Dylan Kuehl has been named both the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year for Northern Michigan University’s men’s basketball team. Head coach Matt Majkrzak was also recognized as GLIAC Coach of the Year. Additional honors went to Cal Klesmit, who earned First Team All-GLIAC, and Jackson Dudek, who was named to the Second Team.
Kuehl becomes the fifth player from Northern Michigan to receive GLIAC Player of the Year, following Max Weisbrod in 2023-24. He has now made both the All-GLIAC and All-Defensive Teams for four consecutive seasons. Alongside GVSU’s Trevor Smith this year, Kuehl is among only four players ever to be selected for the All-Defensive Team four times. This season, he averaged 21.3 points per game, ranking him among the top 15 scorers nationally. His shooting percentage stood at 56.7%, with an average of 6.3 rebounds per game. In conference play, his averages included a league-leading 23.8 points per game, a field-goal percentage of 58.6% (second), 1.5 blocks per game (third), and 6.4 rebounds per game (tenth).
Kuehl finished the regular season with a career-high performance: “He capped the regular season with a dominant weekend to clinch the conference title. Kuehl delivered a career-high 41 points on 15-20 shooting, adding nine rebounds, four assists, and three blocks.” He received his third GLIAC Offensive Player of the Week award this season.
Over his career at Northern Michigan, Kuehl has scored 2,089 points—third in program history—and is just short of second place by 21 points. With him playing, the Wildcats have achieved a record of 93 wins and 34 losses (.732) and secured four conference championships. He was recently added to the Trevor Hudgins Award Top-15 Watch List.
Majkrzak is now one of only three head coaches in program history to earn GLIAC Coach of the Year honors; he also won last year and is Northern Michigan’s first repeat winner: “Majkrzak is only the third head coach in program history to earn GLIAC Coach of the Year, joining Dean Ellis in 1993.” Under his leadership this season, Northern Michigan posted a record of 25 wins and five losses and won another GLIAC regular-season championship—the fourth during his tenure spanning seven seasons with an overall record of 133-71.
The Wildcats reached as high as No.10 in this season’s NABC National Poll—their highest since January 1993—and were ranked No.17 entering postseason play.
Klesmit played a significant role on offense: “Klesmit shot his way to a First Team selection after playing a key role in the Wildcats’ perimeter success,” finishing third in conference play for three-pointers made per game (2.9) while leading all players with a three-point shooting percentage of 45.5%. He averaged 12.3 points per game and recorded five or more three-pointers eight times this season.
Dudek earned Second Team recognition after averaging 12.3 points and grabbing 5.1 rebounds per contest; he led Northern Michigan with a three-point percentage of 45% and holds a career mark that ranks sixth among active Division II players with at least eighty attempts.
Northern Michigan Wildcats participate in intercollegiate competitions across sports such as basketball and football for student-athletes according to their official website. The teams represent Northern Michigan University within NCAA events while partnering with organizations like the GLIAC conference under NCAA frameworks (source). The Wildcats’ athletic schedule includes home games at venues such as Superior Dome (source) and away games at locations including Davenport University in Grand Rapids (source).
Under Majkrzak’s guidance along with contributions from Kuehl, Klesmit, and Dudek, Northern Michigan leads all teams nationally in rebounding margin (11.1), ranks second in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.86), fourth in scoring margin (17.8), eleventh in three-point percentage (38.9%), and sixteenth in scoring defense (65.3).
