Webster University Women's Basketball

Jordan Olufson enters his 17th season at Webster University and 16th as the head women’s basketball coach in 2024-25. Olufson is the all-time women’s basketball leader in total wins at Webster University with 274 wins and 167 SLIAC wins   Since becoming Webster's head coach in 2008-09, he has led the program to five appearances in the NCAA Tournament (2011, 2018, 2020, 2022, and 2023). He has seen his teams qualify for the SLIAC Tournament 12 times, and has had 12 winning seasons. In 2021-22, he led his team to the program's fifth 20-win campaign, and the third in his tenure. His teams have also won 10 or more league games 10 times, including a school record 16 league wins in 2019-20. The 2023-24 season will go down as one-of-the-best seasons in women's basketball history as Coach Olufson led the team to undefeated regular season with a 26-0 record and 18-0 SLIAC record that feature being in the top-25 NCAA Division III National Rankings. At the conclusion of the season, Coach Olufson was named the 2023-24 SLIAC Coach of the Year. In addition, Emily Wilson was selected as the SLIAC 6th Woman of the Year while Julie Baudendistel and Bethany Lancaster were slected to the First-Team All-Conference team. Furthermore, Kate Rolfes was named to the Third-Team All-Conference team as Nysa Gilchrist and Lancaster were chosen to the SLIAC All-Defensive Team.   The 2021-22 season was the best in program history as Olufson led the team to a 25-1 overall record and a 14-0 mark in conference play. The team won their fourth SLIAC Regular Season Title and their fifth SLIAC Tournament Championship. They qualified for their fifth NCAA Division III Women's Basketball National Tournament where their only loss of the season came in an 79-76 loss to the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor. The team went 25-0 through the SLIAC Tournament and broke the SLIAC consecutive wins record with 21. Olufson won his 200th career game with a 91-48 victory over Dominican (Ill.) University and was named the SLIAC Coach of the Year for the first time in his career. For their efforts, three players were named SLIAC All-Conference while three were named to the SLIAC All-Defensive Team. In addition, five players were named Academic All-Conference while Addison Beussink was named a D3hoops.com First Team All-Region VIII selection. The team finished the season ranked in the top five nationally in assists per game (19.0), field goal percentage (.461), scoring margin (25.7), scoring offense (87.5), steals (466), steals per game (17.9), turnover margin (10.35), turnovers forced (28.77), and win-lost percentage (.962). In Olufson's COVID riddled 2020-21 campaign, he helped guide the team to an 11-2 mark and 8-1 record in SLIAC play. His 8-1 record in SLIAC play was good enough to win the programs second straight SLIAC Regular Season title and just their third overall. His team finished 9th in DIII for assist/turnover ratio (1.26), 22nd in assists (226), second in assists/game (20.5), fourth in field-goal percentage (47.67%), 27th in offensive rebounds/game (16.2), 3rd in steals/game (17.3), an ninth in scoring margin (24.9).   Olufson's 2019-20 team finished with a 20-8 overall record and a 16-2 mark in the SLIAC and the program captured just its second regular season SLIAC title and first since 2002. Along with winning the regular season SLIAC title, the Gorloks also won the SLIAC Tournament for the second time in the last three years and advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the fifth time in school history and third time since 2011. His team was ranked second in all NCAA Divisions III in total assist (551), third in assist per game with 19.7 and fifth in field goal percentage (46%),  fifth in forced turnovers with 25.8. They also finished third in Division III in forced turnovers with 27.04 and 7th in assists per game with 18.2. The Gorloks also finished 10th in Division III in scoring offense with an average of 77.9 points per game.   In 2018-19, Webster finished 17-9 and ranked in all NCAA Divisions (1,2,and 3) No. 3 in steals per game with 16.8 and No. 4 in forced turnovers with 27.04. They also finished 3rd in Division III in forced turnovers with 27.04 and 7th in assists per game with 18.2. The Gorloks also finished 16th in Division III in scoring offense with an average of 76.4 points per game.   Coming off a 20 win, which is the third highest in the program’s history in 2017-18, Olufson led Webster back to the NCAA Tournament for the program's fourth time in history. His 2017-18 team finished among of one the best offensive and defensive teams as they finished among the top in the country in - turnover margin (4th, 11), steals per game (5th, 16.3) turnovers forced per game (5th, 27.63), steals (5th, 439), assists per game (15th, 17.8), scoring offense (30th, 77.8 points per game).   Olufson's 2016-17 Webster team posted a 19-win season and previously led the Gorloks to three 17-win seasons on three separate occasions. In 2016-17, his team finished 2nd in the country in defense, forcing 32 turnovers a game and 17.5 steals a game. His team was 2nd in the country in assists per game with 19 and 7th in offensive scoring with 78 points per game.   In 2011, Olufson led the Gorloks to their first NCAA Division III Championship Tournament appearance since 2005.   In his time at Webster, Olufson has coached two different four-time All-Conference performers, 27 All-Conference, 14 All-Defensive Team, 1 Defensive Player of the Year, 1 SLIAC Player of the Year, one two-time Jewish All American, a Beyond/Sports WBCA Division III All-Star Team selection and a WBCA Division III Honorable Mention All-American.   Olufson came to Webster as an assistant coach in 2007-08 from the University of Central Missouri. His first year at Webster, he helped the team up their win total by five games and was named the head coach for the following season.   The change of culture, pace of the game, and commitment to defense help redefine a program that had been struggling. A traditional top 20 defensive team and top 10 scoring offense team since he took over has help lead the Gorloks to many big wins, championships and post season awards. In 2018 Olufson was named Webster University Staff Member of the Year.   A native of Jefferson City, Mo., Olufson played at Ashford University in Clinton, Iowa, where he was a two year starter after transferring from Missouri Valley College. A graduate of Helias High School, Olufson earned his Bachelor’s degree in Sports and Recreation Management from Ashford University and earned his Master’s degree in Athletic and Business Administration from University of Central Missouri.   Olufson and his wife, Natasha, reside in Fairview Heights, Ill., and have a 16-year old daughter, Peyton Jayne.

Tanner Wilkenson enters his first season with the Gorloks after spending the past two years at national powerhouse Incarnate Word Academy. During his time at IWA, he won 2 Missouri Class 6 State Championships, went 61-0, and helped achieve a Missouri high school record 131 game winning streak. He worked closely with Hall of Fame Coach Dan Rolfes on creating scouts, practice plans and on court coaching. He has also been a coach and trainer for the Knights Basketball Academy during the past two years. Tanner comes from a coaching family where he has been around some great coaching minds as he played under Kurt Jacobs at Francis Howell. He is an University of Missouri alum who spent time as a practice player for the Missouri Women’s Basketball team. Tanner was the starting point guard at Francis Howell that went 25-4 and won a District Championship. Currently resides in St. Louis, MO.  

Angel Saddler is entering her 16th season at Webster as an Assistant Women's Basketball Coach after serving as the women's assistant at St. Louis Community College-Meramec  from 2002-2007.  At Meramec, she helped lead the team to a Region 16 championship in 2006. Coach Saddler has helped with keeping the Gorloks a tough defensive team, one that ranked #2 in the country in 2016-17 in forced turnovers and steals. She has a strong recruiting background in St. Louis and the Midwest region among the high school and junior college ranks.  Prior to going to Meramec, she spent five seasons as the head girls’ basketball coach at St. Elizabeth Academy. Saddler also coached AAU ball at Mathews-Dickey Boys and Girls Club from 1995-2002. She won four AAU regional championships and went to six national tournaments including placing ninth and was the 1998 Girls Basketball Coach of the Year. Saddler received her bachelor's degree in Communications from William Jewell College. She earned her master's degree in Psychology with a specialization in Sport Psychology from Capella University in the fall of 2010.