The women’s basketball team is coming off of a historic season, finishing the 2023-24 season with a 30-3 record, participating in the Great American Conference regular season championship, and holding the number one seed in the Central Region Tournament, earning them the opportunity to host the tournament at home. After such an exciting and record-breaking season, the Crimson Storm are looking to continue their success with the new squad that Coach May and staff have put together for the 2024-2025 season.
The women’s basketball team returns twelve players from last year’s team, including Great American Conference Defensive Player of the Year, Hannah Giddey. Giddey was one of the key pieces to the Crimson Storm’s run last year, as she came off a season averaging nearly a double-double, 15.2 points and 9.6 rebounds per game. Along with this impressive stat line, she averaged 4.6 assists per game and led the nation in blocked shots, collecting 120 on the season. They are also bringing back starter Jena Bay, who will be a huge piece for the team this year and will bring a lot of on-court experience for the Crimson Storm. Many other players are returning to the court who will bring experience and veteran leadership into the new season.
Graduate student Hannah Giddey says the expectations going into this season haven’t changed for the team. She says, “Even though we have a much different team than last year, the goals are all still the same. We want to win a lot of games and end up on top of the GAC in both the regular season and conference tournament.”
This season, the women’s basketball team brings in three transfers for the 2024-2025 season. Notable transfer is graduate student Katie King, who transferred in from Cameron University. She had an impressive four-year career with the Aggies, receiving all-conference, all-defensive, and all-freshman team honors. She also holds the Cameron program record for the most steals in a game. Other notable transfers include junior Asnate Gerke, who comes from Hillsborough Community College in Tampa, Florida, and sophomore Jordan Hoffman, who transferred from Cal Poly.
The last additions to the Crimson Storm are the four new freshmen, who come from near and far. Braci Nyberg comes from Seiling, Oklahoma, less than two hours away from Bethany. She came to Southern Nazarene University after finishing a decorated career at Seiling High School, collecting three state championships, and several other athletic and academic awards. Mia Singstock is a versatile guard from Phoenix, Arizona. She is also coming off of a decorated career for Pinnacle High School, receiving all-conference honors and even a conference player of the year. Abby Boyce is a talented post from Lubbock, Texas who was dominant throughout her high school career at Frenship High School. She holds several rebounding records and has received several all-state awards and academic honors. The fourth and final freshman is Ella Neitz from San Antonio, Texas. She joined the Crimson Storm off of a successful career at Antonian College Prep, receiving several all-state honors and academic achievements.
Sophomore Jillian Crawford speaks in high regard about the new additions to the team, “All of the new girls have come in and gelled well with the team and our system. We are all working hard together and putting a lot of preparation into being ready for the season.”
The Crimson Storm hopes to continue their dominance in the Great American Conference this season. As of right now, they were chosen second in the pre-season rankings, only behind the Harding Bisons. The Crimson Storm are walking into this season with a lot to prove and with high expectations. Their season officially kicks off Tuesday, October 29th at 6:30 PM in Stillwater, Oklahoma with an exhibition against the Oklahoma State Cowgirls.
Featured Photo by: All About Now Photography