Ashley TeKippe, Luther College, Decorah, Iowa/Decorah
TeKippe, a junior forward, averaged 7.0 points, 11.5 rebounds, 5.0 blocks and 3.0 assists per game, and shot 41.7 percent (5-of-12) from the floor in two Conference Tournament games. In a semifinal win over Buena Vista (56-44), she scored five points, had nine rebounds, four assists, two blocks and a steal. She scored nine point, had 14 rebounds, a school record eight blocks, two assists and a steal in the Championship game against Loras (60-47), leading Luther to its first Iowa Conference Tournament title.

Amber Karkosh, Coe College, Toledo, Iowa/South Tama
Karkosh, a junior guard, averaged 19.0 points, 13.0 rebounds, 3.5 steals and 2.5 assists per game, and shot 50.0 percent (15-of-30) from the floor against Simpson (74-52 loss) and Central (66-61 overtime win). During the week, she became Coe’s single season leader in points, rebounds and steals. Against Simpson, she scored 12 points (on 6-of-12 shooting), had nine rebounds, three assists and two steals, to become the school’s single season leader. Karkosh posted her Conference-best 11th double-double of the year in the win over Central which clinched the final IIAC Tournament spot for the Kohawks. She scored 26 points (on 9-of-18 shooting) and had 17 rebounds, becoming the school’s single season leader in both categories. She also had five steals and two assists. (IIAC Female Athlete of the Week)

Christina Gaard, Luther College, Decorah, Iowa/Decorah
Gaard, a senior guard, averaged 15.0 points, 5.0 rebounds and 4.0 assists per game, and shot 54.3 percent (19-of-35) from the floor in victories over Dubuque (65-42), Coe (61-43) and Buena Vista (78-67) to help Luther clinch its IIAC-record seventh women’s basketball title, first since 2002. Gaard scored her 900th career point as part of her 12-point performance against Dubuque. In that contest she also had four assists and three rebounds. She scored 18 points (on 7-of-14 shooting), had seven rebounds, six assists and two steals against Coe. In the title clincher against Buena Vista, she scored 15 points, had five rebounds and two assists. (Women's IIAC Female Athlete of the Week)

Natalie Pucci, Loras College, West Dundee, Ill./Jacobs
Pucci, a junior guard, averaged 21.0 points, 4.5 assists, 4.0 rebounds and 1.5 steals per game, and shot 55.6 percent from the floor (15-of-27) in victories over Simpson (73-70) and Central (64-50). She scored 20 points (on 7-of-15 shooting), had five rebounds, four assists and two steals against Simpson as Loras pulled even with the Storm in the loss column for second-place in the IIAC. Against Central, Pucci scored 22 points including a season-high six three-pointers to go along with five assists, three rebounds and a steal.

Tracy Hartwig, Buena Vista Univ., Rockwell City, Iowa/Rockwell City-Lytton
Hartwig, a senior guard/forward, averaged 16.3 points, 5.3 rebounds, 2.3 assists, 1.7 steals and 1.3 blocks per game, and shot 48.0 percent (12-of-25) from the floor and 94.4 percent (17-of-18) from the free throw line in victories over Dubuque (88-71), Cornell (69-51) and Wartburg (62-58). She connected on 8-of-16 3-point field goal attempts during the week and moved into third on the school’s all-time list of 3-point field goals made. Hartwig scored 12 point (on 4-of-6 shooting), had three rebounds, three assists and a steal against Dubuque. Against Cornell she scored 17 points (on 5-of-11 shooting), had seven rebounds, three assists, a steal and a block. She finished the week with 20 points (on 3-of-8 shooting, and 12-of-12 from the free throw line), six rebounds, three steals, three blocks and an assist against Wartburg. (IIAC Female Athlete of the Week)

Ashley Katch, Simpson College, Urbandale, Iowa/Urbandale
Katch, a junior center, averaged 10.5 points, 9.0 blocks and 7.0 rebounds per game, and shot 66.7 percent (10-of-15) from the floor in two games during the week. She posted her third 10-block game of the year in Simpson’s 81-53 win over Coe in which she scored eight points (on 4-of-7 shooting), had seven rebounds and two steals. Katch became the Storm’s career blocks leader (181) with an eight-block performance in an 80-60 win over Cornell. She scored 13 points, had seven rebounds, two assists and a steal to go along with her eight blocks.

Blair Ernst, Luther College, Cedar Rapids, Iowa/Washington
Ernst, a sophomore forward, averaged 16.0 points, 7.7 points and 1.3 steals per game and shot 58.3 percent from the floor (21-of-36) in three Luther victories as the Norse moved into sole possession of first place in the Conference. In a 55-41 win over Cornell, she scored eight points, had 11 rebounds and a steal. Ernst posted back-to-back 20-point performances to finish the week in a 66-42 win over Simpson and a 73-35 win over Dubuque. Against nationally ranked Simpson, she shot 62.5 percent from the floor (10-of-16), had seven rebounds, two steals and two assists. She shot 75.0 percent from the floor (9-of-12), had five rebounds, a steal and an assist against Dubuque. (IIAC Female Athlete of the Week)

Shanon Nelson, Coe College, Clinton, Iowa/Clinton
Nelson, a junior forward, averaged 19 points and eight rebounds while shooting 53.8 percent (14-of-26) from the floor in two games during the week. She scored a season-high 19 points (on 7-of-13 shooting), had five rebounds, two steals and an assist in Coe’s 56-55 loss to Dubuque. In the Kohawks’ first Conference win of the season, 74-56 over Buena Vista, Nelson recorded her second double-double of the year with 19 points and 11 rebounds. She was 7-of-13 from the floor, had two block shots and an assist. (IIAC Female Athlete of the Week)

Ashley Katch, Simpson College, Urbandale, Iowa/Urbandale
Katch, a junior center, was named to the Surf-N-Slam All-Tournament Team after leading Simpson to a third-place finish averaging 13.0 points, 10.7 rebounds and 5.3 blocks per game, and shooting 56.0 percent from the floor (14-of-25) in three games. In the Tournament opener, a 67-53 win over Suffolk, she narrowly missed a triple-double with 16 points, 10 rebounds and nine blocks. Katch scored 10 points, had 13 rebounds, five blocks and two assists in a loss to host Point Loma Nazarene (73-72), the 15th-ranked team in NAIA Division I. In the third-place game, she narrowly missed her third double-double of the Tournament, scoring 13 points (on 5-of-6 shooting), having nine rebounds, two blocks and an assist in Simpson’s 85-82 win over Medaille. (IIAC Female Athlete of the Week)

Laura Porter, Central College, Monroe, Iowa/Prairie City-Monroe
Porter, a junior guard, scored 25 points, had five assists, three rebounds and two steals in Central’s 75-61 win over Ashford. She shot 64.3 percent from the floor (9-of-14), including 75 percent on 3-pointers (3-of-4), and 80 percent from the free throw line (4-of-5). (IIAC Female Athlete of the Week)

Lindsay Bava, Loras College, Downers Grove, Ill./Montini Catholic
Bava, a freshman guard, averaged 18.0 points, 2.5 rebounds and 2.5 steals per game in two contests during the week. She shot 62.5 percent from the floor (10-of-16) and on 3-pointers (5-of-8), and shot 91.7 percent from the free throw line (11-of-12) in a victory over Ashford (83-55) and a loss to Carthage (58-52), coming off the bench in both contests. She scored a then career-high 16 points (on 5-of-8 shooting), had three rebounds, four steals and two assists against Ashford. Bava bested her career-high set three nights before with a 20-point performance (on 5-of-8 shooting) against Carthage to go along with two rebounds and a steal. (IIAC Female Athlete of the Week)

LaToshia Burrell, Wartburg College, Fort Dodge, Iowa/Fort Dodge
Burrell, a senior guard, averaged 16.0 points, 3.0 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 2.0 steals per game and shot 64.7 percent from the floor (11-of-17) in two games. She scored 14 points (on 5-of-8 shooting), had four rebounds, four steals and an assist in Wartburg’s 71-55 Conference-opening win over Coe. In an 82-67 win over Bethany Lutheran, she scored 18 points (on 6-of-9 shooting), had three assists and two rebounds. (IIAC Female Athlete of the Week)

Katelyn Whiton, Simpson College, Panora, Iowa/Perry
Whiton, a junior forward, was named Most Valuable Player of the Rockford College Tip-Off Tournament after averaging 23.0 points, 5.0 rebounds and 4.0 steals in two games. She scored 25 points on 12-of-15 shooting, had six rebounds and four steals in Simpson’s 103-64 victory over Maryville (Mo.). In the Championship game, a 74-59 win over St. Norbert, Whiton scored 21 points on 10-of-12 shooting to go along with four rebounds and four steals. (IIAC Female Athlete of the Week)