{"id":20802,"date":"2025-02-05T11:40:38","date_gmt":"2025-02-05T17:40:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tmn.truman.edu\/devtmn\/?p=20802"},"modified":"2025-02-05T11:40:38","modified_gmt":"2025-02-05T17:40:38","slug":"transfer-student-has-bulldogs-on-the-rise","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tmn.truman.edu\/devtmn\/blog\/sports\/transfer-student-has-bulldogs-on-the-rise\/","title":{"rendered":"Transfer Student has Bulldogs on the rise"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Truman State University\u2019s Women\u2019s Basketball team is on the rise this season, led by standout graduate transfer Jordan Cunningham. Cunningham has made an immense and immediate impact, leading the team in points, assists, blocks and minutes played. She ranks second on the team in steals and rebounds.<\/span><\/p>\n

Her arrival spurs a turnaround from a dismal 2023-24 season where the Bulldogs went 7-21 overall and 4-18 in conference play. They won just three games at Pershing Arena and saw one of the program\u2019s top scorers, Ellie Weltha, graduate.<\/span><\/p>\n

Thanks to Cunningham, the Bulldogs are turning over a new leaf. They are 7-13 so far this season, with four of those wins in conference play and three at home. The Bulldogs have already matched the marks set last year in mid-January with over a month left to play. Truman is officially on the rebound and the transfer from Grimes, Iowa has everything to do with it.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Cunningham\u2019s background and history of success gave head coach Theo Dean confidence she was going to have an immediate impact on the team.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI knew she was coming in having a lot of experience, having played in big games,\u201d Dean said. \u201cI knew her experience would be huge for us. My first impression [was great] because of her IQ. Her IQ was extremely high on both the offensive and defensive sides of the ball. She\u2019s extremely skilled, she\u2019ll do whatever it takes to win, and she is a great leader.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Before arriving in Kirksville, Cunningham logged four seasons at Missouri Western University. During her time in St. Joseph, she recorded 689 points, 297 rebounds and 92 steals. She helped the Griffons to four consecutive 24+ win seasons, a NCAA Central Region Championship and a MIAA championship.<\/span><\/p>\n

Though she acknowledged her experience and seniority, Cunningham spoke more about her team and the new relationships she has built with the other girls.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI do take pride that I\u2019ve played this game for four years \u2014 going on five,\u201d Cunningham said. \u201cThat experience piece is key, but the team makes it so easy. They\u2019re so fun to be around. They\u2019re great people and great teammates so it almost [feels] more like a friendship role than a leadership role. We hang out outside of practice \u2026 so it\u2019s easy to click with them.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The Bulldogs\u2019 success this season has put them in a good position to compete for a chance at postseason action, something that the team hasn\u2019t achieved since March of 2023. It would also be Cunningham\u2019s last opportunity to reach the postseason, since she is now a graduate student.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI just want us to play to our potential and play hard like we have [over the last couple games],\u201d Cunningham said. \u201cObviously, every team wants to get to the GLVC tournament. I just want to enjoy my last year of college basketball.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The women\u2019s basketball team will continue their push for the postseason throughout the month of February and into early March. Cunningham and her fellow seniors will be honored on Senior Day before their game against William Jewell College.<\/span><\/p>\n

Dean expressed thoughts about the season, citing the team\u2019s potential and the possibilities that lie before them as drives to reach the ultimate goal.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve always told the players that they determine the ceiling,\u201d Dean said. \u201cYou want to be playing your best basketball in February and March and I think we\u2019re trending in that direction. We\u2019re not there yet, but I also don\u2019t want to see [the team] become complacent. There\u2019s a better brand of Truman women\u2019s basketball that\u2019s available.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Truman State University\u2019s Women\u2019s Basketball team is on the rise this season, led by standout graduate transfer Jordan Cunningham.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":151,"featured_media":20803,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"colormag_page_container_layout":"default_layout","colormag_page_sidebar_layout":"default_layout","footnotes":""},"categories":[42,7],"tags":[874],"coauthors":[6099],"class_list":["post-20802","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-campus","category-sports","tag-bulldog-womens-basketball"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tmn.truman.edu\/devtmn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20802","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tmn.truman.edu\/devtmn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tmn.truman.edu\/devtmn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tmn.truman.edu\/devtmn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/151"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tmn.truman.edu\/devtmn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=20802"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/tmn.truman.edu\/devtmn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20802\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tmn.truman.edu\/devtmn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/20803"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tmn.truman.edu\/devtmn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20802"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tmn.truman.edu\/devtmn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=20802"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tmn.truman.edu\/devtmn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=20802"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tmn.truman.edu\/devtmn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=20802"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}