2008 fall rabbit tracks

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SOUTH DAKOTA STATE UNIVERSITYAthletics DepartmentBox 2820Brookings, SD 57007-1497

RABBIT TRACKSSOUTH DAKOTA STATE UNIVERSITY

VOLUME 14 NO. 1 \ FALL 2008

DYKHOUSESTUDENT-ATHLETECENTER

MOM ON A MISSION

FAMILIAR VOICE OF JACKRABBITSWOMEN’S BASKETBALL TAKES NEW JOB

MORE THAN A HORSE BARN

CURRENT JACKS IMPRESS JIM LANGER

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MOM ON A MISSION




DYKHOUSE

SDSU became an active member of Division I of the NationalCollegiate Athletic Association September 1, 2008.

All rights and privileges of membership are now granted tothe Jackrabbits. First and foremost is the right to compete forNCAA national championships in twenty sports (equestrian is yetto be an official NCAA championship). In addition, full servicesof the NCAA for Division I members and grants and revenuebecome available.

No longer will the state of South Dakota be the only statewithout at least one sport being classified as Division I. It took apassionate and relentless alumni/fan base, an entire universitycommunity, and a dedicated athletic staff to make this happen.

The work is far from over to reach the long-term goals of thismove to Division I. In September we are sharing our proposedfive-year Strategic Plan with the Intercollegiate Athletic Board,the Athletic Advisory Council, and the Champions Council.

The plan will outline our goals with specific proposals forscholarship increases, additional positions, facility development,programming enhancements, operation and equipment enhance-ments, and capital expenditures to meet these goals.

We will use the “feedback” we receive from our boards andcouncils to refine the plan and make our plans available to thepublic. Like all plans, we will review it annually and modify it tobest serve our student-athletes.

As we move forward, let me thank you on behalf of ourentire staff and student-athletes for your loyalty and patiencethese last five years. You have demonstrated love and care for thisprogram through your personal support and generosity.

Fred OienSDSU ATHLETIC DIRECTOR

Full-fledged DI,but planning continues

On July 15 it was announced that for the third consecutiveseason, South Dakota State led all divisions of women’s collegebasketball in team grade point average. Simply amazing.

In basketball terms, that’s a triple-double, a 10-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio, a night of going 10-for-10 from behind thearc, or that game winning, buzzer-beater that touches nothingbut nylon. Such an accomplishment sends chills down thespines of Jackrabbit fans around the country.

Lucky? Well, the rabbit’s foot is certainly auspicious, butthese young ladies are extremely passionate about what theydo and very relentless in how they go about doing it. That for-mula is exactly what has led to such accomplishments. A for-mula that has made them champions.

Found entrenched in the attitudes of our student-athletes,staff, and fans is that same mentality and adage—Passionate.Relentless. Champions.

Accolades like this one are one in a million . . . or one in1,720 if you are counting the number of collegiate women’s basketball teams in the country. Takethat number times three years, factor in the student-athletes that graduated and enrolled as fresh-man, factor in travel schedules and numerous other variables, and it might take a near-genius tofigure out the actual odds of winning this award. Better yet, it might take a Jackrabbit.

The 480 student-athletes at the University carry an overall grade point average of 3.05 andpursue more than eighty different majors.

• SDSU’s equestrian team finished second in GPA among Division I teams in the country.• The women’s cross-country team finished third.• The men’s and women’s track and field teams both were in the top twenty.• The list of SDSU sports ranking in the top 100 academically at the national level goes onand on. The Jackrabbits had 216 student-athletes honored on academic all-conferenceteams during the 2007-08 academic year and six academic all-American awards were alsobestowed on these bright, young men and women.

The revenue generation side of me thinks that if NCAA rules permitted, I’d sell a sponsorshipto Encyclopedia Britannica and sew the encyclopedia logo t o the back of their jerseys; however,the true Jackrabbit fan in me is just proud that these young men and women shed sweat and tearsin a jersey that signifies something much, much deeper . . . Jackrabbit athletics.

George Scialabra of the Boston Globe recently wrote, “Perhaps imagination is only intelligencehaving fun.” Speaking of which, who could have imagined the on-court success that has accompa-nied the academic achievements of these young men and women. Conference championships,NCAA bids, professional draft picks, and the list goes on.

And the best part is . . . they’re not done yet. In the words of Coach (or should I say“Professor”) Aaron Johnston, “Don’t stop believing.”

Go Big. Go Blue. Go Jacks.Mark Burgers

ASSOCIATE ATHLETIC DIRECTORFOR EXTERNAL AFFAIRS

An academic three-peatWomen’s basketball team continues to rule in classroom



2DYKHOUSE STUDENT-ATHLETE CENTERConstruction is to begin in October on the first athletic facilityto be built on campus since 1973.

SDSU PRESIDENT David L. ChicoineSDSU ATHLETIC DIRECTOR Fred OienSDSU SPORTS INFORMATION DIRECTORJason HoveSDSU SPORTS INFORMATIONASSISTANT DIRECTOR Ryan Sweeter

ASSISTANT TO AD/EXTERNAL AFFAIRSMark BurgersEDITOR Andrea Kieckhefer, University RelationsCONTRIBUTING WRITERS Dave Graves, Kyle Johnson, Ann Nachtigal, University Relations

DESIGNER Kristi SchelhaasPHOTOGRAPHER Eric Landwehr,

University Relations

Athletic Department South Dakota State UniversityBox 2820, Brookings, SD 57007Telephone: 1-866-GOJACKSFax: 605/688-5999Web site: www.gojacks.com

Rabbit Tracks is produced by University Relations incooperation with the SDSU Athletic Department at no costto the State of South Dakota. Please notify the AthleticDepartment office when you change your address.

2200 copies printed by the SDSU Athletic Department at no cost

to the State of South Dakota. PE069 08/08

story ideas? Do you have story suggestions for our next issues?If so, contact Mark Burgers, SDSU Athletic Department,(605) 688-6294, [email protected]

4 BRAGGING RIGHTSThe Dykhouse Student-Athlete Center is toinclude an academic center for a programthat already boosts some stalwart scholars.

6 WHAT’S LEFT TO DOFunds for the construction of the DykhouseCenter have already been committed, butmany interior purchases are still waiting fordonors.

7 HELLO COACHNew volleyball coach Nana Allison-Brewerhas distinguished herself on the court andamong her Native American peers.

8 SO LONG, SCOTTYLongtime women’s basketball broadcasterreflects on his Jacks’ years.

9 TYLER MERRIAMMeet the new voice of Jackrabbit women’sbasketball.

10 EQUESTRIAN CENTERLocated just north of campus, the centergives the four-year-old program its ownplace to practice.

12 CAITLIN BERRYThe senior is a mom on a mission —to balance championship aspirations withfamily responsibilities.

14 JIM LANGERThe NFL Hall of Famer gives a thumbs-upto the current edition of Jackrabbit football.

16 KELLY LARSONThe senior soccer defender doesn’t wantto see SDSU shutout of postseason play.

ON THE COVERAn architect’s drawing shows what the $6-millionDykhouse Student-Athlete Center may look likein the future. Groundbreaking was Saturday,Sept. 13, just north of the football field, beforethe Beef Bowl game against Western Illinois.

10 14

RABBIT TRACKS2

Competing for the best and brightest just got a littleeasier at SDSU.

Construction on the new Dykhouse Student-Athlete Center begins this October and will mark thefirst stage of a master plan to dramatically modernize

athletic facilities at SDSU. Last fall, Sioux Falls banker Dana Dykhouse, a 1979 graduate of

SDSU and former Jackrabbit football player, presented seed giftstotaling $6 million from his family and Sioux Falls businessman andphilanthropist T. Denny Sanford. The donation set in motion theconstruction of the first major athletic building on campus sinceFrost Arena in 1973.

“It was a very spe cial day,” says SDSU Athletic Director FredOien of the November announcement prior to the Jackrabbits’ upsetof No. 1-ranked North Dakota State that clinched SDSU’s firstconference title since 1963.

“Dana and his son Dan both played football here, both used thesame locker room, both are passionate about Jackrabbit athletics,especially football. From my perspective, the fun part was watchinghow happy he [Dana?] was that he was capable of doing it.”

Long rows of soaring thirty-foot pine trees in the north endzone of Coughlin-Alumni Stadium that once diminished whippingprairie winds and swallowed footballs booted through the goalpostuprights were ripped out during the summer. Construction on theshowy Dykhouse Student-Athlete Center that will rise where thetrees once stood will begin in October, with a target completion dateof August 2009.

Exterior, interior plans describedThe sprawling building, spanning nearly 30,000 square feet, will bebuilt of brick, precast concrete, and glass and will feature a uniquebutterfly roof, where both ends are higher than the middle.

DYKHOUSE STUDENT-ATHLETE CENTERConstruction to begin in October on $6-million facility

DYKHOUSE STUDENT-ATHLETE CENTER

ABOVE: Athletic Director Fred Oien, second from left, grabs a $1-million check from Dana Dykhouse at a November 17, 2007, press conference in thePerforming Arts Center to announce $6 million in donations to build the first phase of the Dykhouse Student-Athlete Center. At Oien's side is SDSUPresident David L. Chicoine. Dykhouse ’79 is flanked by his son, Dan ’06.

FALL 2008 3

The second floor facing the football field will have an outdoordeck offering panoramic views of the stadium and game-day actionbelow, to be used by athletic department donors and special guests.Members of the football coaching staff also will use the area to meetand impress visiting recruits and their families.

Each of the coaches’ offices in the building will feature tall glasswindows offering views onto the football field. The building’sinterior will include state-of-the-art technology with rooms forediting and viewing game film, and walls will be decorated withcolorful artworks and photographs highlighting great moments inJackrabbit sports history.

The Dykhouse Student-Athlete Center will also house anacademic center equipped with study areas, computers, tutors, andother educational aids for all SDSU teams.

Block building, trailers to disappearThe small, single-story block building at the southwest end of theCoughlin-Alumni Stadium grounds that served as the locker roomfor five decades’ worth of Jackrabbit football players will becomeonly a distant memory, thanks to the new Dykhouse center.

Starting next season, football players will pull on their pads andyellow-and-blue uniforms in a spacious locker room offering luxurythat previous generations of Jacks players never could haveenvisioned.

A well-equipped weight room for strength conditioning will bea welcome component of the new facility.

Coach John Stiegelmeier greatly appreciates that the trio oftrailers cobbled together behind the east grandstand that served as

makeshift meeting space for his coaching staff will also be a thing ofthe past, replaced by roomier offices in the new Dykhouse Student-Athlete Center.

“Seven years ago we hijacked three trailers that were on theirway to the dump and we gutted them to make meeting rooms,”Stiegelmeier said. “Even though the trailers were a blessing, they arenot something that you’re going to take a recruit through and say,‘Here, this will wow you.’

“We pride ourselves in taking care of our student-athletes andgiving them a great experience. When you have a great facility itmakes a huge difference,” he said. “The Dykhouse Student-AthleteCenter will be a one-stop football center. It has everything we needin one place.”

Phase two plansOien says the Dykhouse Student-Athlete Center is the first phase ofa much larger football stadium complex that will eventually includea second phase and a field house, both of which are alreadyincorporated into the design plan.

“WE MADE THE DECISION BEFORE WE EVEN GOT

INTO DIVISION I THAT WE HAD TO UPGRADE THE

FACILITIES. WHAT DIVISION I DID FOR US IS IT

CHANGED THE PERCEPTION OF HOW PEOPLE

LOOKED AT US AND WHAT OUR NEEDS WERE.”

ATHLETIC DIRECTOR FRED OIEN


TOP: A butterfly roof and large, east-facing windows are seen in this view of the Dykhouse Student-Athlete Center. Construction of the brick, precastconcrete, and glass building is to start in October. BOTTOM: A drawing shows the south elevation, which is the side that would face the football field.

Phase two will include team meetingrooms and offices for other sports includingbaseball, softball, golf, tennis, cross country,track, and soccer. The future design alsoincludes a field house or a large openbuilding where different sports teams cancompete and practice indoors year-round.

All of these improvements are part of anSDSU Athletic Department master plan thatwas unveiled in 2004. The plan also includesbuilding an entire new football stadium instages with clubrooms and suites and anattractive, state-of-the-art building design.

Coughlin-Alumni Stadium, built in1963, clearly is showing its age. The buildingpasses yearly safety checks, Oien says, but atsome point it will need to be replaced.

On a missionWith interest in Jackrabbit footballsurging—SDSU set a school record foraverage home attendance last season at11,218 fans per game and drew a recordcrowd of more than 16,000 for last year’sNDSU game—Oien says SDSU soon willoutgrow Coughlin-Alumni Stadium.

That makes the need for a larger stadiumand better athletic facilities more pressing.

“There is a big push out there to get thisdone,” he says. “We’re on a mission to get allof these things accomplished. We made the

decision before we even got into Division Ithat we had to upgrade the facilities. WhatDivision I did for us is it changed theperception of how people looked at us andwhat our needs were.

‘Either grow or you die’For benefactor Dana Dykhouse, his vision ofthe new building named after him is morethan simply a better football program. It’s ameans to help keep South Dakota’s youngpeople in the state to attend college and laterto work and raise their families.

“At the end of the day we are competingfor the young people of this state,” he says.“My life has been touched by mentors, and ifI’ve had any success in my life, it’s because of mentors.

“In business, one of my mentors said tome that you either grow or you die, and Ibelieve in that wholeheartedly. The growthdoesn’t have to be rapid but there has to begrowth and progress. It’s truly time that weget started.”

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RABBIT TRACKS4


ABOVE: Philanthropist Dana Dykhouse shows some of his fire for Jackrabbits athletics at a November 17, 2007, press conference in the Performing Arts Centerto announce $6 million in donations to build the first phase of the Dykhouse Student-Athlete Center. The center’s namesake, a 1979 graduate, donated $1 million.

In addition to visions for top-notchfacilities come lofty academic priorities.SDSU student-athletes have some of thebest graduation rates and grade pointaverages in the country.

Nationwide, the average graduationrate is 54 percent for college athletes.SDSU graduates 70 percent of itsstudent-athletes, according to KathyHeylens, SDSU’s assistant athleticdirector for compliance and academics.

The average GPA among the 480student-athletes in eighty different majorsat SDSU is 3.05. The NCAA hasrequirements for Division I schools thatsays they must meet certain academicrates or risk penalties if they fail to do so.But Heylens says that’s not an issue withSDSU student-athletes.

“We’ve always had a strong traditionof academics,” Heylens says. “We havecoaches recruiting students who aregood students first. Student-athleteshere have to first get a degree andgraduate.”

Heylens says the new DykhouseStudent-Athlete Center will furtherenhance the academic experience forstudent-athletes since all resources willbe housed in one area.

Also, in the fall of 2009, SDSU willhire a full-time academic coordinator, aposition Heylens currently holds alongwith her many other job duties. Themoney to hire that person will come fromDivision I academic money. She says thenew hire will also help student-athletes tokeep on track with eligibility.

ANN NACHTIGAL

BRAGGING RIGHTSEXTEND TO CLASSROOM

Little did Dana and LaDawn Dykhouseknow that when they wrote a $100 check tothe SDSU Athletic Department’s JackrabbitClub nearly twenty-five years ago, theirphilanthropy at their alma mater would oneday increase 10,000-fold.

The Dykhouse family’s announcementlast November of a $1-million gift to helpbuild a new student athletic center cameafter years of wanting to give back to a placethat had given them so much.

A Rock Rapids, Iowa, native, DanaDykhouse received a full-ride scholarship in1975 to anchor the defensive line on SDSU’sfootball team. He vividly recalls having histuition and fees bill stamped paid.

“I look back and it’s just burned in mymind. I can see it to this day of having thatbill marked paid and thinking, ‘Wow,someone is paying my way through college,’”says Dykhouse. “They were paying for it andI thought someday we want to pay that back,and when LaDawn and I did our first $100to the Jackrabbit Club, that was part of it.”

Son followed Dad to StateDana and the former LaDawn Stenson, ofMitchell, also a 1979 State grad, met incollege. The couple has two children—Dan,a 2007 graduate of State, and Alana, whoattends Black Hills State University.

The passion for blue and yellow wouldlater be felt by Dan Dykhouse, who starredat Sioux Falls O’Gorman High School beforeplaying tight end for the Jackrabbits from2002 to 2006. While State’s lackluster athleticfacilities didn’t go unnoticed, he couldn’tignore the pull of State and family tradition.

“It came down to Augie and SDSU. Ican’t lie about it, Augie impressed me,” Dansays. “Everything they did was right. AtState, the facilities weren’t a dream but therestill was something special about SDSU. Ireally liked Coach Stig (John Stiegelmeier),and ever since I was a little kid I would go toSDSU football games and so the SDSUJackrabbits were really all I ever knew. It wasmy dream to be a Jackrabbit, and I lived it.”

Dana Dykhouse, president and CEO ofFirst PREMIER Bank since 1995, is one ofSioux Falls’ best-known businessmen andcivic leaders. Recently, he was asked tocochair SDSU’s $190-million capitalcampaign—a challenging task, but one hereadily accepted because of his passion forthe University.

“It’s not just because LaDawn and Iboth graduated from there,” Dykhouse says.“I sit on many economic developmentboards, and I’m just so convinced that theeducation of our young people in this state

and increasing the intellectual capital iswhat’s really going to be our future.”

Dykhouse hopes people will look at thegleaming Dykhouse Student-Athlete Centerrising above the north end zone ofCoughlin-Alumni Stadium and think,“Here’s the way you can do it. Start at $100and someday if you’re lucky enough you cangive back even more.”

ANN NACHTIGAL

FALL 2008 5

MEET THE DYKHOUSES

THE DANADYKHOUSE FILERESIDENCE: Sioux Falls

OCCUPATION: President and CEOof First PREMIER Bank since 1995.

FAMILY: Wife – LaDawn (Stenson).Children – Dan, a 2007 SDSU grad;Alana, a student at Black Hills StateUniversity.

HOMETOWN: Rock Rapids, Iowa

EDUCATION: 1979 SDSU graduate

CIVIC ACTIVITIES: Chair of SiouxFalls United Way campaign in 2006-07 and current board member;cochairman of the Forward SiouxFalls V campaign; member of SiouxEmpire Fair Association; JuniorAchievement; Sioux Falls DowntownRotary; and the South DakotaBankers Association.

SDSU ACTIVITIES: Member ofSDSU NCAA Division I AthleticAdvisory Council; past chair of theSDSU Foundation; director of theFoundation’s $190-million capitalcampaign.


From left, Dan ’07; Alana, a student at Black Hills State University; Dana and LaDawn, both ’79.

The $6 million in gifts from businessman T. Denny Sanford and theDana and LaDawn Dykhouse family essentially covers the bricksand mortar for the Dykhouse Student-Athlete Center.

Now, what’s left to be done is to raise about $1 million to $1.5million to cover all the interior furnishings and fixtures.

Jackrabbit fans will play a pivotal role in creating a lastinglegacy in the new building, according to Mike Burgers, associateathletic director for development at SDSU.

“There is going to be a tremendous amount of namingopportunities,” Burgers says. “Fans can put their names oneverything from coaches’ offices to the academic center to theweight room to lockers and even the foyer areas.”

While Burgers didn’t have an exact dollar amount needed indonations for each item, he did say that his team is gatheringinformation from other schools with similar projects in the works.Burgers, Dykhouse, and Athletic Director Fred Oien recently visitedAuburn to see firsthand how the Alabama university incorporatednaming opportunities into a new engineering building.

“We’re gathering information right now and listening totheir recommendations, and we’ll see how that fits with our missionat SDSU and figure out how to best accomplish our goals,”Burgers says.

Called to step up to the challengeAccording to Burgers, his staff will be contacting every formerSDSU football player and is looking for the entire Jacks footballcommunity, including fans and alumni, to step forward “in a bigway” to help fund the new building.

While Chuck Benson, of Sioux Falls, a fullback at SDSU from1975 to 1978, hasn’t sat down yet with his wife, Joelle, to discuss apossible financial contribution, he fully supports the new facility.

“I think it’s a marvelous gift from both Dana and his family andMr. Sanford,” Benson says. “Dana has such a commitment andpassion for SDSU and its athletics program and football inparticular. It’s just a blessing to be able to come up with that money.”

Benson knows the student-athlete development center is longoverdue. He recently visited the same cramped, one-story

cinderblock locker room he and former teammate Dykhouse sharedin the mid-1970s and said he felt stuck “in a time warp,” witnessingthe same old dreary walls and faded paint.

Benson believes the Dykhouse Student-Athlete Center willdefinitely help the Jacks recruit players.

“To get a top-notch facility like this could mean the differencein winning over that blue-chip player,” he says.

Football excitement buildingAlthough construction on the Dykhouse Student-Athlete Centerisn’t scheduled to be completed until December 1, 2009, it’s alreadycreated a buzz of excitement among Jackrabbit fans.

Burgers hopes increasing fan interest in State’s football teamacross the region will boost last year’s record attendance of morethan 11,000 fans per game at Coughlin-Alumni Stadium to about15,000 per contest this season.

“Football tickets are hot right now,” he says. “This is such atremendous project. So much progress has been made already,but we have lots to accomplish. It’s a fast timeline, but it’s excitingto follow.”

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RABBIT TRACKS6


WHAT’S LEFT TO BE DONE

or for more information on the Dykhouse Student-Athlete Center, contact Mike Burgers,associate athletic director for development, at (605) 697-7475, 888-747-7378 [email protected].

to donate

“Fans can put their names oneverything from coaches’offices to the academic centerto the weight room to lockersand even the foyer areas.”

Mike Burgers,associate athletic director

for development

The 2008 NCAA VolleyballTournament in Lincoln,Nebraska, was destiny in the making for Nanabah (Nah-na-ba) Allison-Brewer.

She watched as this school from SouthDakota battled the Nebraska Cornhuskers,one of the top-ranked teams in the nationthat was practically unbeatable on theirhome court.

The Huskers won in three straightgames, but something about the vanquishedfoe remained with Allison-Brewer long afterthe tournament concluded.

She saw an attractive program that hada history of success. She remembered thesquad taking second in the NCAA DivisionII Tournament, and now as an inauguralmember in Division I was in the bigtournament after winning the regular-season Summit League title the first timeout.

“As a coach you recognize everyone inthe bracket and that’s what caught my eye,”says Allison-Brewer. “I thought, wow, this isa program I need to follow and store in theback of my mind as a potential school thatcould be a good fit for me.”

Her wish came true, because on May23, the Native American, a member of theNavajo Nation, was named the tenth headvolleyball coach in SDSU history.

She takes over for Andrew Palileo, whoresigned to take the head job at WashingtonState University.

“I’m really excited and honored to begiven this opportunity,” she says. “I’mfollowing a great guy who has brought a lotto SDSU and the state. I’m thankful for thechance to come in and give my passion,love, and knowledge of the game to the girlsand the community.”

Heritage comes into playIn addition to being a head coach, theSDSU position was also appealing due toAllison-Brewer’s background. She grew upin Farmington, New Mexico, a state wherethe Navajo Tribe resides. The Navajo Nationis also found in Arizona, Utah, andColorado.

“There is a large Native Americanpopulation in South Dakota,” she explains. “I enjoy learning about other tribes andcultures that exist around the country.”

Allison-Brewer is founder of the NativeAmerican Volleyball Academy, a grassrootsorganization devoted to bringing the sportof volleyball to Native Americancommunities through camps and clinics.

She isn’t ruling out holding camps inSouth Dakota, even though they arecurrently held only in her home turf ofthe southwest.

“Everywhere I have gone I’ve been ableto connect with native communities in that

area,” she says. “I do look forward tomeeting South Dakota tribes and creating arelationship with them.”

Viewed as role modelAllison-Brewer’s family motivates her tokeep moving forward as a role model andmentor. Her husband, Joseph, of the OglalaSioux and Cherokee Tribes, hails from Iowa.They have two daughters: I’yawa and See-na-ne.

She is one of just a handful of NativeAmericans to play and coach at the DivisionI level.

KYLE JOHNSON

FALL 2008 7

In ALLISON-BREWER,Jacks have much more than a volleyball coach

ABOVE: Nanabah Allison-Brewer, shown in her duties as an assistant coach at Dartmouth, was selectedMay 23 to replace Andrew Palileo, who took the Washington State job. At the college level, it is the firsthead coaching job for Allison-Brewer, who founded the Native American Volleyball Committee.

Nanabah Allison-Brewer begins her first season as head coach ofthe SDSU volleyball program after serving as an assistant coachand recruiting coordinator at Dartmouth College in NewHampshire. Before that, she was a volunteer assistant coach atthe University of Arizona, where she earned a master’s degree inhigher education in 2006.Graduating from the University of New Mexico in 2000 with a

degree in statistics, Allison-Brewer earned four letters with theLobos, ranking eighth in career digs and service aces. She wasthe 1998 Western Athletic Conference Defensive Specialist of theYear, and the Native American Sports Council tabbed her theWoman Sports Warrior of the Year in 1999.

NEW COACH HAS OWN STELLAR CAREER

RABBIT TRACKS8

Aaron Johnston has lost a lot of good players duringhis eight years as women’s basketball coach.

Fortunately, those losses have been anticipated asthe athletes reached the end of their eligibility andgraduated. Two months after the end of the 2007-08

season, Johnston got an unexpected call—he was losing the voice ofJackrabbits women’s basketball.

Scotty Kwasniewski, the veteran Brookings radio announcer,was switching career fields.

“I was surprised. I didn’t have any inkling that he was lookingat moving on,” says Johnston, acknowledging disappointment thathe wouldn’t be working with Kwasniewski, better known as Kwas,during the coming season. “I was very surprised, but very happyfor him when he explained the opportunity.”

In May, Kwas began working as an employment representativewith the South Dakota Career Center.

While he won’t be crying “Up and in for two” or “Left wing forthree—got it!” there is an aspect of his former job that he will beable to continue in his new position. The news and sportsbroadcaster will continue to interview.

But now his interviews will be with people “about what theylike to do and don’t like to do,” Kwas says.

Living a simpler lifeHis job of linking people with jobs and jobs with people offersKwas improved benefits, one of which is not getting up at 4:45 a.m.to do the morning show on 910-AM KJJQ. “If I could have donewomen’s basketball for a living, I would,” he says.

But the position didn’t end with the post-game interviews orthe last contest of the seasons.

Other parts of the job weren’t as attractive to Kwas, plus therewere other Kwawniewskis to think of. He and his wife, Carla, havetwo children—Carter, a seventh-grader, and Kaitlin, a ninth-grader.Conflicts were on the horizon between his daughter’s sportsschedule and SDSU broadcasting demands.

He says he will to do some freelance work and is in the processof setting up a studio in his home.

Big opportunities in a small marketOriginally from Webster, Kwas has made Brookings home. “In ourindustry, there is always the pull to get to the bigger market. Forme, I never had to go anywhere. It just came to me,” he says of thechance to broadcast DI basketball.

Before graduating from Brown Institute in Minneapolis, thefuture broadcaster knew he wanted to come home to South Dakota.

So long,SCOTTYFamiliar voice of Jackrabbitswomen’s basketball takes new job

FALL 2008 9

The KJJQ position was the only job he interviewed for, and heis thankful for his fourteen years in the business, particularly theeleven years as women’s basketball broadcaster. His first taste of itcame when a student broadcaster couldn’t make a North Dakota trip.

“It was cold and snowy. We got beat both nights by about twenty,”Kwas recalls from early 1997. “I thought, ‘What did I get into?’”

History before his eyesWhat he got into when he took over announcing duties in the 1997-98 season was a chance to witness history.

Johnston says, “Scotty has been a very memorable part of ourprogram. He has called some of the program’s biggest moments—thenational championship, Stacey Cizek’s three to get us into thenational championship, our transition to Division I.

“Scotty’s voice and the way he called the game are going to beingrained in people’s minds for a long time.”

When Kwas began broadcasting, the SDSU women had a strongprogram, but it ranked second to the men in fan interest.

“As a broadcaster, you just try to make it as fun and exciting aspossible and reveal the people in the game. How do you make itdifferent from any other game on the radio? I want it to be anexciting thing.

“At the same time, I don’t want to lie. You have to be truthful,”says Kwas, who saw himself as part journalist, part promoter.

Coach Johnston says, “One of the things I always appreciatedmost about Scotty is he did a good job of being objective—askingthe tough questions after a loss, but at the same time still being fairto our athletes and coaches.

“He was very fair, very likeable. He wasn’t just a voice on theradio, he was someone you’d see walking down the street.”

Gaining a measure of fameOr at the store, or in church. As the women’s team became morepopular and as the broadcast became available at more outlets,including the Internet, his name and voice became betterrecognized, Kwas says.

“Oh, you’re the guy that does the games,” people would tell himwhen he was grabbing a jug of milk.

“It was fun; at the same time a little uncomfortable. I don’tknow that the spotlight is the spot for me. Any fame I got was

directly related to their success,” says Kwas, who adds he wasconstantly looking for ways to improve his performance.

In announcing more than 300 Jackrabbit games in his career, hesays “there were only a half-dozen games where afterwards I thoughtI really nailed it.”

That’s one call that his listeners might dispute.DAVE GRAVES

TO TAKE AN AUDIO TRIP DOWN MEMORY LANE, GO TOGOJACKS.COM FOR CLIPS FROM THE 2007-08 SEASON.

1 Stacie Cizek’sthree-pointer at thebuzzer that sent the2003 nationalsemifinaltournament gameinto overtime—“Cizek on the rightwing. Good forthree! Good forthree! Tied at 57.”

2 Shannon Slagelhitting a bucket atthe end of the gameto beat Kentucky in2004 and giveSDSU its firstDivision I win.

3 A University ofNorth Dakota shotgoing off the rim atthe end of the 2004regionalchampionship toallow SDSU toadvance to the EliteEight nationaltournament for thethird straight year.

4 Road wins at twowell-knownuniversities—Alabama andOklahoma State—within a week ofeach other in theJacks’ inaugural DIseason, 2004-05.

5 Broadcastingfrom the VirginIslands in theParadise Jam in2004 in State’s firstyear as a DI school.

6 Broadcastingfrom Grand BahamaIsland for theJunkanoo Jam in2006.

MEET THE NEW VOICETYLER MERRIAM, the new voice of Jackrabbitswomen’s basketball, isn’t such a new voice.

Though he is only 23, Merriam is a veteran ofbroadcasting and SDSU athletics. He hasbroadcast selected SDSU baseball games for thepast three years. He will continue that, pick up thevolleyball broadcasting duties that Brad DeBeer hadhandled, and will call all the women’s basketballgames on KJJQ.

“It’s a wonderful opportunity,” says Merriam,who also has four and one-half years experience inthe SDSU sports information office.

The December 2007 SDSU journalism graduatewas working “part time, forty hours a week” at thesports information office when the job withBrookings Radio came open in mid-May, the Pierrenative shares.

His broadcast career started at age 15 doing aSunday morning shift at the Pierre radio station.

Jackrabbit fans may recognize his voice fromwhen he hosted KJJQ’s coaches show with SDSUcoaches. “I know them and they know me,” saysMerriam, noting a seamless transition is expectedduring the coming athletic season.

DAVE GRAVES

SCOTTY’S SIXThe broadcaster’s most memorable moments calling SDSU games:

RABBIT TRACKS10

When she first came to SDSUin 2005, Megan McGeeknew it would be achallenge to build asuccessful women’s

equestrian program from scratch. “A lot of people said ‘you can’t do that

in South Dakota. You can’t be a competitiveequestrian squad,’” she says.

Although McGee encounteredskepticism from outsiders, she saw potentialfor the program in the support of theUniversity. “This is a bit of a first in terms ofa university making this kind of acommitment to the program,” says McGee.

Three years later, the growing programis now turning the heads of competinguniversities and potential recruits with itsnew $3.6-million facility.

“The facility is a very powerfulrecruiting tool for us,” says McGee.

“Students understand that if they come uphere they have a legitimate chance to be partof a competitive team on the national level.”

Providing opportunitiesSDSU alum Nathelle DeHaan ’37, ofBrookings, provided the initial gift to buildthe equestrian program and new facility.DeHaan was an active member in the localhorse community for nearly five decadesand traveled with her husband, Lawrence, tojudge and show quarter horses.

She saw the new equestrian program as achance to provide better opportunities foryoung women riders, which is exactly what itdid for senior equestrian Lindsay Harr, of Zell.

The program has given Harr thechance to develop into a serious rider, eventhough she has been riding most of her life.

“I went back and looked at some of mytapes from old shows and can’t believe I

even got on the team! I’ve learned a lothere,” says Harr, a Redfield High Schoolgraduate who qualified for last year’sregional championships.

Winter-proof facilityThe NCAA varsity equestrian season laststhe entire academic year, so athletes mustpractice throughout winter.

“The idea behind the design was for usto be completely operational even in theworst of weather. We have forty-two stalls inthe facility with additional areas to groomthe horses, prepare them for practice, andwash them afterwards. We have a lockerroom facility for the students equipped withWi-Fi so they can study here.

“We even have an area where the vetand horseshoer can bring their vehiclesinside and work,” says McGee.

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP: The equestrian team moved into its new $3.6-million facility in May. In addition to the main building, a pole barn north of thecenter provides a place to store hay and other goods. Oreo gives his approval to one of the forty-two stalls in the new center. The riding arena covers25,000 square feet, about the size of half a football field.

More than a horsebarnNew equestrian center boasts forty-two stalls, 26,000 square-foot arena

FALL 2008 11

Once the SDSU Foundation completesfund-raising for Phase I, the facility isexpected to undergo a second phase ofconstruction. Phase II will include theaddition of a stall barn, viewing rooms,coaching offices, a meeting room, and evena trophy room.

“There is more to be done that is goingmake this place even more spectacular,” says McGee.

A place to call homeMcGee is most excited about the newfacility’s riding area. “We’re going from6,000 square feet to almost 26,000 squarefeet,” says McGee, alluding to the temporaryequestrian facility that SDSU had beenleasing for the past three years.

“The old place was really nice but it gotso crowed in there,” recalls Harr.

“Yeah, we were really bumping into oneanother every step of the way, and it was avery good facility but we were over capacityfrom the moment we started” McGee says.

To get away from overcrowding a fewdays each week the squad began to practiceat the Swiftel Center where it hostscompetitions. However, that made the teamsomewhat nomadic.

“We would pack up and move an entireoperation. It would take us hours, it wouldtake up whole days’ worth of time for theentire staff to move everything and than

another half of a day to move back. In ourown facility we have more time to spendwith the students and build the program,”says McGee.

Harr has been with the team since itbegan and stuck out three years of weeklyrelocations to the Swiftel. Her message tonew team members who will join the teamthis fall: “You guys have it easy!”

She anxiously remembers thinking“just let me get in there!” while waiting forconstruction on the new facility to becomplete.

Harr, her teammates, and even thehorses were happy to finally move into theirnew home in May.

“The horses like it too. Horses are verysusceptible to stress, which can decreasetheir performance. The old place had solidwalls so they could not see one another, butthey are herd animals and want to see theirbuddies. This is a better environment forthem,” says McGee.

Last season the SDSU equestrian teamconcluded a successful second year. Nineriders qualified for regional championships,and three made it to nationals, where

SDSU’s western rider Trisha Smeenk wonthird place.

Even more success is expected for the2008-09 season. “Now that we have the newfacility, we hope to get better performancesfrom the athletes and better performancesfrom our horses,” McGee says.

Settling inLike many of the team members, Harrspends a lot of time at the new facility. Theathletes are expected to help manage it, andmanaging a $3.6-million barn with fortyhorses and 150 acres of land is a lot of work.

Extra help usually comes from studentemployees studying animal science or whoare involved in the new equinemanagement minor.

Before another hectic season beginsthis fall, the team has been settling into thenew facility at a comfortable pace. “We’restill unpacking boxes and getting stuff putaway. I’m okay right now about being thebest kept secret at SDSU just because westill got a little bit of work to do.”

BRITNI THOMPSON

“THE IDEA BEHIND THE DESIGN WAS FOR US TO BE COMPLETELY

OPERATIONAL EVEN IN THE WORST OF WEATHER.”

COACH MEGAN MCGEE ON THE NEW EQUESTRIAN CENTER

TOP LEFT: Lindsay Harr brushes Rafiki in his stall in the Equestrian Center. TOP RIGHT: Gathered at Curtis’ stall in the SDSU Equestrian Center are, fromleft, Coach Megan McGee, Nathelle DeHaan, the major donor for the Equestrian Center; and Lindsay Harr, of Zell, a senior who will graduate more thanseventy years after DeHaan earned her degree at State.

Saying Caitlin (Hiedeman) Berry comes from a runningfamily would be like saying Ted Kennedy comes from apolitical family.

The family crest is a pair of winged shoes. TheHiedemans own their own race timing system. They

turned a family Thanksgiving Day challenge of “If you want to eat,you’ve got to run” into a community 5K run.

So it’s really no surprise that the Watertown family’s daughterCaitlin is running cross country and track at SDSU.

Or maybe it is.

She had earned a track scholarship to Augustana after a solidcareer at Watertown High School. But life changed those plans. Shemarried classmate Ryan Berry July 10, 2004, just two months aftertheir graduation.

Berry was an SDSU football recruit. Berry kept the family intact by switching to State. On December 23, 2004, the family grewwith the birth of their son, Carson.

Obviously, running wasn’t a part of Berry’s freshman year at State.

A second chance for runningBut running certainly is a part of Berry. Soon after Carson’s birth shewas missing the competitiveness of the sport. After discussing it withher husband and family, Berry decided to push back the clock andtry collegiate athletics after all.

Of course, one can never fully step back in time.If Berry was going to run collegiately, there was the hurdle of

caring for Carson that would have to be cleared. Thanks to Ryan, hermom, and friends, Berry has cleared that hurdle and has becomeSDSU’s top-returning runner.

Patty Hiedeman, Berry’s mother, cared for Carson twice a weekuntil dropping back to weekly last year.

Friends also watched the little one and nursing students werehired when Mom and Dad had overlapping commitments. “Wedidn’t want him to go to day care” when he was very young, CaitlinBerry explains.

Carson did go to day care ten to fifteen hours a week last yearwhen the couple was in practice.

Summer strolls and other workoutsIn the summer, Berry and Carson hang out in their south Brookingstownhouse. Often he is in the stroller while Mom is logging hersummer miles—fifty per week in midsummer, peaking to seventy bysummer’s end.

Sometimes Ryan and Carson are on the bike while Berry isrunning. “It helps to have someone else there with you,” she says.

On occasion, Berry runs with former teammate Becka(Mansheim) Foerster and fellow senior Claire Steinke. Then there is

that weekly trip with coach Rod DeHaven and teammates to the hillseast of White near the Minnesota border.

Those gravel roads are one of the few places in this flat area thata good hill workout can be had.

Sometimes they will run at Edgebrook Golf Course, whereSDSU’s lone home meet is held. But “a lot of our workouts are oncountry gravel roads. Rod’s always yelling at us to quit beingsidewalk Sallies and get on the gravel,” she says.

Because of the miles cross-country runners log, staying off thepavement lessens injury risk.

RABBIT TRACKS12

MOM ON A MISSIONBerry looks for fast finish to college running career

Dealing with injuryHowever, Berry developed an injury toward the end of the 2008indoor track season that has taken the glimmer off herperformances. Earlier in the summer she was diagnosed withpopliteal tendonitis, an inflammation of a small tendon on the backof the knee.

During outdoor track season, her times were respectable butnot to the level she had run.

The discomfort began in the arch and worked up her leg. Treatingthe ailment as plantar fasciitis didn’t help, nor did a three-week layoffat the beginning of summer. With the tendonitis diagnosis, Berry isreceiving different therapy and avoiding sprint work.

“Hopefully it will be fine by the time cross-country seasonstarts,” she says five weeks from the opening meet.

“The worst is when I’m in spikes with not much support andworking at my hardest. As long as I can get the miles in, I think I’llbe OK,” says Berry, noting she did have good results during asummer road race wearing racing flats.

Champions made in the summerBerry is a seven-day-a-week runner, doing double runs three to fourtimes a week.

That discipline is what makes her a good runner, she says. “Thesummer is going to make the difference in the fall. It takes a goodbase of workouts in the summer to be ready for the fall” or runnerswon’t be in condition for fall workouts and often end up injured.

“I am pretty consistent in the summer,” usually going at 8 a.m.and again at 5 or 8 p.m., depending on the heat.

Plus she is competitive.“I’ve got it in me I am going to do my best. I don’t want to be away

from Carson and Ryan if I’m not going to do my best,” Berry says.

A race to rememberHer best race as an SDSU runner came at the Iowa State ClassicFebruary 15, 2008, in the 3,000 meters.

“Rod (DeHaven) never lies about entry times to get us in a fastheat. I had run a 10:12” in the race that is half a lap short of twomiles, Berry says. This time DeHaven made an exception, enteringBerry at 9:59 to get her in the fast heat.

In the major meet, slower heats are held in the afternoons withthe prime-time runners entered into the evening heats. “This wasthe first time I had run in the evening section or the fastest eveningheat,” Berry recalls.

“I was so nervous. I looked around. There was Nike to my left,Reebok to my right. [University of Minnesota standout] JaimeCheever was there,” Berry says of the field that included runnerssponsored by the shoe companies and top collegians.

The thirty-two ladies in the heat also included Ramsay Kavan,who competed against Berry in high school for Yankton.

“Everybody knew Ramsay Kavan. She changed the face ofdistance running in high school,” Berry says of the University ofSouth Dakota athlete who competed at Notre Dame during asuccessful freshman season.

Valuable lesson learnedWhen the starting pistol sounded, nervousness died andadrenaline emerged.

Berry ran a 9:44:80, which was twenty-seven seconds faster thanher personal record and the third fastest time in school history. “Itmade Rod feel good about fibbing on his time to get me in” to thefast heat, she says.

Her clocking placed eighth, half a second and one place in frontof Kavan.

“It was pretty cool to say I can run with her. That race showedme don’t be scared of a uniform or a name. Just go out and do whatyou can. That race made my decision to stay out for track my lastyear. I saw what I could do,” she says.

In the futureRyan and Caitlin Berry will both graduate in May 2009 withbiology majors.

Ryan plans to enter med school in the fall. Berry, who has a pre-dental emphasis, says, “There is a lot to figure out in the near future,”including when to expand their family. “Ultimately, I want to be astay-at-home mom. There is a lot that still has to be revealed to us.”

One thing seems certain: Berry will be home in Watertown thisThanksgiving joining in the family tradition—a run.

DAVE GRAVES

FALL 2008 13

“THAT RACE SHOWED ME DON’T BE SCARED OF A UNIFORM OR A NAME.

JUST GO OUT AND DO WHAT YOU CAN.” CAITLIN BERRY ON HER PERSONAL RECORD 3,000-METER RUN

Caitlin BerryYEAR: Senior

MAJOR: biology/pre-dental,4.0 GPA

HOMETOWN: Watertown

PERFORMANCES: 9:44.80 inthe 3K, February 15, 2008, IowaState Classic, third best inschool history; third (10:04.29) inthe Summit League indoor 3K, March 1, 2008, at WesternIllinois University; fifth (22:03) inthe Summit League conferencecross-country meet, November2007, Macomb, Illinois.

MISCELLANEOUS: Has runfour marathons—Grandma’s inDuluth, Minnesota, three times(ages 16, 17, and 18) and Twin Cities.

BERRY GOOD

Faithful tailgaters who gather andsocialize prior to cheering on theJackrabbit football team will beafforded new areas to congregatewhen the Dykhouse Student-

Athlete Center is built.One tailgater doesn’t mind moving at

all because he realizes it’s progress in themaking and one that benefits the SDSUathletic family.

“It will be a great addition that finishesoff the north end,” says Jim Langer. “It willtake away our tailgating spot, but that’sokay. We will find another suitable spot. It(the center) will greatly improve theefficiency and quality of the entire programfor everyone.”

Langer happens to know a little bitabout being efficient. The 1970 graduatefrom Royalton, Minnesota, enjoyed atwelve-year career in the National FootballLeague. He is the only player in the formerNorth Central Conference to be inductedinto the Pro Football Hall of Fame when hewas enshrined in Canton, Ohio, in 1987.

He played in three consecutive SuperBowls with the Miami Dolphins winningtwo rings. He experienced perfection in1972 when the Dolphins became the firstNFL team to go unbeaten and untied at 17-0overall following three playoff wins.

For the Jacks, he was a linebacker ondefense, and a guard and tackle on offense.However, at six feet, two inches and 270pounds, he was an agile and savvy center forthe Dolphins. He played every snap duringthe ’72 campaign, and of the 500 passblocking assignments that year, he neededhelp on only three plays.

Named to the Pro Bowl six times,Langer became the twenty-fourth memberof the Jackrabbit Sports Hall of Fame in1988. He was a three-year letterman infootball and baseball, earning all-North

Central Conference and all-Americarecognition in both sports.

Strong SDSU tiesLanger has never strayed too far from SDSU,which has been like a second home to hisfamily. He and his wife of forty years, Lynda,have four children and all attended SDSU:daughter Carrie, and sons Tracy, Craig, andRussell, who all played baseball for the Jacks.

Co-owner and president of CustomTruck Accessories in Ham Lake, Minnesota,Langer sees SDSU on the move in moreways than one.

An analogy can be drawn between his almamater experiencing record enrollments anda construction boom to the words of hisHall of Fame former head coach.

RABBIT TRACKS14

“MY MEMORIES ARE OF THE SPECIAL PLAYERS I PLAYED WITH.

I REMEMBER HITTING MY FIRST BLOCKING SLED AT STATE, AND IT

KNOCKED ME BACKWARD ABOUT SIX FEET! IT WAS A PRETTY

MODEST BEGINNING.” JIM LANGER

ABOVE: Jim Langer blocks for teammate Darwin Gonnerman (43) in a November 2, 1968, game against Augustana at State field. Langer helpedGonnerman score five touchdowns in that game. As a pro, he helped the Miami Dolphins to the only perfect NFL season—17-0 in 1972.

LANGERCURRENT JACKS IMPRESS

NFL Hall of Famer says 2007 primes State football to play at higher level

FALL 2008 15

“Like Shula (Don) use to tell theDolphins, you either get better or you getworse,” relates Langer. “You must grow everyday or you go backward. I picture SDSU asbeing where it should be right now.

“I’ve always thought SDSU was a greatcampus and a quality school,” he adds.“South Dakota should be very proud of thisinstitution. Its academics are terrific.”

Likes direction of current programAppearing in 141 consecutive regular-seasongames until a chipped bone ended hisMiami career in the ninth game of the 1979season, Langer is impressed with thedirection of the Jackrabbit football program.

He views the new Missouri ValleyFootball Conference as being “positive,” but“very tough” at the same time.

“Watching the team last year andmaking the trip to Youngstown State, Isincerely believe State is well coached andattracting quality players,” he says. “Theyobviously were very competitive, and to getbetter, you must play better competition.”

Langer says he has visited with parentsof players and recruits who have chosenSDSU, and they are impressed with Jacks’head coach John Stiegelmeier, who hasguided the program to six consecutivewinning seasons and has had only twolosing campaigns in eleven years.

“John has surrounded himself withsome solid assistants,” he observes. “Theyare excellent with communication, and theplayers respond and work hard.

“He has let these people coach and thatis great on his part,” he adds. “They earned a

great deal of respect last year, and that’s atribute to John and his approach to buildingthe program.”

Success at next levelLanger, who finished his last two seasonswith the Minnesota Vikings, witnessed hisJacks defeat North Dakota State last seasonto capture the conference championship—momentum that carries nicely into the 2008campaign, he indicates.

“We’ve had a blast going to the gamesand tailgating,” he says. “We saw the NDSUgame, and it was fantastic to see the energylevel that game put into the program.

“That was a historic moment,” he adds.“It takes you to the next level confidence-wise. Now, you build on that experience.”

KYLE JOHNSON

Even though it’s been four decades sinceJim Langer was earning an economicsdegree and completing his secondlieutenant commission through ArmyROTC, he feels the era in which he playedwas the best at the time.

“The NCC was a great conferencewhose time was over,” he says. “I wasproud to play in it and always thought itwas one of the best Division II conferences.

“My memories are of the specialplayers I played with,” he adds. “Iremember hitting my first blocking sled atState, and it knocked me backward aboutsix feet! It was a pretty modest beginning.Just like today, State had great people tohelp and you must have that.”

Langer lettered in football in 1967,1968, and 1969, earning all-conference and honorable mention all-America honorsas a senior.

On the baseball diamond, Langer ledthe conference in hits (twenty-three) andearned run average (1.57) in 1969 to earnall-conference and all-America laurels. Hehad a .317 career batting average, playingin seventy-three games. He sported a 9-13career pitching record with a 3.39 earnedrun average.

When Langer wasn’t playing sports orin the classroom, he worked as an all-nightgas station attendant in downtownBrookings.

In late spring of his senior year, hesigned a free agent contract with theCleveland Browns. He was later releasedand signed by the Miami Dolphins and therest was NFL history.

“I was very fortunate,” Langer says ofhis hum ble beginning. “I owe Erv Huether agreat deal. He was my old baseball coachwho got me a tryout with the Browns.”

KYLE JOHNSON

BASEBALL COACHHOLDS SPECIAL PLACE FORGRIDDER

LEFT: Langer gives an interview outside the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio, September 7, 2007. RIGHT: Langer tours the Hall of Fame.(Photos by Ty Carlson/SDSU Sports Information).

RABBIT TRACKS16

Even ardent SDSU supporters willadmit that a November night inBrookings isn’t the best time tomake a great first impression oncampus visitors.

But darkness or a yellow-and-bluestupor blocked any bleakness from thevision of Kelly Larson, a senior atMahtomedi High School near St. Paul,Minnesota, when she made her first trip tocampus in November 2004.

Larson and her mother drove intocampus from the north side.

“I said, ‘This is where I want to go. Thisis awesome,’” Larson recalls on the verge ofher final season as an SDSU soccer player.“Something about it just felt right, and I hadtoured a bunch of schools and had neversaid that.

“Being from the Twin Cities, I neverexpected to go to school in South Dakota.”

Start of something bigBut in August 2005 she reported for practicewith a large incoming freshman class andhas had no regrets. By the season opener,Larson was in the starting lineup as adefender along with four other newcomersto Coach Lang Wedemeyer’s program.

She started all but one game that seasonand has started every game since.

Entering this year’s seventeen-matchregular season, Larson has started fifty-fourgames and played 3,844 minutes. Thatplaces her eighth on the career ladder ingames started and fifth in minutes played.

That means she has a chance toovertake Maggie Eilers, the leader in bothcategories (seventy-one games, 4,708minutes).

“It would be cool to be compared toMaggie because she’s a great player,” Larsonsays of her teammate during her freshmanand sophomore season.

Prepared for successLarson has never been injured in college.“I’ve been fortunate. I take care of myself. Iwear my ankle braces in practice and takemy ice baths” after early-season practices,she says.

Of course, it’s more than just durabilitythat keeps Larson on the field. “Kelly is ourgeneral in the back. She’s the organizer, thecommunicator. She’s the person that drivesthe team,” Wedemeyer says.

Hopefully, all the way to the NCAAtournament.

This is the first season that the programis eligible for the Division I nationaltournament and “we see big things for us,”Larson says. “We plan on making it to theNCAA tournament. We all put in a lot ofwork this summer.”

For Larson, that meant weightlifting,fitness work, and playing pickup gameswith the guys.

To qualify for the sixty-four-teamNCAA tournament, SDSU must win theSummit League tournament. Only the topfour teams in the league qualify for thetournament. SDSU finished third last yearbut was ineligible for postseason play.

A strong defense paced the 2007 squad,which recorded seven shutouts, four of themconsecutively at the end of the season.

Goals against and other goalsThe team gave up just fifteen goals inseventeen games, but Larson sees room forimprovement.

“We’ll aim for half of games as shutoutsand the rest of them nothing more than agoal,” Larson says. “Defense is reallysomething we focus on as a team. If we haveperfect defense, good things will happenfrom there.”

The 2007 squad went 9-4-4, theprogram’s first winning season since DI playbegan in 2004.

Larson doesn’t have specific personalgoals. “I just want to be a good leader for theteam, have as much success as I had lastyear, and set a good example for the [other]girls” on the team, she says.

DAVE GRAVES

KELLY LARSON

Position: Defender

Height/uniform number: 5-4 / 14

Year: Senior

Major: English

High school: MahtomediHigh School

Hometown: Mahtomedi,Minnesota

Activities outside soccer:English and Spanish Clubs, studyabroad trip to Spain in 2007.

Offseason sport: Played icehockey in high school and hopesto join the SDSU women’s teamthis winter.

Miscellaneous: Played 1,578minutes in seventeen games lastyear, setting a school record forminutes in a season.

Quote: “I can’t imagine lifewithout soccer after eating,breathing, and sleeping soccerfor fifteen years.”

A LOOK AT LARSON

Divots fly as Kelly Larson charges downfield withthe ball during a 2006 game. Entering her seniorseason, Larson ranks fifth all-time in minutesplayed for SDSU women’s soccer.

LOVE at first sightLarson anxious to put icing on stellar soccer career

SDSU became an active member of Division I of the NationalCollegiate Athletic Association September 1, 2008.

All rights and privileges of membership are now granted tothe Jackrabbits. First and foremost is the right to compete forNCAA national championships in twenty sports (equestrian is yetto be an official NCAA championship). In addition, full servicesof the NCAA for Division I members and grants and revenuebecome available.

No longer will the state of South Dakota be the only statewithout at least one sport being classified as Division I. It took apassionate and relentless alumni/fan base, an entire universitycommunity, and a dedicated athletic staff to make this happen.

The work is far from over to reach the long-term goals of thismove to Division I. In September we are sharing our proposedfive-year Strategic Plan with the Intercollegiate Athletic Board,the Athletic Advisory Council, and the Champions Council.

The plan will outline our goals with specific proposals forscholarship increases, additional positions, facility development,programming enhancements, operation and equipment enhance-ments, and capital expenditures to meet these goals.

We will use the “feedback” we receive from our boards andcouncils to refine the plan and make our plans available to thepublic. Like all plans, we will review it annually and modify it tobest serve our student-athletes.

As we move forward, let me thank you on behalf of ourentire staff and student-athletes for your loyalty and patiencethese last five years. You have demonstrated love and care for thisprogram through your personal support and generosity.

Fred OienSDSU ATHLETIC DIRECTOR

Full-fledged DI,but planning continues

On July 15 it was announced that for the third consecutiveseason, South Dakota State led all divisions of women’s collegebasketball in team grade point average. Simply amazing.

In basketball terms, that’s a triple-double, a 10-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio, a night of going 10-for-10 from behind thearc, or that game winning, buzzer-beater that touches nothingbut nylon. Such an accomplishment sends chills down thespines of Jackrabbit fans around the country.

Lucky? Well, the rabbit’s foot is certainly auspicious, butthese young ladies are extremely passionate about what theydo and very relentless in how they go about doing it. That for-mula is exactly what has led to such accomplishments. A for-mula that has made them champions.

Found entrenched in the attitudes of our student-athletes,staff, and fans is that same mentality and adage—Passionate.Relentless. Champions.

Accolades like this one are one in a million . . . or one in1,720 if you are counting the number of collegiate women’s basketball teams in the country. Takethat number times three years, factor in the student-athletes that graduated and enrolled as fresh-man, factor in travel schedules and numerous other variables, and it might take a near-genius tofigure out the actual odds of winning this award. Better yet, it might take a Jackrabbit.

The 480 student-athletes at the University carry an overall grade point average of 3.05 andpursue more than eighty different majors.

• SDSU’s equestrian team finished second in GPA among Division I teams in the country.• The women’s cross-country team finished third.• The men’s and women’s track and field teams both were in the top twenty.• The list of SDSU sports ranking in the top 100 academically at the national level goes onand on. The Jackrabbits had 216 student-athletes honored on academic all-conferenceteams during the 2007-08 academic year and six academic all-American awards were alsobestowed on these bright, young men and women.

The revenue generation side of me thinks that if NCAA rules permitted, I’d sell a sponsorshipto Encyclopedia Britannica and sew the encyclopedia logo t o the back of their jerseys; however,the true Jackrabbit fan in me is just proud that these young men and women shed sweat and tearsin a jersey that signifies something much, much deeper . . . Jackrabbit athletics.

George Scialabra of the Boston Globe recently wrote, “Perhaps imagination is only intelligencehaving fun.” Speaking of which, who could have imagined the on-court success that has accompa-nied the academic achievements of these young men and women. Conference championships,NCAA bids, professional draft picks, and the list goes on.

And the best part is . . . they’re not done yet. In the words of Coach (or should I say“Professor”) Aaron Johnston, “Don’t stop believing.”

Go Big. Go Blue. Go Jacks.Mark Burgers

ASSOCIATE ATHLETIC DIRECTORFOR EXTERNAL AFFAIRS

An academic three-peatWomen’s basketball team continues to rule in classroom

NON-PROFITUS POSTAGE PAIDBROOKINGS SDPERMIT 24

SOUTH DAKOTA STATE UNIVERSITYAthletics DepartmentBox 2820Brookings, SD 57007-1497



DYKHOUSESTUDENT-ATHLETECENTER

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DYKHOUSE

2008 fall rabbit tracks

Documents

state of south dakota

athletic advisory council

dedicated athletic staff

intercollegiate athletic

new job

active member of division

basketball terms

plans available