By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Washburn University women's basketball standouts Hunter Bentley and Abby Oliver earned All-MIAA honors on Tuesday afternoon, with senior Bentley earning a spot on the all-conference third team and sophomore Oliver receiving honorable mention.
Hunter Bentley
Abby Oliver
In her fifth season at WU, Bentley is now a four-time All-MIAA selection after receiving honorable mention in 2019 and 2020 and landing on the second team last season.
The former Bishop Miege standout has turned in another impressive season as she leads the Ichabods in scoring (14.5 points per game/eighth in the MIAA), field goal percentage (44.6 percent/sixth in the MIAA), assists (2.6 average), steals (1.3 average), 3-pointers made (48/ninth in MIAA) and minutes played (32.8 average/eighth in MIAA).
Bentley has led Washburn in scoring in 19 games and has had seven games with 20 or more points.
Bentley has played in every game since her freshman season for a program-record 142 games played and 113 starts.
Her name is etched all over Washburn's record book as she ranks sixth in scoring with 1,607 career points as well as fourth in steals (201), fifth in rebounds (752), fifth in free throws made (317), fifth in 3-pointers made (172) and is first in career minutes played logging 4,278).
Off the court, Bentley is a four-time MIAA Academic Honor Roll member, a three-time MIAA Scholar Athlete, a two-time CoSIDA Academic All-District selection, and was a finalist for the 2020-21 MIAA Female Winter Student-Athlete of the Year award.
Oliver, a former Wabaunsee standout, is making her debut on the All-MIAA list.
This season, she is second on the team in scoring with 9.2 points per game and adds 4.6 rebounds per game.
Out of her 128 total rebounds, she has grabbed a team-leading 55 offensive boards.
She is also sixth in the league in total blocks with 29.
Oliver has recorded 14 double-figure games and scored a career-high 20 points at Emporia State in the regular-season finale. Oliver has been named to the MIAA Academic Honor Roll twice.
The Ichabods will begin MIAA postseason play on Wednesday at noon as the No. 9 seed taking on No. 8 seed Pittsburg State at Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, Mo.
2022 All-MIAA WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
First team
Nija Collier – Central Missouri, Senior
Jaden Hobbs – Fort Hays State, Senior
Kelsey Johnson – Central Oklahoma, Senior
Brooke Littrell – Central Missouri, Freshman
Lacy Stokes – Missouri Southern, Freshman
Second team
Elisa Backes – Nebraska Kearney, Junior
Connie Clarke – Missouri Western, Sophomore
Tristan Gegg – Pittsburg State, Senior
Tre'Zure Jobe – Emporia State, Sophomore
Katie Wagner – Fort Hays State, Freshman
Third team
Hunter Bentley – Washburn, Senior
Amaya Johns – Missouri Southern, Junior
Mallory McConkey – Northwest Missouri, Senior
Whitney Randall – Fort Hays State, Senior
Madi Stokes – Missouri Southern, Sophomore
Honorable mention
Central Missouri: Olivia Nelson, Freshman
Central Oklahoma: Brooke Rayner, Junior
Emporia State: Ehlaina Hartman, Freshman – Karsen Schultz, Junior
Fort Hays State: Cydney Bergmann, Senior – Olivia Hollenbeck, Freshman
Missouri Western: Corbyn Cunningham, Senior – Brionna Budgetts, Sophomore
Nebraska Kearney: Klaire Kirsch, Junior – Haley Simental, Graduate – Brooke Carlson, Junior
Northeastern State: Maleeah Langstaff, Senior
Northwest Missouri: Molly Hartnett, Freshman – Peyton Kelderman, Freshman
Washburn: Abby Oliver, Sophomore
All-Defensive team
Connie Clarke – Missouri Western, Sophomore
Nija Collier – Central Missouri, Senior
Brooke Rayner – Central Oklahoma, Junior
Lacy Stokes – Missouri Southern, Freshman
Madi Stokes – Missouri Southern, Sophomore
