GREEN BAY - Black Hawk graduate Jen Wellnitz was named the Horizon League's Defensive Player of the Year for her play this season for Wisconsin-Green Bay, the team announced Wednesday.
"It means the world to me," Wellnitz said. "It was the one personal goal I had for myself. That's something I wanted for this year. Last year I lost to a girl from Oakland who had 10 more steals than me."
Wellnitz said she received a message on her phone in the morning and immediately called her father.
"He was so happy," Wellnitz said, adding that she revels in playing defense. "Defense is hustling and reading the offense. It's an effort thing, and I'm going to go 100 percent."
Wellnitz, a redshirt-junior guard, led the team in steals all season at 2.4 steals per game and was named to the league's all-defensive team. Green Bay, currently ranked No. 21 in the nation with a record of 26-3 overall and a 16-2 league mark, is the nation's top-ranked defense.
"The second half went really well. We played some really good basketball," Wellnitz said. "We pride ourselves in the 'Green Bay Way' for defense. We work on it every day in practice and we are the top team in the country in limiting points on defense."
This is her second time being named to the all-defensive team. She was joined by teammate Jessica Lindstrom, who was named both to the all-defensive team and was first-team All-Horizon League. Teammate Allie LeClaire was second-team All-Horizon, and Karly Murphy was named to the league's all-freshman team.
"We could have had three make it (onto the defensive team)," Wellnitz said, suggesting that LeClaire would have been a suitable addition to the honored group.
Wellnitz started all 29 games for the Phoenix this season and averaged 5.2 points per game. She also led her team in assists with 4.3 per game.
"We're very proud of her," Black Hawk head coach Mike Flanagan said of his program's all-time leading scorer. "She continues to do honor to her family, her upbringing and our program."
Green Bay opens up the Horizon League tournament with a Saturday game against the winner of Northern Kentucky and Detroit. The winner of the league tournament is guaranteed a spot in the NCAA tournament, though Green Bay's record may allow the team an at-large selection even without a league title.
"It's lose and go home. We have two seniors who mean everything to us. Everyone is going to give it 100 percent. You have to be prepared," Wellnitz said. "We haven't gotten past the first round in my time here, and we want to go at least to the second round this year. I think we can go farther than that, actually."
The Phoenix won the Horizon this season, beating out IUPUI. Green Bay outscored all opponents by more than 19 points per game. As a team, the Phoenix shot 44.8 percent from the field but held opponents to just 32.1 percent shooting and finished the season forcing 108 more turnovers than they gave up.
"She's probably most dangerous on defense when she's off the ball, because she sees the floor really well. She's a game-changer," Flanagan said. "The things she could do on the defensive end in high school - Green Bay is using her similar in a way that we did. We couldn't be more proud of her getting accolades on the defensive end."
"It means the world to me," Wellnitz said. "It was the one personal goal I had for myself. That's something I wanted for this year. Last year I lost to a girl from Oakland who had 10 more steals than me."
Wellnitz said she received a message on her phone in the morning and immediately called her father.
"He was so happy," Wellnitz said, adding that she revels in playing defense. "Defense is hustling and reading the offense. It's an effort thing, and I'm going to go 100 percent."
Wellnitz, a redshirt-junior guard, led the team in steals all season at 2.4 steals per game and was named to the league's all-defensive team. Green Bay, currently ranked No. 21 in the nation with a record of 26-3 overall and a 16-2 league mark, is the nation's top-ranked defense.
"The second half went really well. We played some really good basketball," Wellnitz said. "We pride ourselves in the 'Green Bay Way' for defense. We work on it every day in practice and we are the top team in the country in limiting points on defense."
This is her second time being named to the all-defensive team. She was joined by teammate Jessica Lindstrom, who was named both to the all-defensive team and was first-team All-Horizon League. Teammate Allie LeClaire was second-team All-Horizon, and Karly Murphy was named to the league's all-freshman team.
"We could have had three make it (onto the defensive team)," Wellnitz said, suggesting that LeClaire would have been a suitable addition to the honored group.
Wellnitz started all 29 games for the Phoenix this season and averaged 5.2 points per game. She also led her team in assists with 4.3 per game.
"We're very proud of her," Black Hawk head coach Mike Flanagan said of his program's all-time leading scorer. "She continues to do honor to her family, her upbringing and our program."
Green Bay opens up the Horizon League tournament with a Saturday game against the winner of Northern Kentucky and Detroit. The winner of the league tournament is guaranteed a spot in the NCAA tournament, though Green Bay's record may allow the team an at-large selection even without a league title.
"It's lose and go home. We have two seniors who mean everything to us. Everyone is going to give it 100 percent. You have to be prepared," Wellnitz said. "We haven't gotten past the first round in my time here, and we want to go at least to the second round this year. I think we can go farther than that, actually."
The Phoenix won the Horizon this season, beating out IUPUI. Green Bay outscored all opponents by more than 19 points per game. As a team, the Phoenix shot 44.8 percent from the field but held opponents to just 32.1 percent shooting and finished the season forcing 108 more turnovers than they gave up.
"She's probably most dangerous on defense when she's off the ball, because she sees the floor really well. She's a game-changer," Flanagan said. "The things she could do on the defensive end in high school - Green Bay is using her similar in a way that we did. We couldn't be more proud of her getting accolades on the defensive end."
