Marisa Vespa

Paula Foote

March 24, 2006

GENEVA, N.Y.—William Smith College sophomore guard Marisa Vespa (Immaculate Heart/Watertown, N.Y.) and junior guard Paula Foote (Sidney/Sidney, N.Y.) recently were honored by the ECAC. Vespa was named to the All-ECAC Women’s Upstate Basketball second team, while Foote received honorable mention.

Making her second straight appearance on the All-ECAC Upstate second team, Vespa led the Herons in assists (103) despite missing eight games due to injury. She ranked second in the Liberty League with 5.2 helpers per game. Vespa also led the team and ranked second in the conference in three-point shooting (.408, 20-49), while placing second on the team and fifth in the League in steals (2.3). She averaged 10.2 points per game, including a season-high 21 points in the second round of the NCAA Tournament at 12th-ranked Baldwin-Wallace.

A two-time first-team All-Liberty League selection, Vespa ranks seventh in career free throws made (174) and 10th in career assists (245).

Foote enjoyed a breakthrough season for the Herons, averaging 10.5 points per game. One of the top offensive weapons in the Liberty League, she ranked in the top 10 in assists (8th, 2.8), scoring (9th), field goal percentage (9th, .433), and free throw percentage (9th, .743), earning a spot on the All-Liberty League first team. She scored a career-high 22 points in a home win over Union College, sinking eight of her 10 shots from the floor, including a three-pointer, and posting a perfect 5-of-5 showing from the free throw line.

William Smith ended the 2005-06 season with a 22-8 overall record. The Herons won their second straight Liberty League regular season and tournament titles, earning a berth in the NCAA Tournament. William Smith won its eighth consecutive NCAA first round game with a 69-62 triumph over St. John Fisher College. The Herons lost in the second round, 71-65, to Baldwin-Wallace.

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