Matt Bishop
Editor’s note: This is the first in a five-part series looking back on the year that was in MSU athletics. Tuesday, the sports desk will announce its male player of the year.
It’s undoubtedly been a great year for women’s athletics at MSU. The majority of teams represented themselves very well on and off the playing surface.
This year saw many different players make a big impact on their team. Although there were many big plays made by many great players, nobody stood out more than field hockey senior Floor Rijpma.
Rijpma was the driving force behind the field hockey team’s success this season.
A first-team All-American and the first Spartan to be named such in two consecutive seasons, Rijpma poured in 24 goals in 22 games, finishing the season with 52 points.
Her accolades didn’t stop at being named All-American. She was the National Field Hockey Coaches Association’s West Region Player of the Year, a unanimous selection for Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year and a first-team All-Big Ten selection. Not to mention, she was an Academic All-Big Ten selection as well.
She recorded four hat tricks on the season, including one in the NCAA Tournament against Delaware, and had the game-winning goal in eight of MSU’s 18 wins.
Her performances this season helped MSU to both the Big Ten regular season and tournament championships. The Spartans became just the second school in Big Ten history to go unbeaten in regular season and tournament play.
Rijpma certainly will go down as one of the best athletes in program and school history.
The runners-up
Rijpma wasn’t the sole reason the field hockey team had the success it did this season. Although Rijpma made the team go, senior Jeamie Deacon was just as important.
Despite missing time due to injury during the season, Deacon still was named a second-team All-American along with being named first-team All-Big Ten and to the NFHCA’s West Region First Team.
Like Rijpma, she also was an Academic All-Big Ten selection.
Despite missing four games, Deacon still finished third on the team in points with 28, tallying 11 goals with six assists in 18 games. Those 11 goals were just one off her previous career high of 12, which was accomplished in three more games.
Women’s basketball senior Allyssa DeHaan has had to deal with the expectations of being the university’s most visible female athlete throughout her tenure at MSU. This season, she became only the fifth player in program history to be named All-American, earning honorable mention honors from The Associated Press. She also became the first player in program history to be named Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year and was a second-team All-Big Ten pick and the first player to be named to the league’s All-Defensive team four times.
She averaged a team-best 10.6 points and 3.1 blocks and finished second with 5.8 rebounds per game.
It’s amazing what women’s soccer sophomore forward Laura Heyboer was able to accomplish despite missing the final four games of the season.
In 15 games, Heyboer scored eight goals with five assists, finishing second on the team in points with 21. Even so, she became only the second player in program history to be named first-team All-Big Ten in two consecutive seasons. She also was named a third-team All-American for the second straight season.
Women’s golf senior Laura Kueny’s season isn’t over yet and she already has done enough to be considered one of the top-five female athletes of the year.
Kueny finished third at the Big Ten Championships, was a three-time Big Ten Golfer of the Week and won the Lady Buckeye Invitational. In MSU’s nine competitions this season, Kueny finished with or tied for the team-best mark in seven of those.
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In addition to her Lady Buckeye Invitational title, she finished second at the Lady Gator Invitational and tied for second at the Tar Heel Invitational.
Matt Bishop is a State News sports reporter. He can be reached at bishop20@msu.edu..
