Terpstra named to All-IIAC First Team, two others recognized

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa – Simpson senior forward Morgan Terpstra earned First Team All-Iowa Conference honors and two others were recognized as the league office announced the 2013-14 All-Iowa Conference Women's Basketball team on Wednesday.

2013-14 All-Iowa Conference Women's Basketball Team

Terpstra (Cedar Rapids, Iowa/Linn-Mar) was named to the All-IIAC First Team for the first time in her career while teammates Whitney Van Wyk (So., Altoona, Iowa/Southeast Polk) and Brittany Hedrick (Fr., Ankeny, Iowa/Ankeny) earned honorable mention recognition.

A two-sport athlete who was also a four-year letterwinner on the volleyball team, Terpstra experienced a breakout season in 2013-14. After averaging just 2.9 points and 3.1 rebounds in limited time during her first three seasons, the 5-10 forward led the team with 10.7 points and 7.1 rebounds per game as a senior. She shot better than 46 percent from the field and tallied four double-doubles on the year, including a 22-point, 10-rebound performance in a win at Coe in January.

Terpstra's selection extends Simpson's streak of consecutive seasons with a first team all-conference performer to 17. The last time a Simpson player didn't earn first team honors was in 1996-97.

Van Wyk missed the first part of the season due to injury but made a big impact upon her return. The lengthy shooting guard was a stat-filler for the Storm, averaging 6.4 points, 4.7 rebounds and 1.5 steals per game. Her 38 steals tied for the team lead and her 49 assists were second only to Hedrick, the starting point guard. Van Wyk shined in a home win over Buena Vista, scoring 17 points on 5-for-10 shooting from beyond the arch.

Hedrick eased into her rookie season before a breakout game against UW-Oshkosh in late December turned the course of her season. Hedrick was averaging just 5.1 points per game through the first eight games before going off for 28 against Oshkosh. She averaged a team-best 12.6 per game over the final 16 games, finishing the year second on the team with 10.0 points per game. She led the team with 67 assists and owned a 1.29 assist to turnover ratio.

Simpson went 14-12 in 2013-14, finishing fourth in the Iowa Conference. The Storm extended their streak of consecutive winning seasons to 17 but saw their streak of consecutive Iowa Conference Championships (6) and NCAA Tournament appearances (9) come to an end.

Simpson will be a top contender for next year's conference crown after graduating just one player from this year's varsity roster.

The 15-member All-Iowa Conference Team is voted on by the conference's eight head coaches. Katie Langmeier was selected as the league's Most Valuable Player, Langmeier and Coe's Hannah Breitbach shared Defensive Player of the Year honors and Loras head coach Justin Heinzen took home Coach of the Year honors.