Jackie McFarland enters her senior season having already established herself as one of the most celebrated players in CU women’s basketball history and will be a candidate for a variety of post season honors. She flourished as a junior, being able to play most of the season at the power forward position, although she can play center as well and has a soft shooting touch down on the blocks. The fifth player in CU history with career numbers totaling 1,300 points and 700 rebounds, McFarland enters her senior season tied for fourth in career rebounding (770), sixth in free throws made (383) and blocked shots (100), 13th in scoring (1,320), 15th in field goals made (462) and is also on pace to register some of the top career averages in team history.
2006-07 (Junior): An Associated Press honorable mention All-American in 2007, McFarland was also first team All-Big 12 Conference selection, becoming just the second CU player to earn that distinction in the 11-year history of the league (Tera Bjorklund was a two-time first team pick). She paced the Big 12 and ranked third in the NCAA in field-goal percentage with a .605 mark (181-of-299), which is also the sixth-best single-season percentage in team history. McFarland ranked second in the Big 12 in scoring and rebounding, registering the season double-double numbers of 17.8 points and 10.8 rebounds per game. Her 533 points rank as the seventh-best single-season total in team history and she is just one of three CU players to ever record back-to-back 500 point seasons. Just the second different player in team history to score 500 points and grab 300 rebounds in one season (Lisa Van Goor did it twice, 1980-81 and 1981-82), her 17.8 points per game average is the sixth-best on the team single-season charts. McFarland scored at least 10 points in 28 of 30 games and hit the 20 point mark on 10 occasions, including a season-best 32 points against Texas Tech (3/6) in the opening round of the 2007 Big 12 Championship. Her 32-point output set a Big 12 Championship record for a first round game and it equaled the school’s best Big 12 Championship performance as Tera Bjorklund also had 32 against Oklahoma in a 2003 quarterfinal game. In the game against Texas Tech, McFarland tied a school record by making 14 free throws, on 16 attempts, and in the process also became CU’s single-season leader in free throws made with 161. Her 76.3 percent efficiency from the charity stripe ranked 13th in the Big 12 and was second on the team behind Jasmina Ilic (86.5 percent). As for her rebounding exploits, few Buffaloes had a finer season than McFarland in 2006-07. Her 325 rebounds marked the most by a junior in team history and overall ranked as the fifth-best total in team history. Her 10.8 rebounds per game average ranked 11th in the nation in 2007 and was the third-best mark on the team single-season charts. Combining her scoring and rebounding efforts from the past season, it’s no surprise that McFarland ranked second in the Big 12 last season with 18 double-doubles, tying Lisa Van Goor (1982-83) for third best single-season output in team history. Her 18 double-doubles were equal to or more than the totals of 10 of the 12 Big 12 teams in 2007 and she missed five other double-double opportunities by either a single point or rebound. McFarland is tied for second with Erin Scholz (1993-97) on CU’s career list with 37 double-doubles and her 38 double-digit rebounding games are third on the CU charts behind Scholz (43) and Van Goor (63). McFarland secured Big 12 Player of the Week honors on Nov. 13 after averaging 22 points, 12 rebounds and shooting 71 percent from the field (17-of-24) during the opening weekend of the 2006-07 season. She led the conference in minutes played at 36.8 per game, and also ranked 10th in the Big 12 in blocked shots (1.2 bpg).
2005-06 (Sophomore): McFarland established herself as one of the premier players at her position, gaining second team All-Big 12 Conference honors by a vote of league coaches, becoming at the time the fifth CU player to gain either first or second team All-Big 12 honors since the league’s inception in 1996-97. On the Big 12 charts she ranked fourth in rebounding (9.2 rpg), sixth in scoring (17.2 ppg), eighth in free-throw percentage (.799), ninth in blocks (1.4 bpg) and 10th in field-goal percentage (.514). McFarland led CU in scoring for the second-straight season at 17.2 points per game, the seventh best season average in team history. Her 516 total points tied Isabelle Fijalkowski (1994-95) for seventh on CU’s single season list, and was the second-best by a sophomore, trailing only all-time leading scorer Lisa VanGoor who had 678 in 1981-82. McFarland had a knack for getting to the free-throw line. Her 147 free-throws made ranked fifth on the Buffs’ single season charts and her solid 79.9 percentage (147-of-184) from the line helped CU lead the Big 12 in free-throw percentage in 2005-06. McFarland led the Buffaloes in rebounding at 9.2 per game, ranking ninth on CU’s all time list. Her total of 277 rebounds is 10th on CU’s single-season chart and the third best total by a sophomore. She joined an elite list in Buffs’ history becoming just the third player to record 500 points and 250 rebounds in a single season (Lisa VanGoor in 1980-81 and 1981-82; Erin Scholz in 1995-96). Defensively, McFarland blocked a team-high 41 shots, the 12th most in one season on the CU charts, and third best performance by a sophomore. Against South Dakota State (12/28) she tied Britt Hartshorn’s single-game record with eight blocked shots against the Jackrabbits. McFarland had 14 double-doubles in 2005-06 which ranked fourth in the Big 12 and is the fourth-best single-season mark in team history. Her 19 career double-doubles also rank fourth on the CU career charts. McFarland scored in double-digits in 28 of 30 games, a mark that ties for the sixth best total in team history. She opened the 2005-06 season with a bang, scoring 34 points against Cal State-Fullerton (11/18), tying teammate Jasmina Ilic and two others for the sixth best performance in school history. Ilic’s 34 points also came against the Titans, marking the first time two CU players scored 30 or more points in the same game.
2004-05 (Freshman): McFarland capped off an impressive freshman season by being named to the All-Big 12 Freshman team by both the Kansas City Star and the Waco Tribune-Herald. She was Colorado’s leading scorer in terms of average (10.0 ppg), becoming the first Buffs’ freshman to achieve that feat since Linda Lappe in 1998-99. McFarland was second on the squad in blocks (24), rebounding (6.2 rpg) and free-throw percentage (.708) and led the Buffs in free-throws made (75) and attempted (706). She was one of only 10 players in the Big 12, and the lone freshman, with five or more double doubles in 2004-05. McFarland twice earned Big 12 Rookie of the Week honors. Her first honor came on Dec. 6 after scoring a career-high 23 points against Wyoming (12/1) and recording her first career double-double with 19 points and 10 rebounds against Creighton. The second award came after averaging 10.7 points, 7.3 rebounds, 3.0 assists and hit 68 percent from the field (13-of-19) in wins at Washington (12/21) and Manhattan (1/2). Against Washington, McFarland had 16 points off the bench and scored the game-winning basket with four seconds remaining in overtime. McFarland ranked third among all Big 12 freshmen in scoring and was second in rebounding (6.2 rpg). She scored in double digits in 14 of 27 games including a trio of games with 20 or more points. McFarland had five games with double-digit rebounds including a personal-best 12 against No. 6/8 Baylor (2/26).
U.S. Jones Cup Team: McFarland was a member of the bronze medal winning United States William Jones Cup team which competed in Taipei, Taiwan, July 11-17, 2007. She led Team USA in field-goal percentage during the six-game event at 57.1 percent (20-of-35). McFarland averaged 9.7 points and 4.5 rebounds per game during the tournament including a 22-point, 9-rebound effort to lead the U.S. to a 114-94 win over Japan.
High School: McFarland earned first-team All-State, first-team Class 6A and Ark Valley League MVP honors after averaging 23.3 points, 10.7 rebounds and 2.1 blocks per game as a senior at Derby High School. Her team was 15-7 and finished as the runner up at the sub-state tournament. She holds all of Derby’s scoring records, claiming marks for points in a game, season and career. She also has records for most rebounds in a game, most free-throws made and attempted in a game and is third on the school’s all-time season and career rebounding charts. McFarland was also the MVP of the Steve Young All-Star game, the Kapaun Tournament and participated in the Kansas Basketball Coaches Association All-Star Game. As a junior, she was named second team All-State after averaging 21.6 points and 10.6 rebounds per game. She was named All- 6A, First Team All-Ark-Valley League and also First Team All-Southeastern Kansas her junior year, as her team went 15-7 under coach Bill Shaw. Her sophomore year Derby was 20-2, while McFarland averaged 12.6 ppg and 8.3 rpg, en route to second team All-Ark-Valley League honors as well as honorable mention for All-Class 6A. As a freshman, McFarland was a member of the Derby team that went 19-6 on the season, averaging 8.2 ppg and 6.5 rpg, also earned Honorable Mention All-League honors. Her club team, the KS Fastbreak, won the MAYB National Championship in 2002 and 2003, and her AAU Topeka Bauersfield squad were national runners-up in 2002. In summer ball, she was named the AAU Missouri Valley Player of the Year and was selected an Adidas All-American Top Ten All-Star.
Academics: McFarland is an accounting major at Colorado and is working on a concurrent degree program in the school of business which will allow her to earn her MBA while completing her undergraduate accounting degree. She is a two-time ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America University Division Women’s Basketball second team selection, earning honors in 2006 and 2007, and in the process becoming the first CU women’s basketball player to earn Academic All-America honors twice and the first overall CU student-athlete since former cross country/track & field standout Jon Severy was cited in 2003 and 2005. Sporting a team-best 3.89 GPA, McFarland won CU’s Scholar-Athlete Award in the spring of 2007 for having the highest GPA in her class. She is a four-time member of the Dean’s List and earned the CU Athletic Department’s Academic Excellence Award in the fall of 2004 with a perfect 4.0 GPA. She is also a team representative for the Student Athlete-Advisory Committee. McFarland is also a two-time ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District VII first team member as well as a two-time Academic All-Big 12 Conference first team honoree.
Personal: Jacqueline Jayne McFarland was born Oct. 2, 1985, and is the daughter of Jay and Jennifer McFarland. She has one brother, Jacob (19) who attends Kansas State, and two sisters, Jessica (22) and Joanna (16). Jessica was a four-year letterwinner at Kansas State, completing her eligibility in 2005-06, and is set to graduate from KSU in December. Joanna is a junior who plays basketball and volleyball. She also competed in volleyball and track at Derby.
