Dordt women win first-ever NAIA Basketball championship in Sioux City
Defenders rally in 2nd half to win title behind Gustafson and Schoonhoven
SIOUX CITY, IA (Dakota News Now) -The Argonauts of Providence (MT) took a double digit lead in the 2nd half of Tuesday night’s NAIA championship game in Sioux City.
But playing in front of a very pro-Defender crowd so close to Sioux Center, the Defenders rallied behind Karly Gustafson’s 16 points and Janie Schoonhoven’s 14 points and 11 rebounds to edge the Argos 57-53 and win the first National Title in school history. They had lost in the championship game 2 years ago.
This year’s team was ranked #1 and finished with an impressive 35-2 record with losses to only SDSU (made NCAA Division I Tournament) and arch-rival Northwestern.
For Ethan native Gustafson, the school’s all-time leading scorer, it was a perfect way to finish her career.
Dordt Senior Karly Gustafson says, “Yeah as a fifth year I knew this was the last game and so it’s just even sweeter to go out on top in your last game so.”
Dordt WBB Coach Bill Harmsen says, “It’s really special the love that we have for this team and the love that these women have for each other and it’s a really tight-bonded group and just to watch them be kids and celebrate the moment together is one of those things I’ll never forget.”
Copyright 2024 KSFY. All rights reserved.
