LAKE MILLS, Iowa – The strength of their opponents, the success of their volleyball team and their own admitted lack of chemistry combined to make the 2001-02 season less successful than hoped for the Lake Mills girls’ basketball team.

Saturday, March 16, 2002

LAKE MILLS, Iowa – The strength of their opponents, the success of their volleyball team and their own admitted lack of chemistry combined to make the 2001-02 season less successful than hoped for the Lake Mills girls’ basketball team.

Kjerstin Back knows it all too well.

Many people expected Back, a four-year starter, to lead the Bulldogs where the Lake Mills volleyball team went – the state tournament. But it didn’t happen. The Bulldogs finished 12-10 and Back, for the first time in four seasons, did not make the All-North Iowa Conference first team.

&uot;We were hoping for a better season, and Kjerstin didn’t have the year that I was expecting a four-year starter to have,&uot; said coach Steve Pederson.

But it was good enough to make her the Tribune Girls’ Basketball Player of the Year.

Back (pronounced Bock) earned the honor by posting the best overall numbers in the area with opposing defenses concentrating on stopping her.

The 5-foot-6 guard averaged 11.7 points and 3.9 rebounds with 58 assists and 44 steals – all team bests. She shot 39 percent from the field – 31 percent while making 18 three-pointers – and was 74-for-109 at the free-throw line for 68 percent.

Back finished No. 2 on the Bulldogs’ all-time scoring list with 1,081 career points. Pederson said an ankle sprain in her junior year that sidelined Back for some games may have kept her from breaking the school record of 1,117 points by Beth Skogen. She had 75 career three-pointers, also No. 2 in school history, along with 140 steals and 127 assists.

Pederson said Back’s athletic ability and competitiveness stand out.

&uot;She worked hard in practice every day,&uot; said Pederson. &uot;I wish I could get everyone to work as hard as she did. She also knows the game very well and is a smart player on the court.

&uot;I know she was disappointed in her season, but there were a number of factors involved, and that’s just the way it goes sometimes,&uot; added Pederson. &uot;She was a fun player to have for four years. She really contributed a lot to our basketball success.&uot;