MSU women’s basketball freshman forward Julie Pagel isn’t used to losing.

The former star of the 1999 Utica high school girls’ basketball team went 27-0 last year, leading her team to a state championship. She lost only one game in volleyball and didn’t lose a track race until she was knocked out at the state meet.

So it’d be easy to assume this season at MSU (9-16 overall, 3-11 Big Ten) has been somewhat of a letdown for Pagel.

But she said more than any other season, this one can be considered a success because of the growth her team has gone through.

“We’re still in the process of changing, of moving from the bottom to the top,” she said. “Being an underdog is a great place to be - every victory we have is a big deal.”

After starting the season playing limited minutes off the bench, Pagel has stepped up in big ways for the struggling Spartan team.

With senior forward Becky Cummings in and out with a tender foot, Pagel has taken over as the leading scorer, racking up an average of 11.2 points per game.

She also ranks third in the conference in rebounds, leading her team with a 7.9 per game average through the season - and that’s standing at only 5-foot-11.

She’s also cementing her place in Spartan history. She needs only 20 more points to move into third on the freshmen scoring chart and sits at fourth on the rebounding list as well.

And now, she’s a candidate for Big Ten Freshman of the Year.

With many new faces making their presence known around the conference this year, Pagel’s competition for the honor is high. Minnesota’s top freshman, Lindsay Whalen leads the conference in scoring, followed by Penn State’s freshman standout, Kelly Mazzante.

But Pagel’s contributions go beyond her athletic ability to land big shots and grab key boards. While the team slumped through conference play after starting the season at 8-8, Pagel refused to give in to frustration, fatigue or the feeling of failure.

“It’s been a growth process,” head coach Joanne P. McCallie said. “She went through struggles in the preseason of adjusting from high school to college ball, but she just keeps going at it. She’s such a fighter.”

The determination she displays on the court has slowly trickled down to the rest of her team, resulting in the impressive mid-season turn-a-round in team play.

But despite calling Pagel, “the heart and soul of the team,” McCallie said she tries to throw her rising star a cold dose of reality every day.

“I say to her everyday, ‘What have you done today to be as good as (Purdue’s) Katie Douglas or (Penn State’s) Maren Walseth,’” she asked. “I constantly stick reality in her face.”

And perhaps more than any other player on the roster, Pagel has taken that advice to heart. Despite the additional attention being thrown her way, she is still looking to improve, McCallie said.

“I’ve coached a lot of lead players who say, ‘I’m pretty good, now everyone else just needs to get better,” she said. “But Julie’s saying, ‘How can I get better?’”

But this isn’t the first time Pagel has had to deal with struggles mid-season. Last year a drunken driver crashed into her brother and his girlfriend’s car, killing his girlfriend. Now her brother is almost fully recovered from injuries to his legs that originally left him in a wheelchair.

That emotional experience is something that continues to impact Pagel today on the court and at MSU.

“I now have some friends who think it’s fine when they drink and drive,” she said. “I’m like, ‘Do you know what happened to my brother?’ It’s just ridiculous.”

Pagel survived that emotionally trying time, and has almost survived her first season at MSU. But she’s not ready to see it all end just yet.

Pagel said she knows the progress she and the team have made this season will continue through the remainder of the schedule and on to next year.

“We haven’t got over the top yet - we’ve been building and building,” she said. “There’s no better time to do that then the tournament.”