Holly Frerk | Staff Writer
The Buena Vista University’s (BVU) women’s basketball senior captains, Susan Kies and Malarie Gilley, and sophomore Lexi Fisher have received conference academic and athletic honors as they wrap up their record-breaking season.
The senior captains, Kies and Gilley, have had record-breaking years while playing at BVU. According to BVU Women’s Head Basketball Coach Janet Berry, Kies has led the conference in scoring and Gilley has been one of the top players on the team with rebounds during their final seasons at BVU.
For the year, Kies averaged 17.3 points per game and leads the conference in free-throw shooting. She scored her career high this season playing against Bethany Lutheran, where she scored 35 points. Kies ranks second all-time at BVU in career three-pointers with 191. In the first conference game against Coe College, Kies reached 1,000 career points.
“I mean it feels pretty great. I have been able to accomplish something I have been working really hard for. It has been nice to have my hard work pay off especially in my senior season,” Kies sad.
Gilley also had a record-setting season in spite of recently injuring her ACL. Gilley ranks 22nd all-time at BVU for rebounds with 444 and is second all-time in career blocked shots with 107. Before her injury, she ranked third all-time in rebounds for a single season, just four short from the all-time single-season record. Gilley scored her career high of 27 points playing against Whitter College. She also broke the school record for rebounds in a single game against Martin Luther with a total of 24 where the previous record was 19.
“I didn’t really know I had 24 rebounds. It was actually kind of crazy to find out. I wasn’t scoring very well that game, so I knew my job was to rebound. When I saw the stat sheet, I was shocked,” Gilley said.
Fisher, as only a sophomore, has had success both on and off the court. Her most recent off-the-court accomplishment was being part of the Academic All-District Team. Fisher has 175 career rebounds and 17 career blocked shots. Her career high of 26 points in a single game was also reached when playing Whitter College.
“As a sophomore, I don’t feel like a leader. We all look up to the seniors and captains. With losing two starters to ACL injuries and another senior to a concussion, I have to step up because we don’t have a lot of returners,” Fisher said.
The BVU women’s basketball team has had different challenges they have had to overcome. This season they experienced the loss of players due to injuries, which in turn led to a change in their starting line-up.
The BVU women’s basketball team ended its season in fifth, in the conference. The team lost to Coe College during the second round of the IIAC tournament. BVU women’s basketball team ended its season with an overall record of 12-15.
“I don’t think our record indicates how good this is and can be. When you have four of your top eight kids out of your line up, it is a lot to overcome. I’m really proud how they have stayed in there and fought,” Berry said.
Photos by Stephanie Steiner
