Landmark Releases 2016-17 Women's Basketball Awards
TOWSON, Md. – Catholic University senior Michelle DeSantis is the Landmark Conference women’s basketball coaches’ pick as Player of the Year while Elizabethtown College Emily Martin and Goucher College’s Briana Bull are the Defensive Players of the Year. Maddie Capuano of Moravian College was chosen as the Rookie of the Year.
DeSantis ranks in the top ten in scoring, field goal percentage, assists, steals, and three-point percentage. The senior guard scored in double-digits in 22 games this season, while leading the Cardinals to their third consecutive trip to the Landmark Championship game. DeSantis also earned First Team All-Landmark honors for the third time in her career.
Martin served as a senior captain for Elizabethtown this season. She averaged 18.0 points per game while racking up more than 12 rebounds per game. She ranks second in steals per game, averaging 2.4 a contest. In the Landmark Conference semifinal game against Catholic, Martin recorded her first career triple-double, leaving the court with 23 points, 11 rebounds, and 11 blocked shots.
Sharing the Co-Defensive Player of the Year title with Martin is Briana Bull. The junior guard from Goucher ended the regular season averaging 20.6 points per game and 11.5 rebounds. She ranks in the top ten in rebounds per game, points per game, and steals.
Capuano became the Greyhounds starting point guard, a position she never played before. She finished her first year averaging 12.3 points per game while shooting 41.9 percent from the floor. Capuano finished her freshman campaign averaging 2.4 assists per game, grabbing 113 rebounds, and totaling 51 steals. She scored a season-high 21 points in the 72-66 win against Susquehanna.
Joining DeSantis, Martin, and Bull on the Landmark All-Conference First Team are Moravian’s Camille McPherson and Scranton’s Alexix Roman and Sarah Payonk.
McPherson earns First Team honors after being named to the Second Team a year ago. At the end of the conference tournament, McPherson leads all Landmark players in scoring, averaging 22.7 points per game. McPherson was also named to the CoSIDA Academic All-America Third Team.
Roman earns her second First Team nod after being named to the team last year. She averaged nearly a double-double with 17.3 points per game and 8.1 rebounds. Roman scored in double figures in 24 of 27 games this season. Payonk was the 2016 Landmark Player of the Year and the 2014 Rookie of the Year. Payonk averaged 11.3 points per game and 9.2 rebounds. She led the conference in assists, dishing out 4.7 per game.
Moravian head coach Mary Beth Spirk and her staff were voted Coaching Staff of the Year for the fourth time in her career. The Greyhounds were picked to finish fourth in the league and finished third in the Landmark standings and a trip to the Landmark tournament.
The 2016-17 Landmark Women's Basketball All-Conference Teams:
| First Team |
|
|
|
|
|
Second Team |
|
|
|
|
Michelle DeSantis *%
|
Catholic |
Sr. |
G |
Trumbull, Conn.
|
|
Bernadette Launi |
Catholic |
Jr. |
F |
Rockville, Md. |
| Emily Martin % |
Elizabethtown |
Sr. |
C |
Lancaster, Pa. |
|
Melissa Errico |
Catholic |
Sr. |
F |
Harrington Park, N.J. |
| Camille McPherson |
Moravian |
Sr. |
F |
West Orange, N.J. |
|
Hannah Miller |
Drew |
Sr. |
G |
Rumson, N.J. |
| Alexix Roman % |
Scranton |
Sr. |
F |
Hawley, Pa. |
|
Dani Atkinson |
Juniata |
Jr. |
G |
Lancaster, Pa. |
| Sarah Payonk % |
Scranton |
Sr. |
F |
Schwenksville, Pa. |
|
Bridgette Mann |
Scranton |
So. |
G |
Canadensis, Pa. |
| Briana Bull |
Goucher |
Jr. |
G/F |
Baltimore, Md. |
|
Courtney Adams |
Susquehanna |
Jr. |
F |
Hamilton, N.J. |
% 2015-16 First Team All-Landmark
* 2014-15 First Team All-Landmark
^ 2013-14 First Team All-Landmark