SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – North Dakota State junior Avery Koenen was named the Summit League Player of the Year in a vote by the League’s head coaches, athletic communication directors and select media members, League officials announced Tuesday. The individual awards and all-league teams are based on performances during the Summit League’s 16 regular season games.

Koenen is putting together a historic junior season for North Dakota State, averaging a double double in 16 Summit League starts. The Montevideo, Minn., native recorded 19.8 ppg and 11.9 rpg in league play, ranking second in scoring and first in rebounding, while also placing second in field goal percentage (63.8).

Koenen also established a new single season Summit League record by earning her eighth conference weekly award, surpassing the previous mark of seven set by Kevi Luper of Oral Roberts during the 2009-10 season.

Alongside her Player of the Year honor, Koenen was also dominant on the defensive end, earning Defensive Player of the Year accolades for the first time in Bison history. Koenen made her presence felt in the paint, averaging 1.6 bpg in league play.

Jory Collins captured his first Coach of the Year honor and the first in North Dakota State Division I history after guiding the Bison to their first Summit League regular season title. His squad posted a 15-1 league record and rattled off a 23-game winning streak, the second longest active streak in the nation at the time.

In his seventh season at the helm for NDSU, Collins has led his teams to 18 or more wins in each of the last four seasons, including this year.

Karrington Asp was voted Sixth Woman of the Year, becoming the first player in North Dakota State history to earn the honor. The Epworth, Iowa, native averaged 11.1 ppg in Summit League play off the bench, shooting 56.4 percent from the field, and finished as the league’s top scoring reserve.

As a redshirt freshman, Asp also earned Freshman of the Year honors following a standout season for the Bison. The achievement marks the first time since the 2022-23 season that a Bison claimed the award, last accomplished by Elle Evans. Asp also became the first player in program history to win both of the awards in the same season.
 
South Dakota’s Molly Joyce earned Newcomer of the Year honors after averaging 15.8 ppg in her first season with the Coyotes. A transfer from Division II Truman State, she scored in double figures 14 times across 16 Summit League starts, including a season-high 24 points on two separate occasions.

Koenen headlined an All-Summit League First Team that featured a repeat honoree in South Dakota State’s Brooklyn Meyer, who averaged 22.4 points and 8.6 rebounds per game. The Jackrabbit senior led the league in scoring during conference play and was joined by teammate Madison Mathiowetz, who posted a career high 14.6 points per game in league action. The SDSU duo earning first team honors marked the third consecutive season that two Jackrabbits have landed on the first team.

Angelina Robles also landed on the All-Summit League First Team following a breakout senior season for the Coyotes. Robles averaged 16.4 points per game across 16 league starts and dished out 3.6 assists per contest, ranking second in the league.

Rounding out the First Team were sophomore standouts Coryn Watts of Denver and Alyssa Sand of St. Thomas. Watts led the Pioneers in scoring at 19.8 ppg, ranking third in the league across 16 starts, while also placing fourth in assists at 3.3 per game. Sand powered the Tommies on both ends of the floor, averaging a team best 14.1 ppg, ninth in the league, on 50.3 percent shooting, while adding 1.1 blocks per contest in league play.

The Second Team featured players from four different programs. Jalei Oglesby of Oral Roberts earned a spot after appearing on the First Team last season. In her final year, Oglesby averaged 16.6 points and 4.8 rebounds per game and reached double figures in 14 of 16 league starts.
 
The North Dakota State duo of Marisa Frost and Jocelyn Schiller earned Second Team honors after averaging 13.3 and 11.3 points per game, respectively, ranking second and third on the team. They were joined by Newcomer of the Year Molly Joyce and Kansas City’s Elauni Bennett, who averaged 10.0 points and 7.9 rebounds per game. Bennett was especially effective on the offensive glass, pulling down 4.2 offensive rebounds per contest, which ranked eighth nationally.

This year’s Honorable Mention honors went to five players from five different programs, including a trio of transfers in UND’s Mackenzie Hughes (13.5 ppg), ORU’s Anna Trusty (12.6 ppg), and USD’s Elise Turrubiates (9.0 ppg).
 
Rounding out the Honorable Mention squad was KC’s Emani Bennett (twin sister of Elauni) with 12.4 ppg and SDSU’s Emilee Fox with 8.6 ppg.

Koenen led the All-Defensive Team, which also included Meyer, Sand, Omaha’s Avril Smith, and Oral Roberts’ Ari Gordon. Smith, a freshman, paced the league with 2.5 blocks per game, Gordon, a redshirt junior, tied for second with 2.0 steals per contest, and Sand led the league with 2.5 steals per game.. Meyer earned All-Defensive Team honors for the third consecutive season.

The All-Newcomer Team featured UST’s Jada Hood (9.5 ppg), Hughes, Trusty, and South Dakota teammates Joyce and Turrubiates. Hood played a key role in the Tommies’ offense, ranking third on the team in scoring and leading the squad in assists with 3.5 per game, which ranked third in the league.
 
The All-Freshman team consisted of Asp, ORU’s Kayten Donley (12.2 ppg), SDSU’s Hadley Thul (6.1 ppg), and Omaha teammates Regan Juenemann (14.3 ppg) and Smith.

All of the League’s nine teams will make the trip to Sioux Falls this weekend for The Summit League Women’s Basketball Championship. The championship starts Wednesday at 4:30 p.m. CT when No. 8 Omaha meets No. 9 North Dakota at the Denny Sanford PREMIER Center.
 
The first round game, all four quarterfinals and both semifinals will be televised on Midco Sports and be streamed on the Summit League Network powered by the Midco Sports Plus app.

Sunday’s championship game will be televised live on CBS Sports Network at 3 p.m. CT.

2025-26 Summit League Women’s Basketball Awards
All-Summit League First Team
Avery Koenen, North Dakota State (Jr., F)*
Madison Mathiowetz, South Dakota State (Sr., G)
Brooklyn Meyer, South Dakota State (Sr., F)**
Angelina Robles, South Dakota (Sr., G)
Alyssa Sand, St. Thomas (So., F)
Coryn Watts, Denver (So., G)
 
All-Summit League Second Team
Elauni Bennett, Kansas City (Jr., G)
Marisa Frost, North Dakota State (So., G)
Molly Joyce, South Dakota (Jr., G)
Jalei Oglesby, Oral Roberts (RSr., G)**
Jocelyn Schiller, North Dakota State (So., G)
 
All-Summit League Honorable Mention
Emani Bennett, Kansas City (Jr., G)
Emilee Fox, South Dakota State (So., G)
Mackenzie Hughes, North Dakota (Gr., G)
Anna Trusty, Oral Roberts (So., G)
Elise Turrubiates, South Dakota (Sr., F)
 
^Player of the year automatically earns a spot on the first team
*previous all-league selections noted above
 
All-Defensive Team
Ari Gordon, Oral Roberts (RJr., G)
Avery Koenen, North Dakota State (Jr., F)
Brooklyn Meyer, South Dakota State (Sr., F)
Alyssa Sand, St. Thomas (So., F)
Avril Smith, Omaha (Fr., F)
 
All-Newcomer Team
Jada Hood, St. Thomas (Gr., G)
Mackenzie Hughes, North Dakota (Gr., G)
Molly Joyce, South Dakota (Jr., G)
Anna Trusty, Oral Roberts (So., G)
Elise Turrubiates, South Dakota (Sr., F)
 
All-Freshman Team
Karrington Asp, North Dakota State (RFr., F)
Kayten Donley, Oral Roberts (Fr., F)
Regan Juenemann, Omaha (Fr., G)
Avril Smith, Omaha (Fr., F)
Hadley Thul, South Dakota State (Fr., G)
 
Player of the Year: Avery Koenen, North Dakota State
Newcomer of the Year: Molly Joyce, South Dakota
Freshman of the Year: Karrington Asp, North Dakota State
Sixth Woman of the Year: Karrington Asp, North Dakota State
Defensive Player of the Year: Avery Koenen, North Dakota State
Coach of the Year: Jory Collins, North Dakota State

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