Landmark Releases 2019-20 Women's Basketball Awards
TOWSON, Md. –For the second straight year, The University of Scranton's Makenzie Mason was selected as the Landmark Conference Women's Basketball Player of the Year.
Teammate Emily Sheehan also earned her second straight Defensive Player of the Year honors while Catholic University freshman was tabbed Rookie of the Year. Cardinals head coach Matt Donohue earned Coach of the Year honors.
Senior guard Makenzie Mason becomes the second player in program history to earn Landmark Player of the Year honors in consecutive years after the Lady Royals' Megan Kopecki won the award in three straight years from 2009-11. The Doylestown, Pa., native helped lead Scranton to their fifth straight conference title and was named Landmark Conference Tournament MVP after recording a double-double in both tournament games including a 21 point, 12 rebound performance in Saturday's 63-42 championship victory over Catholic. Mason leads the team in scoring (14.1 ppg) and rebounding (6.9 rpg) and played some of her best basketball down the stretch as she is averaging 16.1 points per game in her last 11 games to go along with a 54.4% field goal percentage in that time.
Emily Sheehan garnered Defensive Player of the Year honors for the second straight year after leading a Lady Royals team that has allowed just 52.6 points per game, a total that leads the conference and is tied for 16th nationally. Sheehan leads the team with 39 steals on the season and Scranton has allowed 60 points or less in nine of their last 11 games. The senior guard also provided key contributions offensively as she is the team's second-leading scorer at 10.9 points per game and ranks fourth in the Landmark in three-point shooting at 37.7%.
Rachel Bussanich is the second Cardinal to earn Rookie of the Year honors and first since Jill Woerner in 2010. Bussanich appeared in all 27 of the team's games while making 11 starts and ranking fifth among freshman in the conference in scoring at 6.2 points per game and fourth in rebounding at 3.7 rebounds per game. She totaled 17 points and eight rebounds, both career highs, in an 87-70 victory over first-place and conference unbeaten Elizabethtown on Jan. 22, 2020.
Matt Donohue earns his second Coach of the Year honor and first since 2014 after leading the Cardinals to their fifth 20-win season in the last nine years. The team received votes in both the WBCA Top 25 Coaches Poll and d3hoops.com women's Top 25 this season and posted home wins over No. 11 Scranton and No. 14 Marymount (Va.). Catholic also captured tournament titles at the Coaches vs. Cancer Classic hosted by York (Pa.) and the Scott Wood Tournament hosted by Muhlenberg.
The 2019-20 Landmark Women's Basketball All-Conference Teams:
| First Team |
|
|
|
|
|
Second Team |
|
|
|
|
| Sydney Poindexter |
Catholic |
Sr. |
F |
Clarksville, Md. |
|
Amanda Johnson |
Catholic |
So. |
G/F |
Toms River, N.J. |
| Veronica Christ % |
Elizabethtown |
Jr. |
G/F |
Pittstown, N.J. |
|
Erin Frederick |
Drew |
Jr. |
F |
Staten Island, N.Y. |
| Lydia Lawson %* |
Elizabethtown |
Sr. |
G |
Mountain Top, Pa. |
|
Julia Ramos % |
Drew |
Jr. |
G |
Hazlet, N.J. |
| Maddie Capuano %* |
Moravian |
Sr. |
G |
Bethlehem, Pa. |
|
Gracie Stauffer % |
Juniata |
Jr. |
C |
Loysville, Pa. |
| Makenzie Mason %* |
Scranton |
Sr. |
G |
Doylestown, Pa. |
|
Nadine Ewald |
Moravian |
Sr. |
C |
Allentown, Pa. |
| Emily Sheehan |
Scranton |
Sr. |
F |
Dunmore, Pa. |
|
Erin McQuillen |
Susquehanna |
Jr. |
G |
Cresskill, N.J. |
% 2018-19 First Team All-Landmark
* 2017-18 First Team All-Landmark
^ 2016-17 First Team All-Landmark