College basketball: DeForest's Grundahl awarded Jostens Trophy, given to the top Division III players

Aleah Grundahl has received one last honor to cap her brilliant basketball career at UW-Whitewater.

The Warhawks forward won the Jostens Trophy on Monday, which is presented annually to the top men’s and women’s college basketball players in Division III by the Rotary Club of Salem, Virginia.

Grundahl’s five-year career at UW- Whitewater was one for the record books. Out of DeForest High School, she started in every game she was available from her freshman year on.

“Aleah does it all — it’s not just basketball — she is the total package,” Whitewater head coach Keri Carollo said in a university news release. “Aleah is not only a phenomenal player, she is a great teammate, a fantastic leader and an amazing person.”

With Grundahl leading the way, the Warhawks won three Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference regular-season championships in 2020, 2022 and 2023 and a WIAC tournament championship in 2023. Whitewater made the NCAA Division III tournament in all five of Grundahl’s seasons, reaching the national championship game in 2022, the national quarterfinals this season and the Sweet 16 in 2023.

Individually, Grundahl’s list of achievements and records is a long one, starting with a WIAC newcomer of the year award in 2020.

Since then, she became the first player to be the conference’s player of the year three times (2022-24) and the first Warhawk to earn six All-America honors and win the Jostens Trophy. She was also a five-time all-WIAC performer.

Earlier this season, broke the all-time scoring records for Whitewater and for the entire WIAC, finishing her career with 1,952 points.

The Jostens Trophy selection committee also considers nominees’ achievements away from competition, where Grundahl also has excelled.

She earned the WIAC’s Judy Kruckman Scholar- Athlete of the Year award this season and is a five-time Chancellor’s Scholar at UW-Whitewater, a five-year honoree on the WIAC’s Scholastic Honor Roll and made the Whitewater dean’s list in all her semesters.

Grundahl also served four years on the UW-Whitewater Student-Athlete Advisory Committee and volunteered at Fairhaven Senior Services in Whitewater.

Grundahl will graduate with a degree in elementary education with a certification in adaptive education in May.

“Aleah is the epitome of a Division III student-athlete,” Athletic Director Ryan Callahan said. “Her career accomplishments in basketball — especially while student and substitute teaching this season — along with her success in the classroom, strong leadership qualities and community involvement put her in a class of her own.”