FARMINGTON, Utah (April 2, 2025) – The 2024-25 Big Sky Women's basketball season has officially come to an end after Montana State and Northern Arizona have completed their postseason runs.
Big Sky Women's Basketball Weekly Notes (Season Recap)
Bobcats, Lumberjacks Wrap Up 2024-25 Season
Big Sky Champions Montana State closed out a record setting season in the NCAA tournament, their first since 2022.
The Bobcats earned a 13 seed in the tournament and squared off against host and fourth-seeded Ohio State.
The Bobcats closed out the season with a 30-4 record, the first Big Sky women’s basketball team to eclipse the 30-win mark.
Northern Arizona closed out a historic season in the WBIT, the league’s first bid for the tournament. The postseason appearance marked the third-straight for the Lumberjacks after two consecutive seasons in the WNIT.
In the opening round the Lumberjacks defeated in-state rival Arizona for the second time this season, marking the program’s first postseason win in program history.
Northern Arizona’s season came to a close in the second round of the tournament after falling to Belmont. The Lumberjacks finished the season with a 27-8 record, the most wins in program history.
Coaching Changes Around the Conference
After a successful run to the championship game, Montana has named Nate Harris the next head coach of the women’s basketball program.
As a No. 6 seed, Harris led the team to wins over No. 3 Idaho and No. 2 Northern Arizona in Boise. The Lady Griz battled the top-seeded Bobcats to the final seond in the championship game.
Following Loree Payne’s departure to Santa Clara, Northern Arizona named Laura Dinkins the 13th head coach of the program.
Dinkins spent the previous two seasons as the associate head coach and recruiting coordinator at Grand Canyon. Dinkins was a member of the Lumberjack women’s basketball team from 2003-08.
Bobcats Sweep Big Sky Titles
Montana State completed the sweep of titles in Boise last week with a thrilling 58-57 victory over Montana in the Big Sky championship game. It is the first title sweep for the Bobcats since the 2016-17 season.
The team was led by Tournament MVP, Esmeralda Morales who scored a game-high 25 points in Wednesday’s championship. Fellow Bobcat Taylee Chirrick also earned All-Tournament team honors.
The full All-Tournament Team can be found below.
2025 Big Sky All-Tournament Team
Esmeralda Morales, Montana State (MVP)
Mack Konig, Montana
Sophie Glancey, Northern Arizona
Benthe Versteeg, Sacramento State
Avery Waddington, Montana
The Bobcats clinched the regular season title on the final day of play, earning the No. 1 seed in #StarchMadness and their first regular season title since 2022.
All-Conference Awards Announced
With the conclusion of the 2024-25 Big Sky Conference women’s basketball regular season, the league office has announced its All-Conference Teams, All-Defensive Team and Individual Award Winners.
Regular Season champions, Montana State, led the way with three individual awards and a trio of All-Conference team members.
Esmeralda Morales was named league MVP in her first season in a Bobcat uniform.
This marks the fifth consecutive season where the Preseason MVP differs from the postseason MVP. The full list of All-Conference awards can be found here.