INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – Released by the conference at 12 p.m. on Tuesday, October 18, Oakland Golden Grizzlies senior guard Breanne Beatty received Preseason Second Team All-Horizon League recognition.

A native of Worthington, Ohio, a northern suburb of Columbus, Beatty becomes the third Golden Grizzly to be named to a Preseason All-Horizon League team over the last five seasons, joining Taylor Jones in 2018-19 and Kahlaijah Dean, who accomplished the feat in both 2020-21 and 2021-22.

A leader on the floor both verbally and by example, Beatty is the consummate team-first player and her humble nature was evident in her response when she found out she was one of 10 young women from throughout the conference's 11 women's basketball programs to be selected for the two Preseason All-League squads.

"I guess it really wasn't something that I was expecting because I've always been more of a like in-the-shadows type of person," she shared with a laugh.  "So I wasn't really expecting it but it's cool to know that I got the accolade and people are acknowledging my accomplishments, so that's nice to know, but I didn't really expect it."

Owning career averages of 6.9 points and 4.3 rebounds per game, Beatty has increased her total in both statistical categories in each of her first three years on-campus, going from 4.8 points and 3.8 rebounds in 2019-20 to 6.1 points and 4.2 rebounds in 2020-21 and all the way to 9.7 points and five rebounds in 2021-22.

Perhaps the most impressive assets she has provided Oakland over the last three seasons, however, are her availability and durability, as she has played in all 83 games since the start of the 2019-20 campaign, starting 81 of those contests and playing 27.9 minutes per night.

Asked what it was that allowed her to be an impactful collegiate player from the jump, Beatty pointed to the mental side of the game, embracing every little battle in practice, and contributing on the defensive end.

"I think it was just determination to be like, 'I'm going to be the hardest worker out here or I'm going to be first in sprints or I'm going to be the best defender,'" she said. "Honestly, I think it was defense that got me on the floor because at the end of the day, your offense is not always going to be on point, but you can always control your defense, so I think that's what really got me on the floor and kept me on the floor."

When speaking to Golden Grizzlies head coach Jeff Tungate, who is entering his 10^th season at the helm in 2022-23, he highlighted Beatty's work ethic and receptiveness to coaching, while also praising her work on defense, noting he and his assistants can count on her to guard anyone from the opposing team's point guard to power forward.

"I think she's an extremely coachable player and she's a really hard worker," Tungate said. "She's determined, she knows what she wants, and she'll do whatever it takes to get there."

As mentioned above, Beatty's leadership amongst her teammates is one of her best qualities, one Tungate calls attention to when identifying where he has seen the most growth out of her since she arrived in Rochester over three years ago.

"Her communication in practice is unbelievable," the coach shared. "People that come watch our team practice always point out her communication on the floor, so I think her confidence has really gone up the last two years more than anything. She believes in herself, believes in what she's saying, believes in how she communicates."

The perfect example of a student-athlete, Beatty's off-court efforts are even more impressive than the list of accomplishments she has racked up during her first three years of collegiate basketball. An Elementary Education major, she is striving to become a Special Needs teacher, working with children with mental and physical disabilities. She plans to begin studying for her Master's in Special Education in 2023-24.

Although Beatty is a senior in 2022-23, she does have an additional year of eligibility in 2023-24 if she desires to use it, as the Indianapolis-headquartered National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) granted all fall and winter student-athletes an additional year in October 2020 due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

As for this season, which tips at home on Monday, November 7 against the Mid-American Conference's (MAC) Akron Zips, Beatty offered a look at some goals she has for the team.

"For short-term, it's just getting our chemistry on point," she said. "I think that we work well together, but we're still learning how to communicate with each other, so I think just getting that perfect because we have a lot of good pieces and just putting them together is what we need to do through communication.

"And then long-term, definitely win the league. I think we have a lot of potential that people aren't expecting or don't know of, so I like being the underdog."

Oakland's opener with the Zips begins at 8 p.m. and will air live on ESPN+ (subscription required). The Golden Grizzlies follow that up with another home contest against a MAC foe, this time facing the Central Michigan Chippewas on Saturday, November 12, before hitting the road for the first time to play the Big Ten Conference's (B1G) Michigan State Spartans at the Breslin Center on Tuesday, November 15.

Voted on by the league's head coaches, here are the full Preseason All-Horizon League Teams:

#HLWBB Preseason Player of the Year
Junior G Destiny Leo, Cleveland State

Preseason All-League First Team (alphabetical by school)
Junior G Destiny Leo, Cleveland State
Senior G Hailey Oskey, Green Bay
Redshirt junior F Megan Walstad, Milwaukee
Graduate student G Lindsey Duvall, Northern Kentucky
Fifth-year senior F Lilly Ritz, Youngstown State

Preseason All-League Second Team (alphabetical by school)
Sophomore G Bailey Butler, Green Bay
Junior G/F Rachel Kent, IUPUI
Senior G Ivy Turner, Northern Kentucky
SENIOR G BREANNE BEATTY, OAKLAND
Senior G Shayla Sellers, Purdue Fort Wayne

HORIZON LEAGUE OFFICIAL RELEASE