The win snapped a nine-game losing streak in the Summit League and marks the last time that Oral Roberts will make the trip to Brookings for any Summit League competition.

The Jacks jumped out to an early 3-0 lead after two innings, but that would prove to be the last scoring until a fielders choice brought Jose Trevino across the plate for Oral Roberts, their first and only run of the game. The game started out as an offensive showcase for the Jacks, and Schrage said that was necessary against Oral Roberts’ veteran pitcher Drew Bowen.

“We had talked to our guys about how we got to get to (Bowen) early because once he settles in, he gets tougher. Over half his pitches are sliders. Sometimes early in the game, he doesn’t have command until he settles in,” Schrage said.

Perhaps the biggest key of the Jackrabbit victory was the pitching performance by Layne Somsen. Somsen(1-5, 2.73 ERA) gave up only two hits, three walks, and no runs through 8.0 innings. Somsen carried a no-hitter through three and one third and struck out eight to pick up his first win since 2009.

“It felt pretty good. I thought I had my stuff going early in the count, I was throwing all three of my pitches that I threw for strikes, and I think I kept them off balance for the most part of the game,” Somsen said. “Overall, I’m pretty happy with how I pitched.”

After Somsen’s eight inning performance, Shane Kraemer pitched the ninth inning and was credited with the save and allowed one hit and one run with one strikeout.

With the exception of a misplayed pop fly by Andrew Melton, the Jacks were able to play a clean game defensively, which Somsen said was a big part of the victory.

“They made a lot of plays for me in the field today. I thought I pitched well enough to get the win, and my defense backed me up,” Somsen said.

With each game now that much more important in terms of potential post-season play, Schrage said that a win over the perennial power in the conference will be key for this weeks preparation for their next opponent.

“This was kind of a must win for our guys. We were so close yesterday, and it was good to get this win because we got three more conference series to go and we want to get to the tournament. We needed a victory today to get some momentum for Oakland,” Schrage said.

The Jacks will return to action with a home series at Erv Huether Field against Oakland May 4-May 6.

California treated the Jackrabbit track and field teams well, prompting the team to bring back numerous school records from various meets in the Golden State.

The Jacks competed in the Brian Clay Invitational at Azuza Pacific University in Azuza, Calif., and the Long Beach State Invitational in Long Beach, Calif. At those two meets, Calvin Cammack topped the SDSU record in the pole vault, Tera Potts hit the school’s top mark in the steeplechase and Amy Paulzine broke the school record in the javelin throw.

“To see [Paulzine] come out and perform well and break the record was really impressive,” said head coach Rod DeHaven. “She broke that record in what was pretty calm wind conditions.”

Paulzine and Cammack’s efforts were also good enough to take the top spots in their respective events. Jared Vlastuin took first place in the long jump. DeHaven said that the Jacks fared well in the warm California sun.

“Track in the upper-Midwest and South Dakota in particular can be a challenge because you never really know what you’re going to get weather-wise. It was exceptionally warm out there, but everyone did just fine,” he said.

Aside from the athletic efforts that found their way to the top of the SDSU record book, several Jackrabbits posted personal bests or season highs on their way to moving into the top-10 all time in SDSU history.

With several jumpers recovering from injuries, DeHaven said the women stepped up and posted their best marks of the season at the Brian Clay Invitational. Ashley Odegaard jumped a season-best distance and placed fifth in the long jump. Mary Wirth also jumped a season-best in the high jump, taking second place.

The women’s 400-meter relay team of Odegaard, Gina Fritz, Jessica McDonald and Megan Bren finished sixth in a hotly-contested race that saw a mere 1.44 second difference between first and eighth place.

With only three meets to go before they will head to the Summit League Championships in Fargo, the Jacks will now focus their energy on preparing to compete for a conference crown.

“We had several (personal records) this weekend, so it’s good to see the team start to get where they need to be towards the end of the season,” DeHaven said.

The divide and conquer approach paid dividends for the SDSU track and field teams as they competed in both the Arkansas Spring Invitational and Wayne State Classic events to close out the month of March.

Brooke Garner led the way for the Jacks competing at the Wayne State Classic in Wayne, Neb. by winning both the women’s discus and hammer throw events. Garner’s hammer throw performance broke the school record by nearly 10 feet and likely earned her a spot in the NCAA first round meet in Austin, Texas.

“Brooke is probably in the top 10 in the nation in (the hammer throw),” said Rod DeHaven, head track and field coach. “There was such a big group of throwers that they started at about 10 (a.m.) and weren’t done until 8 (p.m.), so that’s almost 10 hours of competing. For Brooke to throw that well under those circumstances is really impressive.”

DeHaven also mentioned that the sudden arrival of 85 degree heat was “interesting,” but the Jacks were able to turn in several personal bests as well as make some noise with the school record book in the process.

Amy Paulzine had the top throw in the women’s javelin and recorded the fourth-best throw in the history of SDSU in the event. Jake Brinkmann placed second and third, respectively, in the men’s hammer throw and discus.

Several athletes chose to compete at the Arkansas Spring Invitational in Fayetteville, Ark., instead of the Wayne State Classic and thus faced a higher level of competition. This competition made it harder to place in events, but several Jackrabbits were still able to make the top eight.

For the women, Tera Potts finished in second place in the 3,000-meter steeplechase with the fourth-best time in school history. Mary Wirth placed fifth in the high jump.

The men were highlighted by a third-place finish from Jared Ailts in the 1500-meter run, a fourth place finish in the 3000-meter steeplechase from Greg Vollmer, and fifth and seventh-place finishes in the 800-meter run from Dominic Thielen and Jake Schneller, respectively.

Jared Vlastuin recorded a personal best in the high jump and had the fourth best leap in school history. DeHaven said that Vlastuin’s jump will likely put him into postseason contention.

“Jared likely put himself in at least the NCAA Regionals with that jump, and he’ll probably progress as the year goes on.” DeHaven said.

The Jacks will return to action at the USD Duals on Friday, April 6 in Yankton.

As the season progresses, DeHaven said that it will be important for the Jacks to continue in a state of upward progression even though travel and the stress of competition can begin to take it’s toll on the athletes.

“When you think about it, there’s a potential for 22 road trips when you factor in cross country and then indoor and outdoor seasons in the spring,” DeHaven said. “We have to keep in mind that through all our training and competing, the goal is to be running at our best in mid-May, not the beginning of April.”

Somehow, Lora Shearer has done just that.

“If someone had told me when I was in high school that I would go on to hold the indoor hurdle and pentathlon record at SDSU, I would have laughed at them and told them they had a very sadistic sense of humor,” the Salem native said.

After qualifying for the state track meet four times during the course of her McCook Central High School career, Shearer decided to attend SDSU because of the higher level of competition that Division I had to offer. Once she got to SDSU, Shearer quickly realized the difference between high school and collegiate track and field.

“In my first two weeks of being on campus and doing workouts, I actually lost 10 pounds, and then I put on 20 pounds of muscle in the next few months.” Shearer said.

Shearer says she was unaccustomed to the workout regimens and competition level that would accompany Division I athletics. She struggled in her first year of competition and turned in some of her worst jumping distances since middle school. After becoming so used to success and then turning one of her worst seasons in years, Shearer had to be talked into staying on the track team by her teammates and coaches.

When considering what fueled her dramatic turnaround that led her to be a record setting athlete, Shearer credits the ability of the coaching staff to motivate her.

“I’ve just always had a drive to do better, and a big part of that was because of my teammates and coaches,” Shearer said. “The way I see it, if I have a coach who is willing to support me, how can I give them anything less than 100 percent?”

Shearer now has two individual conference championships to her credit. She took the high jump title at the 2009 Summit League Outdoor Track and Field Championships and won the pentathlon at the 2012 Summit League Indoor Track and Field Championships as well as being named the Female Field Championship MVP.

In order to give herself extra time to prepare for another season, Shearer and her coaches agreed that it would be a good idea to redshirt her for one season and delay her senior year until the 2011-2012 season.

“She just thought she’d come back stronger and a better athlete (after a year off),” head track and field coach Rod DeHaven said.

Once she came back from her time as a redshirt, Shearer was thrown into a new event: the pentathlon. Although she had tried the event during her redshirt season and finished only 50 points away from the school record, Shearer figured she wouldn’t hear of the event again. But her coaches approached her before her senior year about giving the event another try.

“She was outstanding in three of the five events, so we figured that we could teach her the shot put and let the 800 just naturally happen as a part of her training,” DeHaven said. “A lot of people try to lean on one event and she was a jumper that was gifted enough to do that, but we wanted her to be able to make up ground on the other events, too.”

Aside from her accomplishments as an athlete, Shearer will most certainly be remembered amongst her teammates for something that comes immediately after an outstanding performance her celebrations. DeHaven said her name is “synonymous” with her over-the-top celebrations when she achieves a personal best. When asked about her celebrations, Shearer can’t help but laugh.

“I jump up and down, freak out, whatever feels right,” Shearer said. “Whenever I have a new PR (personal record), usually the whole stadium knows it.”

All competitive and celebratory jumping aside, Shearer said that she’ll miss her time with her teammates the most. She gave a great deal of credit to her teammates for providing her motivation and a reason to work hard. Shearer said that one of the hardest things she had ever done was training by herself in pool workouts during an injury, and the experience taught her just how much she enjoys working with her teammates.

“The camaraderie here is unlike anything I experienced in high school. It’s at a whole different level here,” Shearer said.

DeHaven said that Shearer is an athlete that gets genuinely excited to compete, and her bubbly personality and encouraging attitude made her appreciated by her teammates.

“In a sport where there isn’t a lot of patting on the back…it’s good to see her enthusiasm,” he said.

The Jackrabbits missed out on their chance to turn their dancing shoes into Cinderella slippers.

In a game that saw an effort from SDSU that head coach Aaron Johnston called “pretty good, but not great,” the 14th-seeded Jacks fell to third-seeded Purdue 83-68 in West Lafayette, Ind., in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament. The Jacks also allowed an NCAA Tournament record nine 3-pointers from one player, Courtney Moses, who finished with a game-high 29 points and helped the Jacks to their third straight one-and-done appearance.

“Moses was really good. We lost her a lot on screens along the baseline, and that cost us,” Johnston said.

Most of Purdue’s offensive efficiency came from their precise half court sets and screening ability, which created open space for their perimeter players to work.

“There’s no stat for it, but they screen as well as any team that we play and those post players are excellent at doing that. They know how to get guards open, and it’s hard to get through,” Johnston said.

Playing in their final game as SDSU Jackrabbits, Jill Young and Jennie Sunnarborg scored 19 and 17 points, respectively. Both players finish as members of the 1,000-point club and will be remembered as all-time greats, but they still wish they could have gone further.

“Jill and I going into this game were thinking, ‘We’re seniors. We’re going to fight as much as we can and do everything that we possibly can to get a win.’ That didn’t happen for us today, which is a disappointment,” Sunnarborg said.

With their final efforts, Young and Sunnarborg finished 15th and 23rd, respectively, in SDSU all time scoring. Young also broke the Summit League three-pointer career record.

SDSU struggled to get stops when it counted but never really fell out of the game until late, which has been a characteristic of the Jackrabbits’ last three tournament appearances. The Jacks actually pulled down three more rebounds than the Boilermakers, and, despite Moses’ record-setting nine three-pointer performance, the Jacks only made one less from long range than Purdue.

The talk this week was about how the Jacks wanted to take a step forward in this game. They did, but saw themselves fall short once again.

“We were better today, I thought, than we were the last two (NCAA Tournament) trips, Oklahoma and Xavier, to be honest with you. Overall, I thought it was a very good game for us, it’s just Purdue played a little bit better game than we did. I was proud of our team,” Johnston said.

In a game that, despite what the scoreboard said, was a defensive struggle, KK Houser led the charge for Purdue. Houser ran a full court pressure by herself, was able to generate turnovers early in the game and finished the game with five steals.

“My defense is what gets me going and I just get confidence off my defense, so getting steals early in the game was huge for me,” Houser said.

Houser, who finished the game with 12 points, also scored seven of Purdue’s first 11 points and was one of three players in double figures for Purdue along with Moses’ 29 and Rayburn’s 12.

Purdue found support from a small but supportive crowd, something has SDSU knew would be the case again this year.

“We’re in a situation where the majority of our games on the women’s side very well could be [at home sites]. We’re going to have to get better at these kind of environments and learn how to get done what we need to.”

With the season-ending loss, the Jackrabbits finished 24-9 for the year and made their fourth straight NCAA Tournament appearance — but it is also their third consecutive season heading back to Brookings after just one game. The head coach said that he’s happy with where the program is, but it’s hard not to look ahead.

“I am really pleased with the progress of our program. I am a little frustrated that we haven’t taken another step in the tournament,” Johnston said. “If we’re going to take that next step, we’re going to have to figure out ways to win at this event.”

In a game that saw an effort from SDSU that head coach Aaron Johnston called “pretty good, but not great,” the 14th-seeded Jacks fell to third-seeded Purdue 83-68 in West Lafayette, Ind., in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament. The Jacks also allowed an NCAA Tournament record nine 3-pointers from one player, Courtney Moses, who finished with a game-high 29 points.

“Moses was really good. We lost her a lot on screens along the baseline, and that cost us,” Johnston said.

Playing in their final game as SDSU Jackrabbits, Jill Young and Jennie Sunnarborg scored 19 and 17 points, respectively. Both players finish as members of the 1,000 point club and will be remembered as all-time greats, but they still wish they could have gone further.

“Jill and I going into this game were thinking, ‘We’re seniors. We’re going to fight as much as we can and do everything that we possibly can to get a win. That didn’t happen for us today, which is a disappointment,” Sunnarborg said.

SDSU struggled to get stops when it counted but never really fell out of the game until late, which has been a characteristic of the Jackrabbits’ last three tournament appearances. The Jacks actually pulled down three more rebounds than the Boilermakers, and, despite Moses’ record-setting nine 3-pointer performance, the Jacks only made one less from long range that Purdue.

The talk this week was about how the Jacks wanted to take a step forward in this game. They did, but saw themselves fall short once again.

“We were better today, I thought, than we were the last two (NCAA Tournament) trips, Oklahoma and Xavier, to be honest with you. Overall, I thought it was a very good game for us, it’s just Purdue played a little bit better game than we did. I was proud of our team.” Johnston said.

In a game that, despite what the scoreboard said, was a defensive struggle, KK Houser led the charge for Purdue. Houser ran a full court pressure by herself and was able to generate turnovers early in the game, and finished the game with five steals.

“My defense is what gets me going and I just get confidence off my defense, so getting steals early in the game was huge for me.” Houser said.

Houser, who finished the game with 12 points, also scored seven of Purdue’s first 11 points and was one of three players in double figures for Purdue along with Moses’ 29 and Rayburn’s 12.

With the season-ending loss, the Jackrabbits finished 24-9 on the year and made their fourth straight NCAA Tournament appearance but the third straight year that SDSU is heading back to Brookings after one game. Johnston said that he’s happy with where the program is, but he is still anxious to take that next step.

“I am really pleased with the progress of our program. I am a little frustrated that we haven’t taken another step in the tournament,” Johnston said. “If we’re going to take that next step, we’re going to have to figure out ways to win at this event.”

Entering their fourth NCAA tournament in as many years, the Jackrabbits women’s basketball team is no longer happy to just be there.

They want to earn some wins along the way.

The 13th-seeded Jacks will get their tournament underway with an eye on advancing past the first round in their March 17 matchup with fourth-seeded host Purdue in West Lafayette, Ind., in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

Head coach Aaron Johnston said that teams in past tournament appearances approached with the desire to win, but also felt content with making the tournament. He says that this team seems to have the hunger to do something more.

“I’ve always thought (this team) wanted to help move our program forward, and really for us the next way to do that is to win games in the NCAA Tournament. We keep getting there over and over again, but until you actually do something there, it’s just the same experience,” Johnston said.

For seniors Jill Young and Jennie Sunnarborg, this tournament is an opportunity to seal their own legacy as well as help cement a national reputation for the Jackrabbits.

“The last few years, we’ve gotten almost content with just getting to the tournament and not getting wins. We don’t want that happening anymore. We don’t just want to be a good team in the Summit League, we want to be a good team nationally, and this is our chance to show what we got,” Sunnarborg said.

The Jackrabbits enter this tournament as veterans, with only four players lacking previous NCAA Tournament experience. In the previous three appearances, the Jacks have advanced to the second round only once, the 32-3 campaign in the 2008-09 season. The Jacks ended up losing to Baylor, who claimed a number one seed in this year’s tournament and are seen as a serious title contender.

Make no mistake, Purdue poses a challenge.

Although Purdue is a power-conference champion and SDSU was victorious in a mid-major, the Jacks still have a certain level of familiarity with the Boilermakers. The Jacks lost a 73-40 matchup with Purdue Nov. 18 of last season, and SDSU has since seen Purdue play at the Caribbean Challenge in Cancun. Young said that it’s good to have played against a team beforehand, but Saturday will be a whole new ball game.

“We definitely know they’re a really good team. They have a couple really good shooters, good players inside, a quick point guard. Last years game isn’t really on our minds anymore,” Young said. “It was at the beginning of the year last year, and we’re a whole new team this year.”

Johnston also noted that SDSU is a big, physical team, but Purdue is “bigger and more physical”, and said that it would be critical for starting post players Sunnarborg and Leah Dietel to stay out of foul trouble. The Jacks will also have to have patience defensively due to the offensive execution of the Boilermakers. Even though he knows that his team will be going up against a very talented squad, Johnston said his team will be prepared.

“Purdue is a really typical Big Ten team. Big, physical, and athletic … Matchup wise, it’s not impossible for us to look at them and think we match up really good … It’s the kind of team that we’ve had some success against in the past,” he said.

This game will also have the unique element of having arguably two of the best players in South Dakota girls high school basketball history meeting in the NCAA Tournament. SDSU’s Young and Purdue’s Sam Ostarello both were productive players in their respective prep careers, and Ostarello was considering SDSU before ultimately deciding to continue her career at Purdue.

“This is high profile because (Ostarello) is from South Dakota and I think she had a connection to our program too before she decided to go to Purdue,” Johnston said. “There will be a lot of players from the state of South Dakota playing in West Lafayette on Saturday playing Division I basketball in the NCAA Tournament, which I think is good for South Dakota in general.”

After the Jacks had the record-setting crowd on their side in the Summit League Tournament, it is now their turn to open up the NCAA Tournament on their opponents home court for the third consecutive year. Even though there will be a noticeable difference in crowd sentiment, Ashley Eide said SDSU is approaching the game with little consideration for the spectators in the stands.

“It’s always a big environment just playing in the tournament, so wherever you go it’s going to be a good, high intensity game,” Eide said. “Either way, I’d rather play in a gym that’s full with people for the other crowd than play in an empty arena.”

In addressing the goals for what could be the final game of the illustrious careers of Young and Sunnarborg, Young keeps it relatively simple.

“Give it all we have, play a full 40 minutes, and leave it all out on the floor.”

For the fourth time in as many years, the Jacks are dancing.

SDSU eliminated a 17-point first-half deficit to force overtime and punch their ticket to a fourth consecutive NCAA tournament appearance with a 78-77 overtime victory over UMKC at the Sioux Falls Arena on March 6.

To say the first half was all UMKC might be an understatement. UMKC scored the first nine points, pulled down 10 more rebounds than the Jacks and went into the locker room with a nine point lead. UMKC dominated virtually every statistical category in the first half and SDSU head coach Aaron Johnston said that the game was almost decided at that point.

“That last three minutes we went on an 11-3 run,” Johnston said. “Without that run, we certainly don’t come back.”

Highlighted by three-pointers from Jill Young and Gabby Boever, the Jacks finished the half with a run and entered the second half down 27-36. The Jacks started with the ball in the second half, and began playing like a completely different team. Starting the half with a 9-3 run largely fueled by Leah Dietel, the Jacks were able to keep themselves in what would prove to be a highly competitive basketball game.

“(Dietel) hasn’t gotten enough credit for this particular game. (She) has never been a big offensive player, but she had nine points, probably the biggest nine points of her season so far,” Johnston said.

Jill Young scored the go-ahead points with two free throws with seven seconds left.

“I just had to go to the line with confidence. I’ve shot a lot of free throws in my life, so there wasn’t any doubt or hesitation in my mind,” Young said.

Johnston said Tara Heiser played well starting in place of the injured Steph Paluch, who could frequently be seen cheering enthusiastically from the bench.

“She wasn’t 100 percent by any means,” Johnston said. “She played great. We’ve got a lot of confidence in Tara too.”

Jennie Sunnarborg was named the Summit League Tournament MVP, finishing the game with 12 points and nine rebounds. Sunnarborg and Young, who tied with Ashley Eide for the team high in points, were named to the All-Tournament team. Johnston said that the Jacks’ two seniors have left a sizable impression on the face of the program.

“Legacy is a great word for those seniors,” Johnston said. “Four times … that is unbelievable. It’s easy to describe how difficult it is to get to an NCAA Tournament, and to get to four is just unbelievable.”

For UMKC, Dayon Hall-Jones led all scorers with 23 points, and Kim Nezianya scored 15 points and pulled down a game-high 11 rebounds. Hall-Jones and Nezianya were also named to the All- Tournament team.

Down one with seven seconds left, Hall-Jones drove down the floor largely uncontested until she reached the lane.

“I felt that I did maybe get a little bump, but the ball didn’t go in and that’s just it,” she said after the game. “I know that refs aren’t going to make that call at the end of the game … the ball didn’t go in the hole, and that’s the end of the story.”

Nevertheless, SDSU is heading back to the big bracket.

“I can’t say I would have thought of (four straight appearances),” Sunnarborg said. “Our program has advanced every single year since I’ve been here as a freshman. It’s just exciting.” 

SDSU eliminated a 17 point first half deficit to force overtime and punch their ticket to a fourth consecutive NCAA tournament appearance with a 78-77 overtime victory over UMKC at the Sioux Falls Arena on Tuesday.

Jill Young drives from the wing in the first half of the Jackrabbits' 79-78 win over UMKC for the Summit League title Tuesday. / Collegian Photo by Aaron Stoneberger

To say the first half was all UMKC might be an understatement. UMKC scored the first nine points, pulled down 10 more rebounds than the Jacks, and went into the locker room with a nine point lead. UMKC dominated virtually every statistical category in the first half, and SDSU head coach Aaron Johnston said that the game was almost decided at that point.

“They dominated all of the first half. That last three minutes, we went on an 11-3 run.  Without that run, we certainly don’t come back.” Johnston said.

Highlighted by three-pointers from Jill Young and Gabby Boever, the Jacks finished with the aforementioned run and entered the second half down 36-27. The Jacks started with the ball in the second half, and started playing like a completely different team in comparison to the prior 20 minutes. Starting the half with a 9-3 run largely fueled by Leah Dietel, the Jacks were able to keep themselves in what would prove to be a highly competitive basketball game.

“(Dietel) hasn’t gotten enough credit for this particular game. Someone who has never been a big offensive player, but she had nine points, probably the biggest nine points of her season so far,” Johnston said.

The go-ahead points were scored by Jill Young on two free throws with seven seconds left. Young said that

“I just had to go to the line with confidence. I’ve shot a lot of free throws in my life, so there wasn’t any doubt or hesitation in my mind. I just had to go up there and know they were going in,” Young said.

Johnston said Tara Heiser played exceptionally well starting in place of the injured Steph Paluch, who could frequently be seen cheering enthusiastically from the bench.

“She hyperextended her knee in the game the other day too, so she wasn’t 100% by any means,” Johnston said. “She played great. We’ve got a lot of confidence in Tara too.”

Sunnarborg was named the Summit League Tournament MVP, finishing the game with 12 points and nine rebounds. Sunnarborg and Young, who tied with Ashley Eide for the team high in points, were named to the All-Tournament team. Johnston said that the Jacks’ two seniors have left an sizable impression on the face of the program.

“Legacy is a great word for those seniors. Four times…that is unbelievable. It’s easy to describe how difficult it is to get to an NCAA Tournament, and to get to four is just unbelievable,” Johnston said.

For UMKC, Dayon Hall-Jones led all scorers with 23 points, and Kim Nezianya scored 15 points and pulled down a game-high 11 rebounds. Hall-Jones and Nezianya were also named to the all-tournament team.

Down one with seven seconds left, Hall-Jones drove down the floor largely uncontested until she reached the lane.

“I felt that I did maybe get a little bump, but the ball didn’t go in and that’s just it. I know that refs aren’t gonna make that call at the end of the game … the ball didn’t go in the hole, and that’s the end of the story,” said a very emotional Hall-Jones after the game.

Nezianya, one of three returning starters for UMKC, was adamant that the returning group would be determined to make a return to this game next year.

“Just wanting to win got us this far. This is not that last of UMKC, we will be back next year,” Nezianya said fighting through a steady stream of tears.

SDSU now awaits the selection committee to decide just where they get to put on their dancing shoes this time. The pairings will be announced Mar. 12 and the tournament will open up Mar. 17 or 18.

“I can’t say I would have thought of (four straight appearances),” Sunnarborg said when asked about entering SDSU as a freshman. “Our program has advanced every single year since I’ve been here as a freshman. It’s just exciting.”

After two big runs, the Jackrabbits advanced to the Summit League final in a 79-54 victory over IUPUI, but at the expense of Steph Paluch, who went down with a knee injury late in the first half.

The Jags executed well on both ends of the floor in the first half, but the Jacks erupted on a 10-3 run in the last 4:22 of the first half, after the injury to Paluch. SDSU (23-8) picked up where they left off at the start of the second half, with Jill Young leading SDSU to a 15-3 run by hitting three three-pointers for her first points of the game.

“In the first half, I think it’s safe to say that we struggled a little bit offensively. IUPUI is playing really well right now and we knew that they would be a good team. In the second half, we just came out and we were a lot more aggressive and got some looks in transition.

While the Jackrabbits were able to overcome the adversity of the first half to outscore IUPUI (13-19) by 15 points in the second half, the Jacks will have to find a way to replace their Paluch, who had been a starting guard for 31 games this season. SDSU head coach Aaron Johnston said that Paluch will be evaluated at a later date, but she is out for the season.

“Everybody can always find a way to get another player on the floor. We could look at Gabby, we could look at Tara (Heiser), and we would all be really comfortable with either of those two,” Johnston said, visibly shaken talking about losing Paluch. “You lose the person, the emotion of it more than anything else. You can always game plan, but it’s sad to lose someone that’s been out there all along not be able to be there for such a big game tomorrow. That’s really the disappointment.”

SDSU had four players reach double-digits in the win, led by Young with 14 points, all coming in the second half and eight rebounds, followed by Jennie Sunnarborg with 13 points, and Ashley Eide and Gabby Boever, both with 12.

SDSU meets the winner of Missouri-Kansas City and Western Illinois on Tuesday, both teams the Jackrabbits have swept this season. The game will be broadcast on ESPNU and will start at 3 p.m. in the Sioux Falls Arena.

With Paluch’s injury, the Jackrabbits will now rely on their depth to carry them to a potential Summit League championship and NCAA tournament berth. While the Jacks are known in the conference for having a deep rotation, the bench that outscored the IUPUI bench 32-6 will now play an even bigger role in the Jackrabbits’ success.

“The fact that we keep moving forward is a testament to how many good players we have on the team. We’re really deep. We always have been, and I think that’s an important part of why we always have success.” Johnston said.

UPDATE: Jackrabbits will play UMKC on Tuesday at 3 p.m. in Sioux Falls for the conference title.