College national tournaments include Valley products

WASILLA — At least four Valley products are representing the Mat-Su in national college basketball tournaments at the NCAA Division I and Division II, and NAIA levels, and one local athlete plays for a squad that’s already punched its ticket to the Elite Eight round of its class.

Alysha Devine, a 2013 graduate of Wasilla High School, is a member of a UAA women’s squad that recently won the Division II West Region. Devine’s older brother Connor, a 2012 Wasilla High grad, plays for South Dakota State, a team in the NCAA Division I men’s tournament. The Central Methodist women’s team, a squad in the NAIA national tournament has a pair of Valley players on its roster, 2013 Burchell graduate Dajonee Hale and 2012 Colony grad Saige Stefanski.

Devine, a junior, helped lead the Seawolves to a 72-57 victory over UC San Diego in the West Region final March 14 in Azusa, California. Devine, who was named most valuable player of the West Region tournament, finished with 14 points and eight rebounds for the Seawolves, the No. 4 ranked team in Division II women’s basketball. UC San Diego came into the game ranked 21st.

The UAA win sets up a date with Southeast Region champion Francis Marion in the national quarterfinals March 22 in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

UAA, ranked second in the West Region, opened with an 82-53 win over Cal State Dominguez Hills and followed with an 83-79 victory over California Baptist. The UAA women have now won the West Region four times, the last time coming in 2012.

Connor Devine and the South Dakota State Jackrabbits, a No. 12 seed, hits the court against fifth-seeded Maryland in the first round of the NCAA Division I men’s tournament Friday at 12:20 p.m. Alaska time at Spokane Veterans Memorial Arena in Spokane, Washington. SDSU earned a spot in the tournament with a 67-59 win over rival North Dakota State in the Summit League championship game March 9 in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. The team improved to 26-7 with the win, and captured its third league title in five years. South Dakota State’s last trip to the NCAA tournament came in 2013 when Devine was a redshirt freshman.

Devine, a junior, has appeared in 76 career games with the Jackrabbits.

Hale and Stefanksi made their NAIA tournament debuts with Central Methodist Thursday in the first round of the NAIA Division I tournament. Central Methodist fell in the first round, suffering a 70-58 loss to 20th ranked Great Falls. Central Methodist was ranked No. 14. Hale led the Eagles with a team-high 24 points, and nine rebounds. Stefanksi did not play.

The Eagles finished the season 26-5.

In late February, Hale was named the Heart of America Athletic Conference Player of the Year and first-team all conference. Stefanski was recently announced as a recipient for the Central Methodist University Athletics 4 Pillars Award for the month of February.

Hale finished the season averaging 19.6 points and 5.3 rebounds per game. Stefanski played in 24 of her team’s 30 games as a reserve.

Contact Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman sports editor Jeremiah Bartz at sports@frontiersman.com.