GCU's Samantha Murphy picked as PacWest Preseason Player of the Year

Grand Canyon, Dixie State picked 1-2 in race for PacWest title

PHOENIX, AZ - Grand Canyon University junior guard Samantha Murphy (Phoenix, AZ/Xavier Prep) has been selected as the 2009-10 Pacific West Conference Women's Basketball Preseason Player of the Year, while her Antelopes are the favorites to win their fourth straight PacWest Championship in 2009-10.

The PacWest Women's Basketball Preseason All-Conference Team and predicted order of finish were announced during the league's media day on Monday, Nov. 2, in Honolulu, HI

Complete Media Day Broadcast

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Dixie State

Grand Canyon

Academy of Art & Dominican

NDNU

BYU-Hawaii & Chaminade

Hawai‘i Pacific & Hawai‘i Hilo

Predicted Order of Finish, Preseason All-PacWest & Wrap-up 

The PacWest season begins on Nov. 15 when Notre Dame de Namur and Hawai‘i Hilo hop on the floor in a pair of non-league contests. The conference season begins on Jan. 5.

Grand Canyon garnered seven of the nine first-place votes, while Dixie State collected the remaining two nominations as the two squads located in the Mountain Time Zone prepare to slug it out for the automatic berth in the NCAA II National Championship Tournament.

However, the rest of the PacWest women's basketball teams figure to have a say in that decision long before the title is decided.

The PacWest Preseason All-Conference Team and predicted order of finish was voted upon by the head coaches or designated representatives of each Pacific West Conference institution. The entire predicted order of finish - along with last year's overall and PacWest records, and conference finish - is as follows:

  1. Grand Canyon (16-12 / 9-3 - 1st) - 7 First Place Votes
  2. Dixie State (17-10 / 8-4 - 2nd) - 2 First Place Votes
  3. Hawai‘i Pacific (14-15 / 7-5 - 3rd-T)
  4. BYU-Hawaii (16-12 / 7-5 - 3rd-T)
  5. NDNU (9-17 / 5-7 - 6th)
  6. Academy of Art (6-20 / No Conference Record)
  7. Hawai‘i Hilo (15-9 / 6-6 - 5th)
  8. Dominican (CA) (14-13 / 11-5 - 3rd California Pacific Conference)
  9. Chaminade (0-27 / 0-12 - 7th)

The Antelopes captured the PacWest title with a 9-3 league record in 2008-09, but GCU lost senior guard Rosalyn Nelson (Phoenix, AZ/Deer Valley) near the end of the season and was bounced from the NCAA II Tournament in the opening round. Nelson (right) is back this year and joins Murphy on the PacWest Preseason All-Conference Team.

Murphy, who claimed the Freshman of the Year award two seasons ago, earned her second straight All-PacWest First Team honor last year and now is ready to make a run at PacWest Player of the Year honors.

Last season she averaged 19.2 points and 5.2 rebounds per game. She ranked second in scoring in the league and 13th in rebounding, while her 50.4% shooting from the field landed her second among all PacWest players.

Murphy's ability to distribute the ball led to a 3.52 assists-per-game average, good enough for seventh in the conference, while she topped the league in steals per game with a 3.57 per-game rate. Murphy finished second in the league in foul shooting (82.9%) after making 97 of 117 attempts.

From a statistical standpoint, making the NCAA Division II Tournament last year had a bittersweet impact on the Antelopes. To be eligible for PacWest and NCAA statistical rankings, players must compete in at least 75% of the games played by their teams.

Murphy, who missed games early in the season because of an injury, became eligible for the rankings because she played in 21 of 28 Grand Canyon contests in 2008-09 - the 28th being the NCAA II West Region game. However, Nelson competed in 20 games and fell out of all statistical rankings despite a terrific season.

Nelson, the Freshman of the Year in 2006-07 and Player of the Year in 2007-08, earned her third straight All-PacWest First Team selection last season despite being sidelined at the end of the season. She averaged 15.5 points, 5.3 rebounds, 4.85 assists and 3.75 steals per game while shooting 47.9% (125 for 261) from the field. She also made 71.8% (51 for 71) of her foul shots.

Dixie State, meanwhile, collected three Preseason All-PacWest selections in senior forward Tanya Clark (Beaumont, CA/Beaumont), sophomore guard Shanae Vaifanua (Hurricane, UT/Hurricane) and senior guard Jessie Ingraham (Tucson, AZ/Canyon del Oro). Clark and Vaifanua were All-PacWest Second Team selections last season, while Ingraham earned Honorable Mention.

Clark (left) averaged 7.9 rebounds per game in 2008-09 to lead the Red Storm and rank third in the PacWest. She also finished ninth in the league in foul shooting (69.1% - 56 for 81) and ninth in field goal percentage (46.1% - 94 for 204).

Vaifanua (right) averged 10.3 points and 6.0 rebounds per game for Dixie State last year, ranking eighth in boards and 17th in scoring. She also finished 10th in shooting (45.9%) after making 106 of 231 field goal attempts, while her 1.96 steals-per-game average landed her sixth in the conference.

Ingraham averaged 10.9 points and 5.6 rebounds per game to finish 15th in the league in scoring and 10th in rebounding, while her 3.23 assists per game placed her ninth among all PacWest players. She also had the third-best free throw percentage in the league, connecting on 80.5% (66 of 82) of her attempts from the line.

Hawai‘i Hilo and Notre Dame de Namur landed the final two Preseason All-PacWest selections.

The Vulcans saw senior guard Nesha Ann (Hina) Kimitete (Kailua-Kona, HI/Konawaena) claim the preseason award after earning Honorable Mention accolades in 2008-09 and Second Team honors selection in 2007-08.

Kimitete (left) averaged 12.8 points per game to rank 11th in the PacWest, while her 3.75 assist-per-game mark was fifth in the league. She also ranked second in the PacWest in steals per contest (2.92) and in three-pointers made per game (2.33), while her three-point shooting topped the league (40.6% - 56 for 138). Kimitete ended her season tied for third in field goal percentage after making 50% of her attempts (117 for 234).

A Second Team selection in 2007-08 and Honorable Mention in 2008-09, NDNU senior forward Jennifer Dreessen (Danville, CA/San Ramon Valley) earned Preseason All-PacWest accolades after averaging 8.9 points and 5.3 rebounds per game last year. She shot 53.5% (69 for 129) from the field.

Like Nelson of Grand Canyon, Dreessen (right) did not meet the minimum number of games played to be included in the conference or NCAA statistical rankings. She competed in 19 of 26 games for the Argos - less than 75% of her team's total contests.

For complete 2008-09 Pacific West Conference Women's Basketball Stats, click on - http://www.pacificwestsports.org/sports/wbkb/2008-09/stats/confstat.HTM

For the 2009-10 Pacific West Conference Women's Basketball Schedule, click on -

http://www.pacificwestsports.org/sports/wbkb/2009-10/Schedule