RIPON, Wisconsin – The awards keep rolling in for Ella Ten Pas and the Ripon women's basketball program, as a bevy of Red Hawks received recognition by the Wisconsin Basketball Coaches Association on Friday.
 
Ten Pas was named the WBCA's Division III Private School Women's Player of the Year, while McKenzie Bestor, Kyra Bisarek, Anna Cunningham, Anna Fahrney, Maddi Friedle, Alayna Hackbarth, Abby Hartmann, Laney Havlovitz, Nadia Hoffa, Molly Johannes, Bella Opelt, Natalie Rauwolf and Sophie Schlieve all were honored as WBCA Academic All-State recipients.
 
This marks the second Private School Player of the Year accolade for Ripon women's basketball in the last three years as Alison Leslie was recognized after the 2021-22 season, the same season head coach Lauren Busalacchi was the co-Division II/III Private School Coach of the Year.
 
Ten Pas, the Midwest Conference Player of the Year – Ripon's first since the 2005-06 season – led the MWC with 11 double-doubles, had six 20+ point games and also had 12, 10+ rebound games. She set the Ripon program record for single season rebounds with 247, doing so in the MWC Tournament final against Knox. Additionally, she was named a d3hoops.com second-team All-Region selection 10 days ago -- Ripon's first postseason, regional recognition by d3hoops.com since the 2019-20 season.
 
The first-team All-MWC selection was in the top-15 for the Midwest Conference in a host of statistical categories. Ten Pas led the league in rebounding (9.2 rpg), was third in MWC in offensive rebounding (2.9 orpg), third in MWC in defensive rebounding (6.3 drpg), fifth in MWC in blocks (20), sixth in MWC in field goal percentage (75.0%), eighth in the MWC in scoring (13.4 ppg), 12th in MWC in minutes played (28.5 mpg) and 13th in MWC in steals per game (1.6).
 
The Oostburg native was also recognized on the Academic All-State team.
 
The collegiate Academic All-State honor requires that a selected individual have at least a 3.5 GPA. Player of the Year and Newcomer of the Year awards were voted on by the WBCA Executive Board.
 
The full list of players and newcomers of the year is below.
 
WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
Division 1 Women's Player of the Year: Serah Williams, Wisconsin
Division 2 Women's Player of the Year: Lexie Schneider, University of Mary
Division 3 Public Women's Player of the Year: Aleah Grundahl, UW-Whitewater
Division 3 Private Women's Player of the Year: Ella Ten Pas, Ripon College
Division 1 Women's Newcomer of the Year: KK Arnold, UConn
Division 2 Women's Newcomer of the Year: Chloe Van Zeeland, UW-Parkside
Division 3 Public Women's Newcomer of the Year: Katie Waukau, UW-La Crosse
Division 3 Private Women's Newcomer of the Year: Jayden Nortier, Edgewood College
 
Ripon finished the 2023-24 season 19-9, winning both the regular season and tournament titles in the Midwest Conference. Ripon advanced to its seventh-ever NCAA Tournament, falling to #12 Hope College in the first round.
 
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