By DONNY NADEAU
Saint Mary's University Sports Information Director
 
WINONA, Minn. — Brandi Blattner (Eyota, Minn.) played the final game of her junior season on Feb. 22 in the Saint Mary's University of Minnesota women's basketball team's loss to St. Thomas in the semifinals of the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Playoffs.
 
The loss to the Tommies may have been the final game of her junior season—but it wasn't the official end of her third campaign as a Cardinal.
 
After all, the post-season awards portion of the 2017-18 season is just getting ramped up.
 
And once again, Blattner is front-and-center.
 
Already tabbed a First-Team All-MIAC selection for the third straight season, Blattner hauled in more post-season accolades on Tuesday, being named to the five-player D3hoops.com First-Team All-West Region.
 
Blattner is no stranger to the D3hoops.com All-West Region team, landing Second-Team honors in 2015-16, while being a Third-Team selection a year ago. The junior guard was also D3hoops.com West Region Rookie of the Year following her freshman campaign in 2015-16.
 
Blattner was joined on this year's D3hoops.com First-Team All-West Region by St. Thomas' Hannah Spaulding, Katie Sommer of Wartburg, Lucy Criswell of Chapman, and Casey Poe of Whitman.
 
Sommer, who has guided Wartburg to a perfect 31-0 record and a berth in this weekend's NCAA Division III national semifinals, was selected as the West Region Player of the Year, while Emma Godrey of Pomona-Pitzer was the Rookie of the Year, and Willamette's Peg Swadener earned Coach of the Year honors.
 
Blattner started all 27 contests in leading the Cardinals to their sixth MIAC post-season appearance in the last seven years. She posted team highs in points (474 / 17.6 ppg), rebounds (270 / 10.0 rpg), steals (36), and blocked shots (19). Blattner, owner of 12 double-doubles this season, scored 10 or more points in 26 of the team's 27 games—eclipsing the 20-point barrier on 12 different occasions—while also recording 10 or more rebounds in a game 12 times.
 
Blattner, who became the 11^th player in program history to reach 1,000 points—and is just the fourth to record 1,000 career points and 700 career rebounds—scored a career-high 30 points in Saint Mary's win over Augsburg on Jan. 27, and recorded a career- and school-record 20 rebounds in in the Cardinals' 69-57 win over Macalester on Feb. 10.
 
Players chosen to the D3hoops.com All-Region team are eligible for All-American selection. The women's All-American team will be announced at the end of this week, in conjunction with the Division III women's championships in Rochester, Minn.
 
This is the 17th year D3hoops.com has named an All-Region team and this will be the 21st annual All-American selections. The D3hoops.com All-American teams, along with those of the respective coaches' associations, are the only ones recognized in the NCAA record book.