No. 2 Top Performance of 2010-11: WBB wins fourth-straight title

Throughout the summer, follow us as we count down Simpson's Top 10 Performances of the 2010-11 season. The school year saw conference champions crowned, records broken and milestones reached. You can re-live the top moments on www.simpsonathletics.com this summer as we count down to No. 1. Join the conversation on Twitter with #StormTop10.

No. 2: Women's basketball wins fourth-straight title

INDIANOLA, Iowa – On paper the 2010-11 season was business as usual for head coach Brian Niemuth and the Simpson women’s basketball team.

Simpson went 21-6 during the regular season, going 14-2 in the Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (IIAC) while earning a share of the program’s fourth-straight conference title. Simpson advanced to the NCAA Division III Women’s Basketball Championship for the seventh straight year and the 11^th time in program history.

Just another day at the office.

But this year’s squad did more than just add to the growing legacy of the Simpson women’s basketball program. They did it in style - averaging the nation’s highest scoring output at 82.2 points per game. They did it as a team – only one player averaged double-figures in scoring. And they did it with perseverance – Simpson lost three of its first four games before rattling off 16 consecutive wins and needed an at-large bid to advance to the NCAA Tournament.

Simpson broke some records and reached some milestones along the way as well. The Storm set program records for points scored in a game (130 against Crown on Dec. 10) and 3-pointers made in a game (15 against Luther on Jan. 22). Niemuth reached career victory No. 450, senior Amy Hamilton and junior Stacey Schutjer became the 13^th and 14^th members, respectively, of Simpson’s 1,000-point club and Hamilton became the program’s all-time leader in 3-pointers made with 241.

After falling in the IIAC Tournament Championship game to Coe, Simpson found itself on the bubble of an NCAA Tournament bid. On Monday, Feb. 28 the team learned it would travel to Stevens Point, Wis. to face Minnesota Intercollegiate Conference champion, Concorida-Moorhead. Once there, the Storm eliminated the Cobbers 59-56 before falling to third-ranked UW-Stevens Point 82-75 in a hard-fought, tightly-contested second-round matchup.

At season’s end three players earned All-IIAC honors, with Schutjer landing a first-team nod, Hamilton appearing on the second team and senior Mindy Hutchcroft earning an honorable mention selection. Schutjer added D3hoops.com Second Team All-West Region and WBCA Honorable Mention All-America honors.

Niemuth’s crew flexed its muscle off the court as well, earning a national top-10 ranking in the WBCA Academic Top 25 Team Honor Roll, released in July. The team achieved a grade-point average of 3.519 during the academic year, tops in the IIAC and tied for ninth in the nation. The Storm have held a top-10 national ranking and posted the top GPA in the conference in each of the last four seasons.

To re-live Simpson’s first-round win over Concordia-Moorhead with video and photos, click HERE.

Simpson's Top 10 Performances of 2010-11