Cleveland State lost reigning Horizon League Player of the Year Destiny Leo for the season in late November, and simply replaced her in the lineup with another: senior guard Mickayla Perdue, HoriZone Roundtable’s selection as the 2023-24 Horizon League Player of the Year.
Because of Perdue’s exploits, the Vikings didn’t miss a step in going 18-2 in HL play en route to the first regular season conference title in program history. She averaged 19 points per game in league games, while working in tandem with fellow first-team selection Colbi Maples at the top of the Vikings’ signature zone defense, one of the league’s most fearsome units. The Glenville State transfer also delivered a string of memorable performances, none more significant than her 30-point effort – including seven three-pointers in eight attempts – in a win over Green Bay on February 3rd.
Appropriately enough, CSU’s Chris Kielsmeier is our pick for Coach of the Year, thanks to his ability to put an HL title-winning team on the floor without the star that most saw as central to the program’s success last year. Maples and Carmen Villalobos also represent the Vikings in the final voting, both on the all-conference teams and on the all-defensive team.
Green Bay, which raced Cleveland State for first place all year before faltering on the final day of the regular season, is also heavily counted. The Phoenix delegation is headlined by junior guard Natalie McNeal, a first-team selection, who emerged as one of the league’s most versatile and efficient players. McNeal’s teammates receiving honors include deadly-accurate Maddy Schreiber and Bailey Butler, arguably the HL’s best facilitator and perimeter defender.
Northern Kentucky, Milwaukee, Purdue Fort Wayne and Detroit Mercy are the other schools with multiple players selected. The Norse enjoyed a second half-surge powered largely by Freshman of the Year Carter McCray, a walking double-double, and second-team selection Khamari Mitchell-Steen, whose role for Camryn Volz evolved into that of a primary ballhandler and scorer. Sharpshooter Noelle Hubert, a member of our all-freshman team, became a regular starter and one of the league’s better deep threats.
Conference honors mainstays Amellia Bromenschenkel, Kendall Nead and Irene Murua are included in the all-HL teams, though notably, each of their schools also boasts one of the circuit’s top rookies. Milwaukee forward Jorey Buwalda (who is also our pick for Sixth Player of the Year), Purdue Fort Wayne’s Renna Schwieterman and Detroit Mercy’s Paris Gilmore are among the headliners for the best collection of young talent in the recent history of the league.
2023-24 HoriZone Roundtable Postseason Awards
Player of the Year: Mickayla Perdue, Cleveland State
Coach of the Year: Chris Kielsmeier, Cleveland State
Freshman of the Year: Carter McCray, Northern Kentucky
Defensive Player of the Year: Emily Saunders, Youngstown State
Sixth Player of the Year: Jorey Buwalda, Milwaukee
All-League First Team
Player | School |
Mickayla Perdue | Cleveland State |
Colbi Maples | Cleveland State |
Alexis Hutchison | Wright State |
Natalie McNeal | Green Bay |
Carter McCray | Northern Kentucky |
All-League Second Team
Player | School |
Khamari Mitchell-Steen | Northern Kentucky |
Emily Saunders | Youngstown State |
Maddy Schreiber | Green Bay |
Amellia Bromenschenkel | Purdue Fort Wayne |
Katie Davidson | IUPUI |
All-League Third Team
Player | School |
Brooke Quarles-Daniels | Oakland |
Bailey Butler | Green Bay |
Carmen Villalobos | Cleveland State |
Irene Murua | Detroit Mercy |
Kendall Nead | Milwaukee |
All-Defensive Team
Player | School |
Emily Saunders | Youngstown State |
Carter McCray | Northern Kentucky |
Bailey Butler | Green Bay |
Carmen Villalobos | Cleveland State |
Colbi Maples | Cleveland State |
All-Freshman Team
Player | School |
Carter McCray | Northern Kentucky |
Renna Schwieterman | Purdue Fort Wayne |
Noelle Hubert | Northern Kentucky |
Jorey Buwalda | Milwaukee |
Paris Gilmore | Detroit Mercy |