OREM, Utah ? Senior Kierah Kimbrough has been named to the 2008-09 Division I All-Independent women's basketball first team announced the Utah Valley sports information department on Wednesday.
The forward from Greenbush, Minn. was the lone Fighting Sioux player to make the 10-player, first and second team list.
Fourteen teams were included in this year's selection including: Bryant University, CSU Bakersfield, Chicago State, Houston Baptist, Longwood, NJIT, North Carolina Central, North Dakota, Savannah State, Seattle University, South Dakota, SIU Edwardsville, Texas-Pan American, and Utah Valley. Utah Valley and CSU Bakersfield were the only teams to place multiple players on the list.
A 2008-09 team captain, Kimbrough started all 29 games for the Fighting Sioux this season and finished with a team-high 20.4 points per game and 7.6 rebounds per game. She started and finished the season with a double-double. In sum, she tallied nine point-rebound double-doubles, including four-consecutive to open the January schedule.
Kimbrough scored double figures in every game but one this season with 20-plus points on 17 occasions and enjoyed two-30-point finishes. She recorded a career-high six blocks against Toledo (Dec. 6) where she notched 23 points and nine rebounds. With the addition of 26 points against Houston Baptist (March 7), Kimbrough became the third player in UND women's basketball history to score over 2,000 points.
She was named the 2009 UND Spring Thaw Tournament Most Outstanding Player and was selected to the Northern Arizona Fairfield/Holiday Inn Thanksgiving Classic All-Tournament Team and the American Family Insurance Cyclone Challenge (Iowa State) All-Tournament Team. Kimbrough also garnered three Great West Conference Player of the Week accolades.
Three North Dakota players received honorable mention: senior Danye Guinn (G, St. Francis, Minn.), junior Kayla Bagaason (G, Clearbrook, Minn.), and junior Jossy Bergan (G, Valley City, N.D.).
Utah Valley's Robyn Fairbanks was named Player of the Year for the third-consecutive season, Seattle's Breanna Salley was named Newcomer of the Year, and Tim La Cose of CSU Bakersfield was named Coach of the Year.
? GoSioux ?
Player of the Year: Robyn Fairbanks, Utah Valley
Defensive Player of the Year: Fallon Thomas, Houston Baptist
Newcomer of the Year: Breanna Salley, Seattle University
Coach of the Year: Tim La Kose, CSU Bakersfield
First Team:
|
Player |
School (Hometown) |
Pos. |
Yr. |
Statistics |
|
Robyn Fairbanks |
Utah Valley (Raymond, AB, Canada) |
C |
Sr. |
26.0 ppg, 10.8 rpg, 60.8 fg% |
|
Kierah Kimbrough |
North Dakota (Greenbush, MN) |
F |
Sr. |
20.4 ppg, 7.6 rpg, 58.1 fg%, 2.2 bpg |
|
Jasmin Dixon |
Chicago State (Detroit, MI) |
G |
Sr. |
14.7 ppg, 6.2 rpg, 2.4 spg |
|
Jori Nwachukwu |
N. Carolina Central (Upper Marlboro, MD) |
C |
Jr. |
18.5 ppg, 7.7 rpg |
|
Breanna Salley |
Seattle University (East Bethel, MN) |
F |
So. |
17.5 ppg, 5.1 rpg |
Second Team:
|
Julie McMurray |
Utah Valley (Cardston, AB, Canada) |
F |
Jr. |
18.3 ppg, 6.4 ppg, 51.7 fg% |
|
Bridget Yoerger |
South Dakota (Hinton, IA) |
F |
Sr. |
16.7 ppg, 9.7 rpg |
|
Christine Kepenekian |
CSU Bakersfield (Burbank, CA) |
G |
Sr. |
16.9 ppg, 8.5 rpg |
|
Kelsey O'Keefe |
Bryant University (Warren, MA) |
F |
Jr. |
16.2 ppg, 8.0 rpg |
|
Krista Arase |
CSU Bakersfield (Monterey Park, CA) |
G |
Sr. |
10.4 ppg, 4.3 apg, 91.7 ft% |
Honorable Mention:
Mercedes Alexander (Seattle), Kayla Bagaason (North Dakota), Jossy Bergan (North Dakota), Becky Fernandes (Longwood), Danye Guinn (North Dakota), Crissa Jackson (Savannah State), Megan Morris (Houston Baptist), Chelsie Morrison (Seattle), Jasmine Mosley (South Dakota), Jael Pena (Chicago State), Jelela Simpson (Houston Baptist), Ephiphany Smith (Texas-Pan American), LaShara Smith (Savannah State), Fallon Thomas (Houston Baptist), Courtney Waldon (Chicago State), Sandy Wall (Utah Valley), Ashley Wiemann (South Dakota), Katie Williams (CSU Bakersfield), Teshay Winfrey (Texas-Pan American), Elana Wroten (Chicago State), Jenny Wuest (SIU Edwardsville)
