Wednesday, December 17, 2008

Omaha Nebraska


Omaha, NE- The Dixie State women’s basketball team visited the 3rd grade classrooms at Central Park Elementary School in Omaha, NE. They spent the morning reading and doing crafts with the students of Ms. Larson’s and Ms. Pederson’s classrooms. “It was a great opportunity for our student-athletes to work with students from a different socio-economic background. The students seemed to really respond to our girls,” stated Coach Kristensen. The 3rd grade students were then able to eat lunch with the girls and finished the visit with questions about athletics and college. “At Central Park they put a big emphasis on going to college and having goals. I thought it was great that we were able to provide them with some answers on how to get there and hopefully serve as role models,” says Coach Kristensen.

Tuesday, December 9, 2008

Bulldogs stand out to play for Dixie

Johnna Brown drew plenty of recruiting interest to play Division I softball or basketball.
But the Centennial senior signed with Division II Dixie State in order to play both.
"It's going to be exciting to see how it turns out," Brown said. "A lot of coaches didn't want to work with me to play two (sports)."
Brown will be joined in women's basketball at Dixie State by Centennial teammates Deanna Daniels and Rashawnda Gray, who also signed with the Rebels during the early signing period (Nov. 12 to 19).
"We were fortunate to get (Brown) because she could have played Division I basketball," said Dixie State coach Angela Kristensen, who envisions the 6-foot Brown playing small forward. "She'll be one of those special kids. It's tough to be an impact player as a freshman, but Johnna has the potential to do that."
At Centennial, Brown is a starting outside hitter in volleyball, forward in basketball and shortstop in softball. She was an all-state selection in basketball and softball as a junior.
"Johnna wanted to go and do multiple sports," Bulldogs basketball coach Karen Weitz said. "(Dixie State) was kind of the window of opportunity for her."
Brown was close to scheduling a visit to Florida State for softball but finally sided with Dixie State to play two sports.
Overlap of schedules will be a hurdle with the Rebels. Dixie State's basketball season ends in March, and softball begins in February.
"The two (Dixie State) coaches talked, and they said, 'We would work it out,' " Brown said.
The Centennial basketball team has attended summer camps on the Dixie State campus, which turned out to be a key to the Bulldogs trio signing with the St. George, Utah, school.
"We'd mess around and say, 'If the three of us go here, that'd be pretty cool,' " Brown said.
Daniels, a power forward, attracted Division I interest from schools including UC Irvine, Weitz said. Gray, a wing who is out for the season with a torn anterior cruciate ligament, took a visit to San Diego.
But the chance for the trio to play together in Division II apparently was more appealing than playing separately in Division I.

Updates

I realized this week that I haven’t done a very good job of updating this blog – so I am going to try and play catch up. So far it has been filled with a season of some highs and lows but still I am overall very happy with the girls.

We started off with two games in southern California playing San Bernardino and UC San Diego – two teams who made the national tournament last year. We didn’t play very well against Bernardino and ended up losing 62-57. I felt that was a game we could have very easily won, but didn’t play up to our potential. Then we traveled to San Diego a team that starts five girls above 6’0. They also played in the national tournament last year. We battled with them the entire game, got down in the second half by 13 – but came back to tie it. We ran out of gas and came up short and had to foul in the end. Final score was 71-61. I feel this team will be a top team in our region and felt like we were right there – so I took some positives from the weekend even though we went 0-2.


The next weekend we were again on the road at Chico State! We played the host school first and they hadn’t lost a game in 24 home game win streak, which was huge. Chico made the national tournament last year as well and were picked this year to win the CCAA. I was so proud of our girls as we played well. It was a bitter sweet victory though because we lost, Jessica Carver to a season ending knee injury. That is the fourth player from last year’s starting squad that is missing from this team - talk about adversity! Saturday we played Sonoma State – another team that made the national tournament last year. It was a back and forth game, but we just didn’t have enough gas and lost 70-63. This puts us at 1-3.

This past weekend we got to go back to the Midwest. Two of our seniors and Coach Larson are from Iowa (Lindsey Chettinger and Courtney Boyd) along with myself being from South Dakota. We spent Thanksgiving at the Chettinger’s and ate more food than you can possibly imagine! We pretty much ate Iowa right off the map! Saturday we played University of South Dakota – who was National Champion Runner’s up last year at NCAA DII. This year they made the jump to Division I. With four minutes to play in the game we were all tied up – then we only score one point in the final minutes. We had good looks they just didn’t fall and lost 80-62.

Monday we traveled to College of Saint Mary, which is the college that I coached at before coming to Dixie State. We won that game by a score of 100-67. It was a great game for some of our younger girls to get some minutes.

That puts us at 2-4 but we have had a pretty challenging schedule up to this point. We FINALLY have home games this weekend when we host our tournament.

We have had some bad luck with injuries but that is a part of the game. We just have to try different things to get the job done and they are responding well. I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving and we appreciate your support!

Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Dixie State Women’s Basketball Signs Two Vegas Prep Players to National Letters of Intent During Early Signing Period



(ST. GEORGE, Utah – November 18, 2008) – Dixie State College of Utah head women’s basketball coach Angela Kristensen announced Tuesday the signing of two players to National Letters of Intent during the early signing period. Both signees, Deanna Daniels, a 5-11 guard/forward, and Rashawnda Gray, a 5-8 guard, are seniors at Las Vegas’ Centennial High School, and have committed to play at DSC in the upcoming 2009-10 season.“Both of these student-athletes are tremendous leaders both on and off the court and we look for them to make an immediate impact for us next season,” Coach Kristensen said. “They’ve both been coached by one of the most successful prep coaches in the country in Karen Weitz, so they are well prepared to play at the collegiate level. With both of these players receiving interest from a number of Division-I schools, we feel very fortunate that they chose to come to Dixie State.”Daniels, who is a three-time all-division and 2007 first-team all-state performer, has helped lead the Bulldogs to an 85-12 overall record, three-straight division titles, one region title and a state runner-up finish in her first three years of play. She averaged nearly a double-double as a junior at 14.0 points and 9.1 rebounds a game, along with 3.8 steals and 2.5 assists per outing. Daniels has also got the job done in the classroom as she has been listed on the honor roll all three years and was named Scholar Athlete as a sophomore.“Deanna has an unbelievable knack for the ball,” Kristensen noted. “She is a tenacious rebounder with very long arms and has a lot of upside as she continues to develop her perimeter skills.”Gray is a three-year letterwinner who got her first chance to start as a junior last season. She responded by averaging 9.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 2.0 steals at the off-guard position. “Rashawnda is a strong, athletic guard with a quick first step and has the ability to finish around the basket,” Kristensen said. “She is also a consistent shooter from the outside, so we look for her to be able to score a number of different ways.”

Wednesday, November 5, 2008

Underway By: Coach K

We have been at this now since the day after Labor Day – conditioning, weights, study hall, and classes and now it is officially started! We had 2 weeks of practice before hitting the hardwood for our first exhibition game over the weekend. I have been nothing less than impressed with this group of ladies we have that make up this team. They come to practice every day wanting to get better and giving me everything they have! I respect them for that and hopefully it will all pay off.

We played Southern Utah University this past Saturday evening. Exhibition games are always funny because you never really know what to expect. I like them because win or lose it gives the coaching staff a feel of where you are and what you have to do in order to get better. I feel that each player this year can give us something and that is what I am most proud of!

We didn’t shoot it very well (29% to be exact) but we made up for it in different areas. We had 22 offensive boards to their 7 and that gave us an opportunity to shoot it 14 more times. That might have been the difference in the ball game. They also shoot it from the free throw line better than their coach EVER did in college. I won’t even tell you what my overall percentage but we were 18 of 21 from the charity stripe – which is great!

The win was bittersweet because at the time of the game Southern Utah’s coach, Steve Hudson, was at home battling cancer and he just passed away earlier this morning. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family. We enjoyed the games we played against him and his teams and respect so much what he did for basketball in southern Utah!

We learned a lot about this team and our strengths and weaknesses! We hope we can do better as we head up to play Utah State on Friday and BYU on Saturday! Two weeks until the season officially kicks off!

Friday, October 24, 2008

Looking from the Outside In By: Lexe Jacobs

Where to begin! Last year I was recruited to come to play here at Dixie State by Coach K and Coach Larson. I committed, signed and before I knew it I was down in St. George getting ready for the season to start! Through out the summer and preseason I had been working so hard, I was determined to get some playing time. Preseason was a blast! Well, kinda... Early morning conditioning, weights, and pick-up all in one day was exhausting. Getting to know the girls and hangin out with them was awesome! I loved it. Preseason soon came to an end and we were stoked for the games to begin. I personally started off playing well and was playing with the team. That slowly went down hill; having a history of back problems was taking its toll and slowing me down. Sitting at the end of the bench wasn't exactly what I had expected, as well as the coaches. It was like I made a complete U turn. But the season was ending soon and I was determined to get my back ready and my self in shape for the next season! Little did I know the last game of the season would be the last game of my career.
Now that basketball is only something I watch and not physically be a part of, I wish I could go back. There are so many things I would change and do different with basketball. I wish I would have worked out the days I was too lazy and wasn't in the mood, I wish I would have stayed that extra half hour after practice to work on my shot. So many others; but mostly, I wish I would have realized how little time I had left. I took so many things for granted. So I guess the moral of my story is play and practice like its your last, because you really never know when it all comes to a halting screech. Do what you love and love what you do; don't waste your time!

Monday, October 13, 2008

CJ Miles Comes to Dixie!

The Dixie State Women's Basketball Team conducted a youth clinic this fall. Utah Jazz guard, CJ Miles, came down and volunteered his time for the clinic. It was for area youth ages K-8th grade. CJ and the girls did a great job and enjoyed the opportunity to work with kids in the community! I am not sure who got more out of the clinic - the kids or our girls as CJ taught them all a lot!


CJ Miles with the basketball team


Brandi with a participant from the camp



CJ Miles with the kids!

Thursday, October 9, 2008

The Move, By: Tanya Clark

Ok, so basically, the 16th of August rolled around and it was time to say my goodbyes. The summer was awesome and it was a heartbreaker to leave all of my friends! I spent the summer back home in Beaumont , CA at my dad’s house. He kept trying to coax me to stay at home. “C’mon Tanya, there are plenty of schools out here you can go to! Just stay here.” I’m sure every college student went through that with their parents! I think everyone just got used to me being home, especially my little sister Erynn. “Whose going to read to me Tanya?” I was like seriously, I don’t want to leave!
The car ride was interesting to say the least. At first I was just going to drive up to St. George by myself but my dad offered to drive me. Between my dad singing country songs and my little sister asking me a million and one questions, I was going insane! My dad was going like 90 miles per hour. Until we got to the gorge I swear riding with him is like riding a roller coaster at an amusement park. But we always get there faster when he drives so that’s a plus!
I was really anxious when we arrived in St. George! We pulled in at about 11:30 p.m. and I wanted to meet my roomies! I already knew one, Jess Jones and I had seen Allison on my visit. Nani, on the other hand, was a mystery. A name like Nan …i I was like sweet, she’s Hawaiian! Boy was I wrong! The early morning hit and we were getting ready to leave the Ramada Inn. I was just really excited. My dad looked a little blue but I knew he was happy for me.
Around noon, I officially met my roommates! I found that Nani’s real name was Danielle and she was from Laguna Nigel. It didn’t take long to unload all of my stuff because there were plenty of hands. The coaches came by and made sure everything was going ok and they got to meet my family. My dad thought they were players at first! The apartment was very nice, I was impressed. I finally got my own room for the first time in my life! After a short tour of St. George, my family left and I started to get teary eyed. I’m a huge daddy’s girl. My advice to those who get homesick: Stay busy! Have fun with new friends and take each day in as a learning experience.
To make a really long story short, Nani, Allison and I had no couches, no table, and no lamps. When Jess Jones came into town, we acquired a few of those things and more. Getting it all over here took a while. Three girls, a couch, all of Jess’ things and an entertainment center isn’t the best combo on a hot summer’s day. It was hard, but we worked together to get the apartment furnished and we even made friends with our neighbors. After we worked out all the kinks we could truly call St. George our home away from home!

Wednesday, October 1, 2008

Coach K

Welcome to our Dixie State Women’s Basketball page. I am beginning to start my third year here at Dixie State College and I have never been more excited for a season than this year. I am from Plankinton, South Dakota which has a population of 600 people (probably what some people have in their graduating class). I started playing basketball at Huron University in South Dakota and ended at Briar Cliff University, in Sioux City, Iowa (where Coach Larson is from). Both schools were NAIA Division II. I played on some unbelievable teams and as much as I would like to think I was the “star”, I really was just a great role player (but don’t tell my players that.) I finished my career with a runner-up finish in the National Championship game my sophomore year and an overall record of 124-14. I feel that the college athletic experience is something I will never forget. College is where you find your friends for life. I still keep in contact with so many of my teammates and will never forget those times. Of course I also watch old game films and find myself yelling at things I should have been doing on the court. Good thing I didn’t coach myself, not sure if I would have given myself that much playing time haha!
Since I transferred to another institution, it took me five years to finish school. That gave me the opportunity to be a student assistant that final year. That is when I decided this is what I want to do with my life; become a college coach. I decided to follow my college coach and be an assistant at Metro State University in Denver, Colorado. I had a great experience there and decided I needed my Master’s if I wanted to pursue this profession. I was hired to be a Graduate Assistant at Northwest Missouri State University and I received my Master’s there as well. I spent two years there before I got my first shot as a Head Coach.
My very first head job was at College of Saint Mary’s in Omaha, Nebraska, a small private all-women’s institution. Talk about an experience! I didn’t have an assistant, was a first year coach, and had to find ways to finish practice with 7 kids. I learned more that first year than I ever could imagine! We got better every year and my final year we made it to the NAIA National Tournament and finished in the Sweet 16. We made history that year. Coach Larson joined my staff that year after she got done playing, so she likes to take a lot of credit for going to Nationals (We will let her think she played a big part).
I am excited to share my experiences with you about Dixie State! We are very excited for this upcoming year and I can’t wait to tell you how awesome my staff and players are! Go DSC!

Coach Larson


Hi Everyone!
I would like to introduce myself for those of you who don’t know me. I am Coach Larson and this will be my third year as an Assistant Coach at Dixie State. I couldn’t be more excited for this year, expectations are high and now all we have to do is follow through! A little bit about my history…..My playing career started at Kirkwood Community College in Cedar Rapids, IA (also home to Courtney Boyd our senior point guard.) After one year at Kirkwood I transferred down to NCAA II Pittsburg State University in Kansas. I played one season at Pittsburg before my career was cut short by a knee injury. Suffering a career-ending injury is never easy but it did give me the opportunity to begin my coaching career as an Undergraduate Assistant. I always knew I wanted to be a college coach and was excited to get started! After Pittsburg State I moved up to Omaha, NE to be an assistant under Coach Kristensen at College of St. Mary, a small NAIA school. We had a great season and advanced to the Sweet Sixteen for the first time in school history. Coach Kristensen applied for the head job here at Dixie State and was hired that June (of course I’m still trying to convince her it was all because of her Assistant Coach but she can be kind of stubborn!) So here I am out in Utah in a place I didn’t even know existed (all I knew was that is was 90 miles from Las Vegas.) St. George is a great place to live and I am surrounded by great coaches and players. I consider myself very lucky; I think I have the best job in the world!

Recruiting Experience, By: Tanya Clark

As the season winded down at Arizona Western College , The national junior college in which I transferred from, I had an important decision to make. I had already gone on one official visit to a Division II school back in the Midwest and Dixie State was next on my list. I was skeptical yet optimistic about visiting Dixie because I did not know much about it.
My first phone conversation with Coach K went something like this… “So Tanya, would you like to come on a visit to Dixie ?” I was excited that she asked me to come! I said, “well, sure sounds good.” A mixture of seriousness, sarcasm and friendly jokes embodied our conversation. Our first meeting was at the Las Vegas airport. Coach K greeted me with a smile. Her and Coach Larson just got back from the NCAA Final Four and were tired, worn out and ready to get back to St. George. We did however have a minor delay. Coach Larson’s bags got lost and were in Africa or something random like that and she wouldn’t be able to get them until the next day. Even though both coach’s had a long day and were pooped, they still had enough enthusiasm to make me feel welcomed. And it was a definite plus because they took me to McDonald’s for my first meal on the way back… seriously who could beat a 99 cent double cheeseburger!
My host “Family” was amazing. Chet and Courtney (2 seniors this year) made me feel like I was part of the team already. The whole recruiting process is so difficult because it is hard to determine whose being real and who is just being nice because they want you to attend their school. Everyone at Dixie was so real and straight forward. I got to experience the wonderful scenery of St. George and I met a lot of great administrators who seemed to support and encourage their student-athletes. Dixie ’s business program was a homerun for me. The graduation rate was high and it seemed challenging. Academics is so important to an athlete. The sport is not always going to be there, eligibility runs out. However, an education lasts a lifetime.
My first meeting with all of the girls was kind of awkward. A lot of “hi, where are you from?” And then I met Megan Tidwell, and everything went uphill from there! We talked; we were both Cali kids so that was an instant connection. The other girls were kind of quiet at first, but once we got on the floor everything just flowed. I think that’s an important part of a basketball visit to be able to get a feel for the girls and how they play. I meshed really well with the team. What sealed the deal for me was Megan’s famous dance! Seriously, all of the girls were amazing.
I chose Dixie because it was right for me. Coach K knows what she is doing when it comes to the game of basketball and Coach Larson is just as knowledgeable about the game. They both care about their players and want to see them succeed not just on the court but off it as well. As my time ended at Dixie I had a tough decision to make. The two schools I was considering were so different in so many ways. However, Dixie had something special. It’s important for a player to feel comfortable in their surroundings and I felt most comfortable at Dixie . The recruiting process was long and difficult, but in the end I based my decision on education, the coaches and the team. I chose what was best for me and I wouldn’t change a thing.