Gustavus Adolphus women’s basketball players Molly Geske (Mendota Heights, Minn.) and Molly Mathiowetz (Sleepy Eye, Minn.) have been honored as All-Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference by a vote of the league’s coaches. Colleen Ruane (Edina, Minn.) was named to the All-MIAC Defensive Team, while Eli Benz (Steele, N.D.) earned a spot on the All-First Year Team. Ruane was also Gustavus’ representative on the All-MIAC Sportsmanship Team.
Junior wing Molly Geske, now a two-time All-Conference performer, led the Gusties in points (386 points), field goals made (133), three point field goals made (37), and free throw shooting this season (.902). Geske averaged a team-high 14.3 points per game, ranking her seventh in the MIAC, while her 14.9 ppg within conference play ranked fifth. Along with her scoring ability from the floor, Geske finished the season as the top free throw shooter in all of NCAA Division III. She went 83-for-92 from the charity stripe for a nation-leading 90.2-percent free throw percentage. The Cretin-Derham Hall product earned her 1,000th career point in an 85-45 win over Augsburg on Feb. 16th. She became just the fifth player in the history of the women’s basketball program to reach 1000 points in her third season, ranking 10th all-time among Gustavus’ leading scorers. Geske, who averaged a team-high 30.5 minutes per game, scored in double-figures in all but five games this season, shooting 42.6-percent from the field and 38.5-percent from three point range.
Senior forward Molly Mathiowetz makes her second appearance on the All-Conference team as well. Mathiowetz led the Gusties in field goals made (133), field goal shooting percentage (.501), and rebounding (160) this season. She was Gustavus’ second- leading scorer, averaging 12.9 points per game overall and 13.0 ppg in the MIAC, and shooting 50.7-percent from the field (6th in MIAC) within conference play. Mathiowetz finished her career with a total of 1077 points, 554 rebounds, and 198 steals in 103 games. She ranks ninth all-time in scoring, ninth in rebounding, fourth in steals, and is tied for seventh in games played. The Sleepy Eye, Minn. native has played a total of 2320 minutes (22.5 mpg), shooting 49.9-percent from the field and averaging 10.5 points per game over her career.
Junior guard Colleen Ruane makes her first appearance in the MIAC post-season honors, earning a spot on the defensive and sportsmanship teams. Ruane, a lock-down defender on the perimeter, led the MIAC in steals with 64 (2.91 spg) this season. The Edina, Minn. native led the Gusties in assists with 72, while ranking third in the league in assist to turnover ratio at 1.71. Ruane shot 39.9-percent from the field on the year, averaging 7.8 points per game and 2.4 rebounds per game. As part of a conference-wide sportsmanship initiative, the MIAC announced the fifth annual All-MIAC Sportsmanship team for women’s basketball. Members of the All-MIAC Sportsmanship team are selected by their coaches and teammates as individuals who demonstrate ideals of positive sportsmanship both on and off the field of competition.
First-year wing Eli Benz earns a spot on the All-Rookie team following her first season in a Gustavus uniform. Benz averaged 6.3 points per game while playing an average of 19.0 minutes per game. She shot 42.9-percent from the field and ranked second on the team in assists with 49. This is the fourth consecutive year that Gustavus has had at least one player named to the All-Rookie team following Molly Mathiowetz in 2008, and Molly Geske in 2009, and Abby Rothenbuehler in 2010.