Hicks Named SAC Women's Basketball Player of the Year

ROCK HILL, SC – Catawba took home two of the top post-season honors from the South Atlantic Conference as Dana Hicks (York, SC/Gaston Day) was named Player of the Year and Angie Morton claimed Coach of the Year honors.  Nisha Long (Dallas, NC/Gaston Day) was named first team All-SAC and Chloe Bully (Hannut, BELGIUM/KOL Landen) earned a spot on the All-Freshman team.

After averaging a double-double and leading her team to a runner-up finish in the SAC regular season standings, Catawba’s Hicks was selected as the league’s Women’s Basketball Player of the Year.  She is Catawba’s first league Player of the Year on the women’s side since Danyel Locklear in 2003-04.

Hicks, who was a first team all-conference selection the previous two seasons as well, leads the SAC in rebounding at 11.9 per-game and is also the conference’s ninth-leading scorer at 14.1 points-per-game.  The senior has played an impressive 34.2 minutes-per-game, helping Catawba finish 17-9 in the regular season and 12-6 in league play.

Long joined Hicks on the all-conference first team.  She is second in the conference in both scoring, at 16.8 points per game, and assists, at 3.88 per contest.  Bully averages 13.2 points and game and has knocked down a team-leading 63 three-point goals.

Morton earns SAC Coach of the Year honors for the first time in her nine seasons at the helm of the Lady Indians.  Only John Duncan (2000-01) and Gary Peters (1989-90) have previously received this honor as a Catawba women’s coach.

SAC Player of the Year:  Dana Hicks, Catawba
SAC Freshman of the Year:  Haylee Lepaio, Newberry
SAC Scholar-Athlete of the Year:  Kristen Metcalf, Mars Hill
SAC Coach of the Year:  Angie Morton, Catawba

All-SAC First Team
Nikki Burton, Wingate
Dana Hicks, Catawba
Nisha Long, Catawba
Dayshalee Salaman, LMU
Cameron Sealey, Lenoir-Rhyne
Zoriah Williams, Carson-Newman

All-SAC Second Team
Kendal Baxter, Tusculum
Lauren Cochran, LMU
Whitley Culler, Lenoir-Rhyne
Alissa Diaz, Anderson
Staci Hicks, Tusculum
Haylee Lepaio, Newberry

SAC All-Freshman Team
Armeka Booker, Mars Hill
Chloe Bully, Catawba
Jazmine Charles, Lenoir-Rhyne
Haylee Lepaio, Newberry
Sierra Simpson, Anderson