Thursday, October 31, 2002

CATAWBA COLLEGE PICKED TO CAPTURE 2002-03
SOUTH ATLANTIC CONFERENCE WOMEN’S BASKETBALL TITLE
Blue Hose picked to finish fifth in league regular season race

HICKORY, NC — Catawba College, which won the regular season and Food Lion SAC Tournament titles in 2001, could be poised for another run at the championship. The Lady Indians were picked to finish first, following a vote of the eight league coaches.  

Catawba picked up six first-place votes and 61 total points. The Lady Indians finished second in the conference regular season standings last year and 21-7 overall with a fairly young team. Catawba returns a pair of All-Conference selections in Dorthell Little and Danyel Locklear, who were both first team selections last season.  Little, a senior forward, was sixth in the league in scoring at 15.6 per game and finished third in rebounding a 10.1 per contest.  Locklear, a junior center, finished fourth in the SAC in scoring at 16.3 a game and was sixth in rebounds at eight per contest. Both are on the first-team Preseason All-Conference team, while guard Ashley Cox was named to the second team. Cox, a member of the All-Freshman team, averaged 7.7 points and 3.9 assists.

Mars Hill, which swept both the regular season and Food Lion SAC Tournament titles a year ago en route to a trip to the NCAA Division II Elite Eight Tournament, was picked to finish second. The Lady Lions picked up first-place vote and 46 total votes. One of the top returnees from last year's squad is Holly Carringer, who was the league's top 3-point shooter, connecting on 65-of-156 (41.7 percent). She is a first-team Preseason All-SAC pick. Tiffany Atkins was named to the second team. Atkins finished second in the conference in field-goal percentage (61.1 percent) and free-throw percentage (85.6 percent).

Lenoir-Rhyne is picked to finish third. The Bears placed two on the Preseason All-SAC squad in Maya Grady on the first team and Amber Hanks on the second team. Grady led the conference in assists last season with 5.6 per game. Hanks was 10th in scoring at 13.2 points per game.

Wingate was picked to finish fourth, but did pick up one first-place vote. The Bulldogs had 39 total points, to edge out Presbyterian, which was picked to finish fifth with 38 points

The Blue Hose have a new head coach for the first time in 13 years as former player and assistant coach Leigh Irwin takes over. Presbyterian guard Bonnie Werner is a first team Preseason All-SAC pick. Werner was second in the league in assists. On the second team Preseason All-SAC squad is forward Dana Birnie, the 2002 SAC Freshman of the Year. Birnie averaged 10 points and 5.2 rebounds.

Tusculum is tabbed to finish sixth. The Lady Pioneers return senior center Whitley Campbell, who is a second-team Preseason All-Conference pick. Campbell averaged 11.7 points and 7.5 rebounds last season.

Carson-Newman is picked to finish seventh, but coach Dean Walsh has a pair of All-Conference performers to help improve on that position. Stacie Dunn is a first-team Preseason All-SAC pick, while Monica Ashburn is on the second team. Dunn, the 2001 SAC Freshman of the Year, was fifth in the league in rebounding at 8.2 per game, while Ashburn averaged 12.7 points.

Newberry was picked to finish eighth. 

Women's Pre-Season All-Conference
First Team

Stacie Dunn, Carson-Newman
Dorthell Little, Catawba
Danyel Locklear, Catawba
Maya Grady, Lenoir-Rhyne
Holly Carringer, Mars Hill
Bonnie Werner, Presbyterian 

 Second Team

Monica Ashburn, Carson-Newman
Ashley Cox, Catawba
Amber Hanks, Lenoir-Rhyne
Tiffany Atkins, Mars Hill
Dana Birnie, Presbyterian
Whitley Campbell, Tusculum

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