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Vespa, Myers earn Heron hoop accolades
May 10, 2007
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Marisa Vespa |
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Paige Myers |
GENEVA, N.Y.—The William Smith College basketball team recognized two of its members at the Annual William Smith Athletics Awards Banquet on May 1. Junior Marisa Vespa (Immaculate Heart/Watertown, N.Y.) and sophomore Paige Myers (Massena/Massena, N.Y.) went home with team awards.
Vespa received the Basketball Award, which goes to the most valuable player. A three-time first-team All-Liberty League selection and the 2004-05 Liberty League Rookie of the Year, she led the conference and ranked seventh in the nation in assists (6.1). She also led the conference in assist-to-turnover (1.8, min 3 apg) and steals (2.8 spg), and ranked eighth in three-point shooting (.365), 10th in three-pointers made (1.05/gm), 11th in field goal percentage (.429), and 13th in scoring (10.5 ppg). Vespa reached double digits in scoring 13 times, recording a season-high 21 at Union that included a 4-of-5 performance from behind the arc. She handed out five or more assists 17 times, including a season-high 11 against Vassar. Her 140 assists this season rank fifth on William Smith’s single season list. Already third on the career assists list with 385, Vespa needs just four more to tie No. 2 Liz Brown ’00.
Myers was honored with the Barbara Easton Regan Basketball Coach’s Award. A hard worker and dedicated player, Myers was the first in the gym everyday and the last to leave. She provided a spark to her team every time she stepped on the court. A guard, she played in 24 games this season and chipped in 53 points, including 12 three-pointers. The Liberty League All-Academic selection posted a season-high 12 points in a 76-61 win over Ithaca, shooting 4-of-5 from three-point land.
Senior guard Paula Foote (Sidney/Sidney, N.Y.) and first-year forward Erin Cunningham (Morris Knolls/Rockaway, N.J.) received department honors at the banquet. Foote was given the Joseph N. Abraham Award for contributing significantly to her team while persevering through pain and injury, while Cunningham was one of two William Smith rookies to be presented with the Stephanie Christie Award, which goes to outstanding first-year athletes.