Junior Katie Baker was named the Mary Louise Pope Zimmerman Most Valuable Player for the 2011-12 season Saturday evening at the Montana women’s basketball program’s annual postseason banquet. Baker was named the 2011-12 team MVP after earning first-team All-Big Sky honors for the second consecutive year. She led Montana in scoring (15.0/g), rebounding (7.2/g), shooting (.449) and blocked shots (47).

Outstanding Defensive Player - Kenzie De Boer (junior; Lynden, Wash.) De Boer shared the award last year as a sophomore with Jessa Loman Linford and won it outright as a junior. She was the heart of Montana’s defensive effort -- whether zone or man-to-man -- that allowed teams just 58.5 points per game on 36.3 percent shooting.

Theresa Rhoads Award (best exemplifies Lady Griz basketball) - Tianna Ware (senior; Bakersfield, Calif.) Ware finished her Lady Griz career with 88 points and 59 rebounds, but never getting elevated above role-player status over the course of her four-year career did not affect the other areas of Ware’s collegiate life. She’ll graduate in May with close to a 3.4 GPA for her academic career and last winter was accepted into Washington’s prestigious Intercollegiate Athletic Leadership Program, master's-level coursework that she hopes will springboard her into a career of college-level athletics academic advising.

Shannon Green Most Inspirational Player Award - Jordan Sullivan (sophomore; Sidney, Mont.) Sullivan upped her scoring average from 4.5 to 7.0 from her freshman to sophomore year and her rebounding average from 4.2 to 6.6, but that is not why she received the award for which only the players have a vote. Head coach Robin Selvig said, “This goes to someone who comes every single day with everything they have. Every practice, every drill, every game, and nobody works harder on our team than Jordan. She is an inspiration to her teammates with how hard she works.”

Grace Geil Most Improved Player -Carly Selvig (redshirt freshman; Glendive, Mont.) With Baker playing so well all season long and averaging nearly 30 minutes per game, Selvig’s opportunities were limited, but she did see action in all 30 games and averaged nearly 12 minutes. She averaged 2.8 points and 2.5 rebounds, dished out nearly an assist per game from the post and blocked 39 shots, second only to Baker’s 47.

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