Coming off last season as Summit League Champions, the South Dakota State women’s basketball team is looking to do it again in this upcoming 2024-25 season.
Last season, the Jacks had an overall record of 27-6 and a conference record of 16-0. The Jacks have gone undefeated in the Summit League three out of the last four seasons and are looking to continue this streak.
South Dakota State was ranked number one in the conference, receiving 34 of 36 first-place votes.
Head coach Aaron Johnston is very excited about the newly constructed First Bank & Trust Arena.
“It’s been great being in First Bank & Trust Arena… it adds to the atmosphere and from a coach’s perspective and student-athlete perspective, it feels like a new home,” said Johnston. “The arena really brings everyone together… we’re excited about the new facility.”
Senior guard Paige Meyer is a returning key player to look out for. Last season, Paige Meyer was selected for the Summit League first team and was crowned as the 2023-24 Summit League MVP.
In the 2023-24 season, the Minnesota native averaged 13.7 points, 4.4 assists, and 3.2 rebounds per game and was third on the conference charts in field goal percentage and second in assists.
Another returning key player to look out for is forward Brooklyn Meyer. The junior was named preseason player of the year and joined teammate Paige Meyer on the Summit League preseason first team.
Last year, Brooklyn Meyer was awarded the Summit League Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year. Brooklyn Meyer averaged 18.7 points, 7.3 rebounds and 1.3 blocks per game. The Iowa native was .648 from the floor, second in the Summit League.
“I’m really impressed over the years with our consistency, that’s the word I probably think about the most with our team,” said Johnston.
This season, the Jackrabbits have eight returning players who have started at some point in their careers.
South Dakota State comes into this season with a familiar lineup, with over half of their roster starting at one point in their career.
“Eight different players have had that [starting] chance for a variety of reasons, that’s pretty unique that you have that much experience, that much talent coming back,” said Johnston. “Our goals are the same… we want to win games, win a conference title and win postseason games and I think we have a team that is capable of doing all of that.”
In their exhibition game against Division II St. Cloud State, SDSU kept the Huskies under fifty points with a final score of 77-44. Brooklyn Meyer was the leading scoring for the Jacks as she put up 23 points and collected seven boards.
Mesa Byom tallied a double-double, scoring 11 points and collecting 12 rebounds while Madison Mathiowetz earned five assists and seven points.
The Jacks have a strong nonconference schedule lined up, facing off against some of the top teams in the nation: Creighton on Nov. 8, Wisconsin on Nov. 13 and Duke on Nov. 17. The Jacks will be hosting all 3 of those matchups at the First Bank & Trust Arena.
South Dakota State’s first regular season game is away against Rice on Monday at 7 p.m.