Jessica Tietz was named to the first team of the NAIA Division II Women’s Basketball All-America selections. Photo / Gene Knudsen

Jessica Tietz was named to the first team of the 2015-16 NAIA Division II Women’s Basketball All-America team.

Tietz, a 6-2 senior forward from Bancroft, Neb., was the Mustangs’ leading scorer and rebounder this season with averages of 15.6 points and 7.1 rebounds per game. She was the Mustangs’ leading scorer in 17 of their 36 contests and was also their leading rebounder 17 times. Tietz had the Mustangs’ top single-game scoring and rebounding performances of the season with a career-high 32 points in an 80-74 regular season win against Dakota Wesleyan University and a career-high 15 rebounds in a 97-68 victory against Briar Cliff University in the Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC) Post-Season Tournament Semifinals.

Tietz led the Mustangs with seven double-doubles, including two at the NAIA Division II National Tournament. Tietz went for 31 points and 14 rebounds when the Mustangs lost 76-69 against eventual NAIA II National Champion Marian University in the quarterfinals to finish one off her career highs in both categories.

Aside from leading the Mustangs in scoring and rebounding, Tietz also led the team with 40 blocked shots for an average of 1.1 rejections per game and was the NAIA Division II national leader in field goal accuracy with 227 field goals in 356 attempts for 63.8 percent to shatter her own school record of 58.9 percent she set last season.

Tietz finished her career as the ninth leading scorer and 11th leading rebounder in Morningside history with 1431 career points and 778 career rebounds, respectively. She averaged 10.0 points and 5.4 rebounds per game over her Morningside career.

In addition to Tietz, the Mustangs’ Lexi Ackerman was named a NAIA Division II honorable mention All-American.

Ackerman, a 5-10 junior guard from Rock Rapids, Iowa, was the Mustangs’ second leading scorer with an average of 12.9 points per game to compliment a norm of 4.3 rebounds per contest. Ackerman made 160 of 347 field goal attempts for 46.1 percent and converted a team-high 114 of 143 free throw attempts for 79.7 percent.

Ackerman, a three-year starter at point guard, dealt 168 assists for the fourth highest total in the nation. She led the Mustangs with an average of 4.7 assists per game and was second on the team with 74 steals for a norm of 2.1 per game.

She has scored 1172 career points for 21st place on Morningside’s all-time scoring list to go along with career totals of 417 assists and 210 steals. Ackerman has averaged 10.7 points, 3.8 assists, and 1.9 steals per game during her Morningside career.

Morningside posted a 33-3 record during the 2015-16 season and won the GPAC regular season championship with a 20-2 league record and the GPAC Post-Season Tournament championship with an 80-59 victory against Dakota Wesleyan in the title game. The Mustangs finished five games in front of runner-ups Dakota Wesleyan and Mount Marty College to win the GPAC regular season title by the largest margin in the history of the league.

Morningside has posted 13 consecutive 20-win seasons and has made 14 consecutive appearances in the NAIA Division II National Tournament. The Mustangs have a 396-72 record for a .846 winning percentage over the last 13 seasons and were NAIA Division II National Champions in 2004, 2005, 2009, and 2015.

Click here for the complete 2015-16 NAIA Division II Women’s Basketball All-America Team.