Six Spokane-area products help sixth-ranked Carroll reach NAIA national tournament

Hooptown, USA – a growing Spokane moniker derived from the city’s cherished men’s and women’s basketball programs at Gonzaga and the largest 3-on-3 hoops tournament in the world – is a broader spectrum than many realize.

Spokane County pumps out state championship high school teams at a regular clip, often giving teams from the much larger Seattle-Tacoma metro area more than they can handle.

It also regularly produces Division I women’s basketball players who end up on rosters across the country.

Several local, well-established AAU programs have helped develop these exports, but most end continuing their sterling careers at a lower tier.

From NCAA Division II Saint Martin’s, at home at NCAA Division III Whitworth, to several NAIA programs in neighboring Montana and Lewis-Clark State in Lewiston, they’ve flourished on a smaller stage.

Small-college All-American lists have been loaded with Lilac City talent for decades, including North Central graduate Briana King, the 2019 NAIA Player of the Year who led Montana Western to a national title.

Carroll College in Helena – ranked No. 6 in the latest NAIA women’s basketball poll after winning Frontier Conference regular season and tournament titles – has long been a beneficiary of former Spokane-area stars.

The Saints (21-2), a national tournament regular who begin their quest for NAIA title next week when they face College of the Ozarks (8-1) in Lewiston in the first round, have six players who call the Spokane area home.

All-American senior Christine Denny (Liberty), All-Frontier Conference junior Sienna Swannack (Lakeside), senior guard Jaidyn Lyman (Mt. Spokane), junior Molly McDermott (Gonzaga Prep), sophomore Genesis Wilkinson (East Valley) and sophomore Erica Nessan (Mead) have helped the Catholic school win its third conference title in four years.

Rachelle Sayers, recently named the Frontier Conference Coach of the Year, has made it a point in her 10 years on the job to have a mix of recruits from the Spokane and Coeur d’Alene area along with the Montana talent in her backyard.

“We have had a great relationship with AAU programs in Spokane,” said Sayers, a former associate head coach at Weber State. “This group (of Spokane players) have helped continue our success, maybe have raised the bar.”

Many were on the same AAU teams and recruited each other to Carroll.

Denny, a 5-foot-9 point guard, played in Liberty’s offseason with Swannack at several tournaments and they became best friends. They wanted to continue winning together in college.

“Honestly, that was a big factor for me,” Swannack said. “I played with Denny since third or fourth grade. We just had that chemistry.”

Denny, who has been a force all four seasons in Helena, is averaging 12.9 points, 6.4 rebounds and 4.3 assists per game.

Swannack averages 9.4 points, and Lyman, who started and came off the bench throughout her college career, adds 5.2 points and nearly three assists a game.

“(Swannack) is one of the most versatile, athletic girls we have ever had in our program,” Sayers said.

McDermott (9.4 minutes per game), Wilkinson (5.7 minutes per game) and Nessan (5.2 minutes per game) have contributed off the bench.

Reasons they chose Carroll: Academic tradition, consistent basketball success and a community following commensurate of a small Division I school.

Multiple TV stations in the state’s capital city, radio and a local newspaper with extensive Carroll coverage are what also separate the Saints from the overwhelming majority of NAIA schools.

“Recruiting out of Spokane is awesome. We have our Montana kids, who were all three-sport athletes at their high schools,” Swannack said.

“We had girls who could have gone bigger, but (Sayers) makes Helena feel like a community and a part of the team.”