Hall of Fame
Talk of 1997-98 being a down year for Augustana women’s basketball didn’t register with Sara Yager.
As the only senior on the roster, the 6-foot-1 post player became the focal point of Augustana’s designs on a winning season. She didn’t disappoint.
It was Yager’s 21 points and 14 rebounds that powered the Vikings past perennial North Central Conference power North Dakota State University, 71-56. The previous 10 encounters with Bison had ended in losses.
Yager earned NCC player of the week laurels for a 35-point, 11-rebound effort that dispatched Morningside College, 81-67. She shot 59 percent from the field in the game she describes as the “biggest” of her collegiate career.
“It was my final home game,” she said. “A good friend of mine from high school played for Morningside, so it was always a fun, rivalry game. It seemed like everything I shot went in. Thirty-five was also my jersey number and I feel it was a coincidence that this was how I would end my home career.”
At the end of the season she was the top pick on the Argus Leader’s women’s all-college team. And, with a fourth straight winning season (17-10) in the books, she was chosen to the 1998 All-NCC team.
As the undisputed leader of the 1997-98 team, Yager started all 27 games and led the team in scoring (16.6) and rebounding (9.7). She shot 53 percent from the field and 74 percent from the free-throw line. She was named to the Daktronics Division II All-Region second team.
Yager’s impact on Augustana women’s basketball was immediate as head coach Dave Krauth put her in the starting lineup for six games as a freshman. In her four seasons the Vikings went 70-39 and advanced to the NCAA postseason in 1996-97.
“Sara had a wonderful basketball career at Augustana,” Krauth said. “She possessed so many of the positives you come to expect from a small town, upper-Midwest (Armstrong, Iowa) recruit. Her hard work and determination helped her become one of the very best in the North Central Conference and in Augustana history. “I’m very proud to have played a role in Sara’s college experience.”
The Vikings compiled a 70-39 record in her collegiate career. She never experienced a losing season with the Vikings while helping the team to a 70-39 record.
Yager is the 12th leading scorer in Augustana women’s basketball history with 1,309 points. She is tied for second place for most field goals in a game (16). She is third in career rebounds (885) and third in blocked shots (149). She is tied for third for most blocks in a game (8). A Dean’s student, she was named to the All-Academic NCC team in 1998.
Augustana faculty members Gene Nichols and Richard Bowman had a profound impact on her academic and career pursuits. “Dr. Nichols inspired me to pursue a career in education. He loved his job and that enjoyment was evident in how he dealt with his students and passed on his love for teaching. Dr. Bowman sparked my interest in religion and made learning fun with his upbeat attitude.”
Sara teaches seventh grade health/physical education at Fairmont Junior/Senior High School in Fairmont, Minn. She and her husband, Troy, are the parents of Gavin, Logan, 4 and Holden.
