JMU?S ALEXIS HEADLINES 2006-07 ALL-CAA WOMEN?S BASKETBALL TEAM

3/7/2007 5:00:00 AM

Newark, Del. (March 7, 2007) ? James Madison senior center Meredith Alexis (Hanover Township, Pa./Bishop Hoban) was named the 2007 Colonial Athletic Association women’s basketball Player of the Year in voting by the league’s head coaches, sports information directors and members of the media. The announcement was made Wednesday night at the league’s pre-tournament awards banquet in Newark, Del.

Also receiving top honors were James Madison’s Kenny Brooks as the CAA Coach of the Year, Drexel’s Gabriela Marginean (Cluj-Napona, Romania/Mt. de Chantal Academy) as the CAA Rookie of the Year, Delaware’s Tyresa Smith (Dover, Del./Polytech) as the CAA Defensive Player of the Year and James Madison’s Lesley Dickinson (Queens Village, N.Y./Christ the King) as the recipient of the Dean Ehlers Leadership Award.

Alexis rewrote the JMU and CAA record books this season. She became the CAA’s all-time leading rebounder with 1,268 and set new all-time marks at JMU for points (1,694), double-doubles (61) and double-figure rebounding games (72). This season she averaged 18.7 points and a league-best 11.7 rebounds a game. She is the first CAA Player of the Year from JMU since Sydney Beasley in 1988.

Brooks guided the Dukes to a school-record 25 regular-season wins, including a 16-2 mark in conference play. He also led his team to a four-week appearance in the Associated Press Top 25 Poll. James Madison currently owns the longest home court winning streak in the nation at 25 games and enjoyed a 16-game winning streak earlier this season. The Coach of the Year honors is the first for Brooks.

Marginean is the first Drexel player to earn the CAA Rookie of the Year honors since Catherine Scanlon in 2003. She led the Dragons and was among the CAA’s top five in scoring (16.2 ppg) and top eight in rebounding (8.0). The rookie registered double-figures in all but five games, including her stunning 47-point performance in a five overtime victory. Marginean is also one of the league’s best at the free throw line, shooting 85 percent.

Smith, who received the CAA Defensive Player of the Year award for the second consecutive season, ranks among the league’s best in steals (2.5 spg) and blocked shots. She also ranks among the top 15 in the conference in rebounding (7.7 rpg), scoring (19.7 ppg), field goal percentage (.458) and free throw percentage (.724). Smith made six or more thefts three times this season.

Dickinson averaged 10.8 points per game and shot 89 percent from the line. She holds the JMU all-time career free-throw record with 447 and is third with 1,573 career points. Dickinson is the first player ever from James Madison to earn the Dean Ehlers Leadership award, which is presented annually to the women’s basketball student-athlete who “embodies the highest standards of leadership, integrity and sportsmanship in conjunction with her academic athletic achievement.”

Joining Alexis and Smith on the All-CAA first-team were Old Dominion junior guard T.J. Jordan (Portsmouth, Va./Wilson), William & Mary junior forward Kyra Kaylor (Pittsburgh, Pa./Upper St. Clair), and James Madison junior guard/forward Tamera Young (Wilmington, N.C./Laney).

Jordan, who moved up from the second to first team this season, leads the conference with 90 treys and ranks fourth in the nation with 3.1 three-pointers per game. The junior guard, who scored a team-high 14.5 ppg, set a CAA and ODU record with 10 threes in a game this season. Kaylor, the 2006 CAA Player of the Year, ranks among the league’s top 10 in scoring (14.8 ppg) and rebounding (9.0 rpg). She has recorded 10 double-doubles this season. Young was a first-team selection for the second consecutive season, averaging 16.8 points and 7.9 rebounds per outing. She also contributed better than two steals per game.

2006-07 CAA WOMEN’S BASKETBALL AWARD WINNERS

ALL-CAA FIRST TEAM

Meredith Alexis, James Madison Sr. C 6-3 Hanover Township, Pa./Bishop Hoban

T.J. Jordan, Old Dominion Jr. G 5-8 Portsmouth, Va./Wilson

Kyra Kaylor, William & Mary Jr. F 6-0 Pittsburgh, Pa./Upper St. Clair

Tyresa Smith, Delaware Sr. G 5-10 Dover, Del./Polytech

Tamera Young, James Madison Jr. G/F 6-2 Wilmington, N.C./Laney

ALL-CAA SECOND TEAM

Vanessa Gidden, Hofstra Sr. C 6-3 Stamford, Conn./Stamford

Quanitra Hollingsworth, VCU So. C 6-5 Chesapeake, Va./Great Bridge

Cigi McCollin, Hofstra Sr. G 5-7 Long Island City, N.Y./Christ the King

Kelcey Roegiers-Jensen, Georgia State Sr. G 5-8 St. Petersburg, Fla./Boca Ciega

Krystal Vaughn, VCU Jr. F 6-1 Baltimore, Md./Lake Clifton-Eastern

ALL-CAA THIRD TEAM

Andrea Benvenuto, James Madison Sr. G 5-7 Ancaster, Ontario/St. Mary’s

Lori Drake, UNC Wilmington Sr. G 5-10 Brookneal, Va./William Campbell/Seward County

Chrissy Fisher, Delaware Sr. F 6-0 Rumson, N.J./Fair Haven/Maryland

Gabriela Marginean, Drexel Fr. F 6-1 Cluj-Napona, Romania/Mt. de Chantal Acad.

Shaleyse Smallwood, Northeastern Jr. G 5-5 Boston, MA/O'Bryant

2007 CAA PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Meredith Alexis, James Madison

2007 CAA COACH OF THE YEAR: Kenny Brooks, James Madison

2007 CAA ROOKIE OF THE YEAR: Gabriela Marginean, Drexel

2007 CAA DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Tyresa Smtih, Delaware

2007 DEAN EHLERS LEADERSHIP AWARD: Lesley Dickinson, James Madison

ALL-ROOKIE TEAM Cl. Pos. Ht. Hometown/Previous School

Shanae Baker-Brice, Towson Fr. G 5-6 Washington, D.C./Theodore Roosevelt

Tiffany Benson, William & Mary Fr. F 6-1 Virginia Beach, Va./Princess Anne

Sam Brigham, Hofstra Fr. G 5-10 Simsbury, Conn./Simsbury

Tabitha David, Georgia State Fr. G/F 5-10 Mableton, Ga./Pebblebrook

Gabriela Marginean, Drexel Fr. F 6-1 Cluj-Napona, Romania/Mt. de Chantal Acad.

All-Defensive Team

Kyle DeHaven, Delaware Jr. G 5-9 Herndon, Va./Herndon/William & Mary

Marcquitta Head, Georgia State So. C 6-3 Conley, Ga./Forest Park

Brittany Hollins, Georgia State So. G 5-9 Columbia, S.C./Columbia

Shirley McCall, James Madison Sr. G/F 5-10 Collinsville, Va./Bassett

Tyresa Smtih, Delaware Sr. G 5-10 Dover, Del./Polytech

All-Academic First Team

Vera Chistova, VCU Jr. G 5-10 St. Petersburg, Russia/St. Petersburg

Anna Karlsson, Drexel Jr. F 6-1 Madrid, Spain/Int’l College of Spain

Lizanne Murphy, Hofstra Sr. F 6-1 Beaconsfield, Quebec, Canada/Dawson

Megan Pym, Old Dominion Jr. F/C 6-4 Newfield, N.Y./Newfield

Sarah Stroh, William & Mary Sr. G 5-8 Mission, British Columbia/Heritage Park

Niki Williams, Hofstra So. G 5-6 Pittsburgh, Pa./Seton-La Salle

All-Academic Second Team

Andrea Benvenuto, James Madison Sr. G 5-7 Ancaster, Ontario/St. Mary’s

Lesley Dickinson, James Madison Sr. G 5-10 Queens Village, N.Y./Christ the King

Kira Karlstrom, Drexel Sr. G 5-4 Clarkston, Mich./Clarkston

Letitia Lyons, Old Dominion Sr. F 5-10 Newport News, Va./Woodside

Jen Nuzzo, Old Dominion So. G 5-8 Newport News, Va./Woodside

All-Academic Honorable Mention

Christina Biedny, Hofstra So. C 6-5 East Amherst, N.Y./Clarence

Jennifer Brown, James Madison Jr. F 6-2 Brooklyn, N.Y./Martin Luther King/Pittsburgh

Jody Burrows, Northeastern Sr. G 5-6 Corry, PA/Corry

Harmonie Calinda, Hofstra So. F 6-0 Huntington, N.Y./John Glenn/Seton Hall

Stephanie Fernald, UNC Wilmington Jr. G 5-8 Midlothian, Va./Midlothian

Kelly Golden, Drexel So. G 5-9 Doylestown, Pa./The Hill School

Lana Harshaw, Hofstra Sr. F 6-0 Wildwood, N.J./Wildwood

Alena Koshansky, Delaware Sr. G 5-8 Fairfax, Va./Chantilly

Cigi McCollin, Hofstra Sr. G 5-7 Long Island City, N.Y./Christ the King

Keisha Monroe, Georgia State Jr. G 5-4 Spring Lake, N.C./Western Harnett

Jamie Mundy, Delaware So. G 6-0 Proctorville, Ohio/Spring Valley/Georgetown

Kimberly Pyne, Towson Sr. C 6-4 Columbia, Md./Howard/George Mason

Linn Quamme, Hofstra Jr. F 6-0 West Salem, Wis./West Salem

Casey Quigley, George Mason Jr. G 5-10 Springfield, Va./Lake Braddock

Bethany Stranges, UNC Wilmington Jr. F 6-3 St. Clairsville, Ohio/St. Clairsville