involved and contributed all over the court. Her return to health has been one of the biggest factors in North Dakota’s about face from a 2-19 team a year ago, to a 15-win team very much in contention for the three seed. Borowicz and Alnatas meet in Kansas City on Thursday for a massive matchup, and if the Fighting Hawks end up finishing above the Roos when the regular season dust settles, it may well be enough to propel Borowicz’s tremendous campaign to the top of the mountain. 
 
Chloe Lamb, South Dakota 
Todd Lee called Lamb the Cal Ripken of college basketball in a recent interview, and that certainly rings true as the redshirt senior caps off another season as the Coyotes’ rock. Lamb leads South Dakota in scoring at 15.4 ppg, which is good for fifth overall in the league. She’s also been the Coyotes’ most combustible scorer throughout the year, going for a career-high 30 points in a win over Pittsburgh in November, and scoring in double figures in all but one conference game this season. As importantly, Lamb has contributed heavily to USD’s suffocating defense as arguably its best perimeter defender. Dawn Plitzuweit said in a January press conference that the redshirt senior defines how she wants her program to do things and while Lamb may not have league-leading stats, yet another star-studded, well-rounded season should have the Onida, S.D. native right in the POY mix. 
 
Hannah Sjerven, South Dakota
If pure impact is the most important factor in determining a POY, then Sjerven may well be the frontrunner. The sixth-year senior is at the heart of the vise-grip defense that has put USD in position to not only compete with SDSU for the league title, but also potentially grab an at-large bid if needed. The Coyotes have only allowed Division I opponents to score 54.6 points (13th best in the country per HerHoopStats.com), and grab a measly 9.3 offensive rebounds per game. Much of that is due to the role Sjerven plays closing off the paint and laying the foundation for everything else that happens around her. While Lamb and Liv Korngable have been terrific, Sjerven may be the team’s most irreplaceable player. Her traditional stats are great too (13.5 ppg, 7.5 rpg, 1.9 bpg), making it hard to look past her as a legitimate contender for the honor. 
 
Paige Meyer, South Dakota State 
The freshmen guard seems like a token pick from a Jackrabbits’ team that has shot its way to 13-1 and is jockeying not only for a regular season title, but also an at-large worthy resume. That may be partly true since a balanced SDSU team does probably by default deserve a player in the POY race, but it also undercuts how good Meyer has been this season. The Albany, Minn. native is second on the team in scoring (10.9 ppg) and third in the league in assists (4.2 apg), while shooting a torrid 61.5 percent from the field since conference play began. That mark is good for second in the league, and all the more impressive from a guard. Myah Selland gained steam and has been playing at a POY-caliber level. Her and the other three Jackrabbit starters have been vital to their success, but Meyer has arguably been the most instrumental throughout the entire season. The nature of this SDSU team probably precludes a POY, but that doesn’t make them any less dangerous.
 
The Rest of The Pack
The five players above may not be the only ones that ultimately have a say in the race for POY. Korngable (12.8 ppg) has had a huge impact on the Coyotes sparkling season, and few would put it past Selland closing the season on a tear. Brooklyn McDavid has been tremendous for Kansas City, as has Uju Ezeudu for Denver and Danni Nichols and Evan Zars for Western Illinois. Young players have shone too. Tirzah Moore has broken out for Oral Roberts and Jade Hill has been instrumental for St. Thomas, both as freshmen.