MILWAUKEE, WI - D'Asia Williams and Allison Michalski received first team all-conference honors from the Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference as the postseason awards were released on Tuesday.

"This is a well deserved honor for both Allison and D'Asia," head coach Charlie Averkamp said. "Both of them are great representatives of our program and have earned these all-conference honors through hard work and buying into the team culture. They both are about the team success over individual so it's great to see them recognized by the conference." 

Williams finishes her career as a three-time all-conference honoree. The Milwaukee, Wis. native joined the 1,000-point club late in the season, becoming the eighth player in program history to achieve the milestone. Williams finished third on the team in scoring at 11.3 points per game. The senior made a team high 41 three-pointers while finishing first among regulars in free throw percentage at .706. Williams, who connected on a three-pointer in 20 contests, tallied 15 double-figure games with a season best of 24 at Aurora on January 16. Seven times this year, Williams led the team in scoring.

Michalski led the team in scoring at 14.2 points per game, fifth in the conference. The sophomore scored in double figures in 22 contests this season including the final 21 games of the season. Michalski led the team in scoring eight times, tallying a season best 22 at MSOE on January 10. The Algonquin, Ill. native notched three games with 20 or more points.

"We would also like to recognize Alex Fanning on a unbelievable freshman season," Averkamp said. "She was unable to be honored by the conference, but as a team we recognize Alex's impact on our program."

Benedictine finished 21-4, setting the single season record for wins. The team received a regional ranking in the Central Region for the first time in program history and ended the season with a second straight ranking in the final regional poll.

BELOW COURTESY OF THE NACC
MILWAUKEE, Wis. (naccsports.org) --- The Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference (NACC) women's basketball awards have been announced for the 2018-19 season. All awards are voted on by the league's head coaches.

Wisconsin Lutheran College's Jen Dowden repeated as NACC Player of the Year. Entering the NCAA Tournament, Dowden has started each of WLC's 27 games and leads the team in scoring at 16.2 points per game. She also averaged 4.0 rebounds and 3.2 assists per game. Dowden became WLC's career scoring leader late in the NACC Tournament final against Concordia Wisconsin and currently stands third on the NACC's career scoring list with 1,744 points.

Dowden's WLC teammate Maddie Cruz earned Defensive Player of the Year honors. Always assigned to guard the other team's best players, Cruz ranked among the league leaders in charges taken. She has started all 27 games headed into the NCAA Tournament, averaging 3.8 points, 2.8 rebounds, 2.0 assists, and 1.4 steals.

Edgewood College's Lexi Walter was selected as the Freshman of the Year. Walter played in all 25 games for the Eagles, starting 21, while finishing third on the team in scoring at 8.9 points per game in her rookie season. She led Edgewood in field goal percentage (52.2 percent; 97-of-186), rebounds (6.3 rpg) and blocks (1.7 bpg) - finishing in the top 10 in league play in all three categories.

Wisconsin Lutheran's Klay Knueppel was voted Coach of the Year by his peers for the fourth time after directing the Warriors (26-1, 19-1 NACC) to NACC regular-season and tournament titles and a berth in the NCAA Division III Women's Basketball Championship. Knueppel picked up his 300th career victory with a win over Dominican in the NACC Tournament semifinals.

Wisconsin Lutheran and Aurora University each had three all-conference selections with the Warriors securing a pair of first-team honors. Benedictine University, Concordia University Wisconsin and Lakeland University had two all-league picks apiece, while Dominican University, Edgewood College and Milwaukee School of Engineering each had one all-NACC selection. 

The complete awards listing appears below.

2019 NACC Women's Basketball Awards
Player of the Year: Jen Dowden, Wisconsin Lutheran
Defensive Player of the Year: Maddie Cruz, Wisconsin Lutheran
Freshman of the Year: Lexi Walter, Edgewood
Coach of the Year: Klay Knueppel, Wisconsin Lutheran