Basketball and Softball
Lisa Nordeen is one of the most successful players in the annals of basketball at Carleton, a history that dates more than 100 years. Only five Knights basketball players—men or women—have achieved all-conference status four times, and Nordeen was the first four-time All-MIAC honoree.
She amassed a then-school record 1,649 career points, a total that still stands third in the program’s history. As a rookie in 1986–87, Nordeen earned the program’s first All-MIAC distinction, tallying a then school-record 466 points, one of her three top-10 single-season scoring totals in Knights’ history.
Nordeen still holds Carleton’s all-time record for free throws made over the course of a career (485) and in a single game (16). She scored 34 points to lead the Knights to a two-point triumph over St. Thomas on January 18, 1989, Carleton’s lone victory in the first 22 seasons of the series. That scoring total was the single-game record at the time and is now tied for third in Carleton history.
Nordeen averaged 16.9 points per game over the course of her career, an amount that has been exceeded once in the 20 years since she played for the Knights. More than a prolific scorer, she broke the another school record with 859 career rebounds and established a new Carleton standard with 54 blocked shots to go along with 138 career steals—all three totals still rank among the program’s top 10. While better known for her exploits on the court, she also played three seasons with the Carleton softball team, where she was a defensive standout at first base.