Augustana University has announced the signing of Minnesota West Lady Jays standout Olivia Hayenga, who will join the team for the 2024-25 season.
Hayenga was named the National Junior College Athletic Association Division III National Player of the Year in both 2022-23 and 2023-24 after leading the Lady Jays to back-to-back national championship games -- and the title this past season. She averaged 22.8 points, 12.1 rebounds and 5.0 assists per game in the 2023-24 campaign and was named the national tournament's most valuable player after scoring 22 points and grabbing eight boards in the title game.
Hayenga was a Minnesota College Athletic Conference South Division Player of the Year, NJCAA Division III first team All-American and Women's Basketball Coaches Association first team All-American as a sophomore. After starring at Worthington High School, she remained home and attended Minnesota West -- and she went on to set women's basketball program records in points, rebounds, steals, and blocks.
"Signing a national player of the year is a gigantic deal for our women's basketball team," Augustana head women's basketball coach Nate Vogel said in the signing announcement. "Olivia can play a lot of different spots. She's an extremely versatile player that will fit perfectly into both our offensive and defensive systems. We're very fortunate to get a player of Olivia's caliber."
Hayenga is the daughter of Sarah Hayenga and Craig Hayenga. She plans to major in graphic design while at Augustana.
Additionally, Augustana has announced the signing of another regional player in Izzy Klumper, who recently completed her senior season for the Westbrook-Walnut Grove girls basketball team.
"Izzy is a perfect addition to Augustana women's basketball," Vogel said. "Her parents are Augustana alumni, she's the all-time leading scorer at her high school and she's a great person. As a coach, what else could you want?! We are extremely excited to add the Klumpers to our family."
As a senior, Klumper averaged 17.1 points per game while knocking down 102 3-pointers at a 39 percent clip. She led the Chargers to the most wins in school history and was a part of a defense that allowed the lowest points per game total in Minnesota Class A. She scored a program-best 1,583 points in her career and holds school records for single-game 3-pointers (9), single-season 3s (102) and career 3s (250).
Klumper is the daughter of Dan and Abby Klumper and the granddaughter of Wayne and Dea Klumper of Worthington. She plans to major in exercise science while at Augustana.
