By LINDA BOUVET, LSSU Sports Information Director 

Senior Annie Dykhouse has been a part of the Lake Superior State women's basketball program during an era in which it has enjoyed unprecedented depth at the post position. Throughout her collegiate career, the 6-2 center has averaged only 8.1 minutes of playing time per game. She probably could have started or doubled her playing time at several other schools, but neither she nor her teammates could conceive of Dykhouse wearing any other uniform.

"I'm part of something so great," Dykhouse said. "I've been given this opportunity that a lot of people aren't able to have."

When Dykhouse was a true freshman, former Laker standout Becky Marquardt-King was a junior and dominating the post. She went on to become one of the nation's all-time leaders in career field-goal percentage. Forward/center Jackie Armstrong arrived during Marquardt-King's senior year and earned Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Freshman of the Year honors. In 2006-07, Armstrong, Mandi Johnson, Danielle Makins and Alyssa VanderWal were the main cogs of LSSU's post game, and last year it was Armstrong, VanderWal and Makins.

"I took it a year at a time," said Dykhouse, who is averaging over 10 minutes per game this season while filling in at the center or strong forward positions. "I tried to go hard in practice every day. You have to keep working hard for the team. You can't let (limited playing time) stop you. It's whatever is best for the team. If I can't play in this game, that's fine. Then I have to make the starting post players better in practice. It's tough. It's not a role that everyone wants to take on, but someone has to do it. I also want to be a role model for the girls who don't play as much."

Dykhouse gained an understanding of the inner strength it takes to be a role player from her sister, Katie, who was in a similar situation while playing at the University of Michigan from 1997-2001.

"Even when she was playing she would come to as many of my high school games as she could," Dykhouse said. "She'd write me letters. She was a driving force for me, and I've always looked up to her. You think I'm a positive person? She is 10 times more positive than I am. And I think I am a hard worker. That's a credit to my parents."

It's hard to imagine a teammate more up-beat than Dykhouse, who is also the team's ring-leader when it comes to off-court activities and involvement in the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee.

"Annie has one of those personalities that draws people to her," Armstrong said. "She's
the one on the team that all the little Girl Scouts who come to our games want to get their pictures taken with. Something about Annie makes people feel comfortable and happy when they are around her. She is really good at easing the tensions and frustrations of her teammates by looking at the lighter side of situations. After a frustrating game or practice I can go over to Annie's really upset, and by the time we are done talking, I am
cracking up laughing. Without Annie, I think our team would definitely be lacking in leadership, communication and humor. She is everybody's friend and really has the team's best interests in mind, always."

During Dykhouse's career, LSSU has evolved from having a power post game to more of a finesse game. This year, the Lakers have a combination of the two. Armstrong is among the league's top two scorers, while VanderWal is ranked among the league's top five in blocked shots, rebounds and free-throw percentage, and she leads the GLIAC in field-goal percentage. Dykhouse, Armstrong and VanderWal all credit Marquardt-King's return as an assistant coach for getting LSSU's post game to a dominant level.

Dykhouse recalls going up against Marquardt-King in practice during her red-shirt and freshman seasons.

"That was intimidating, having an All-America player ahead of me," she said. "Danielle and I came in together, and we looked like Dalmatians by the end of practice. Danielle and I lived together in the dorm, and we compared our bruises. Becky made me what I am today - a better player. I wanted to work hard to guard her in practice and get used to this level of play...I was always the underdog against her. I was a skinny freshman coming in. There were days when I felt that maybe I was making her better. 'Maybe I gave her a bruise today.'"

The senior post players have paid their dues and know what their responsibility is this year.

"We take pride in having one of the best post games in the league," Armstrong said. "Especially coming into this season, we knew we'd be strong in the post. We worked harder because of it. We're making sure our posts are coming to play every game."

To be expected, career highlights from Dykhouse's perspective are team triumphs.

"Two things stick out a lot," she said. "Obviously the win at Grand Valley (in February, 2008). We felt like we had just won the national championship. I wish there had been film of us at the end of that game. Amanda (Epolito) was jumping on my back with her hands in the air. Coley (Marshall) and Ronlea (Peterson) had gotten sick on that trip, and we had like seven people playing in that game.

"And the Florida trip this year was so much fun. Going into those games (against Bentley, Columbus State and Alaska-Anchorage) and not knowing anything about those teams. Win or lose we had fun. It's Disney World - the happiest place ever."