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Aaron Kahl
Head Women's Basketball Coach
Gustavus Adolphus College '00
Minnesota State University-Mankato '06
aakahl@dwu.edu
605-995-2175

Aaron Kahl is entering his third season as the Dakota Wesleyan University head women’s basketball coach, and his Tiger team will try to continue to establish themselves as contenders in the NAIA’s premier women’s basketball league, the Great Plains Athletic Conference.

In 2008-09, Kahl guided DWU to a 13-18 overall record and a 6-12 mark in the always-tough GPAC, which was good for a ninth-place tie. Last season the GPAC sent five teams to the NAIA Division II National Championships, including three of the Final Four teams, both national finalists and the national champion, Morningside College.

However, Kahl has his team right on the cusp of joining that elite group. The undisputed highlight of the season was the Tigers’ 75-66 win over third-ranked Northwestern College at the Corn Palace on Feb. 11. DWU also took down 23rd-ranked Dickinson State University on Dec. 22. Out of the Tigers’ 18 losses, nine came by single digits, and one more was by 10 points, with many of those coming to nationally ranked teams.

Following the 2008-09 season, three Tiger players were recognized on the GPAC All-Conference teams, and three more players earned NAIA Scholar-Athlete honors under Kahl’s direction. DWU also had the GPAC representative for the NAIA Emil S. Liston Award in junior Allison Johnson.

In Kahl’s first season, DWU was one of the biggest surprises in the GPAC. Picked to finish 12th in the preseason by league coaches, the Tigers posted a 17-15 overall record, a 10-8 conference mark and finished in sixth place in the GPAC standings. DWU qualified for a spot in the GPAC Tournament, where it hosted a first-round game and advanced to the quarterfinals with a win over Dana College. The Tigers won 10 more games overall in 2007-08 than they did the previous season, when they went 7-22. Kahl led DWU to its first winning record since 2003-04.

Over his first two seasons, Kahl has coached six All-GPAC players and four NAIA Scholar-Athletes. His overall record at DWU is 30-33 (.460). After just two years, Kahl is tied for the fifth-most wins in the program’s history, and he sits just 17 wins away from moving into the top three.

Kahl was named DWU’s 11th head women’s basketball coach. He came to Dakota Wesleyan from Gustavus Adolphus College, where he was an assistant basketball coach for six seasons. From 2001-06, he was the top women’s assistant, helping the team to an overall record of 99-34 (.744). He served as the top men’s basketball assistant in 2006-07.

Kahl, a native of Inwood, Iowa, was the recruiting coordinator for the basketball teams as the assistant coach. As an assistant with the women’s basketball program, he helped lead the program to an MIAC Championship and a national tournament appearance in 2002-03.

Kahl played two seasons of basketball at Gustavus Adolphus before joining the men’s basketball coaching staff as a student/graduate assistant. During the three seasons that he was with the men’s basketball program, the Gusties won an MIAC playoff title and made two trips to the NCAA National Tournament.

Kahl earned his bachelor’s degree in elementary education from Gustavus Adolphus in 2000. He earned a Master of Science degree in sport administration from Minnesota State University-Mankato in December 2006.

Kahl and his wife, Amy, live in Mitchell with their two children, Tyler and Makenna.

Jory Hansen
Assistant Women’s Basketball Coach
Dakota Wesleyan University ’07
Dakota Wesleyan University ’09
johansen@dwu.edu
605-995-2688

Jory Hansen is entering his third season as an assistant women’s basketball coach at Dakota Wesleyan University. Hansen’s coaching focus is on the defensive end of the floor, where he teaches and calls Tigers’ defensive sets. He also plays a big role in scouting, recruiting and player development.

Over his first two seasons, Hansen served as a graduate assistant coach, but this season his role at DWU has changed. In June, Hansen was hired as a Dakota Wesleyan admissions counselor, where he’ll serve as the admissions’ liaison to the athletic department in addition to his assistant coaching duties. Hansen previously worked as a resident director and the intramural sports coordinator at DWU.

During his tenure at Dakota Wesleyan, Hansen has coaching experience with both the men’s and women’s basketball teams. He spent his first two years in coaching as an assistant with the Tiger men’s basketball team, and just before the 2007-08 season began, he switched over to the women’s team. He also played for the men’s team for two years.

A native of Lakefield, Minn., Hansen earned his bachelor’s degree in athletic training from Dakota Wesleyan in May 2007, and he received his Master of Arts degree in higher education policy and administration in May 2009.

He currently lives in Mitchell.

Erin Olson
Assistant Women’s Basketball Coach
University of Minnesota ’99
University of Missouri-Kansas City ’04
erolson@dwu.edu

Erin Olson returns to her hometown of Mitchell to join the Dakota Wesleyan University women’s basketball coaching staff as a graduate assistant coach. Olson brings a wealth of playing and coaching experience at numerous levels to the Tigers’ staff. She will primarily work with the point guards this season and will coach DWU’s junior varsity team.

Most recently, Olson has been an assistant coach and player for Sparta Praha in Prague, Czech Republic, since 2006. Her primary coaching responsibilities with Sparta Praha were practice planning, as well as speed, agility and quickness training. She has served as the women’s coordinator for the Czech Republic’s Athletes in Action program. She also served as an intern for the Czech Republic’s Athletes in Action program from 2000-02 while she played professionally in the first division.

Olson has valuable collegiate coaching experience. She served as a graduate assistant/third assistant coach for the University of Missouri-Kansas City from 2002-04. There, she co-coordinated travel and equipment, developed scouting reports, oversaw film exchange, and assisted in the development of the team’s guards. In 2004, Olson was a graduate assistant at Southern Illinois University, where she worked with post players and assisted with recruiting.

Olson’s coaching career came on the heels of a standout playing career at the University of Minnesota and Mitchell High School. After she lettered as a freshman at the University of Wyoming, she transferred to Minnesota where she was a three-year letterwinner for the Golden Gophers. At the U of M, Olson was a two-time Academic All-Big Ten selection. As a senior, she served as team captain and was named the team’s MVP after leading the Gophers in both points and assists. Her assist total still ranks eighth in school history.

At MHS, Olson led the Kernels to two state titles and four championship game appearances. Over her final three seasons at Mitchell, her team compiled an overall record of 68-1. She was a South Dakota Miss Basketball Finalist in 1994-95, and she was a four-year letterwinner in basketball, volleyball and track.

Olson received a Bachelor of Science degree in kinesiology with a coaching minor from the University of Minnesota in 1999, and she received a Master of Arts degree in educational administration from the University of Missouri-Kansas City in 2004. At DWU, Olson is currently pursuing a degree in secondary education and teacher certification.

She currently lives in Mitchell.

Alicia McKnight
Student Manager

Alicia McKnight is in her third season as the student manager of the Dakota Wesleyan women’s basketball program.

McKnight is a junior at DWU majoring in athletic training. The Flandreau, S.D., native is a 2007 graduate of Flandreau High School. She was a four-year participant in basketball in high school. She also was a five-year student manager for the volleyball team and statistician for the football team.