Frank, Lewis, Filander Headline 'Roo All-SCAC Honorees
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – The Austin College women’s basketball team cleaned up in the 2017-18 voting for All-Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference awards, with Bryce Frank named the league’s Co-Player of the Year, while Meghan Lewis was named the SCAC Defensive Player of the Year and head coach Michelle Filander was tabbed as the conference’s Coach of the Year.
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – The Austin College women's basketball team cleaned up in the 2017-18 voting for All-Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference awards, with Bryce Frank named the league's Co-Player of the Year, while Meghan Lewis was named the SCAC Defensive Player of the Year and head coach Michelle Filander was tabbed as the conference's Coach of the Year. The awards were announced after Austin College's semifinal game against Southwestern at the SCAC Tournament hosted by Colorado College.
In addition to earning those major awards, Frank and Lewis were named All-SCAC alongside Ann Savage, Addison Walling, Ally Longaker, and Kacie West.
Filander was named the conference's Coach of the Year in her eighth season at the helm after guiding the 'Roos to a 20-5 regular season record, and the team's second regular season championship in the past three years. Picked in the preseason to finish second in the SCAC, Filander guided Austin College to a 13-1 mark in conference play, the most conference wins for the program since joining the league in 2006-07. This season the 'Roos are ranked No. 7 in the South Region, and hold a 2-1 record against ranked opponents, and this year Filander topped the 100-victory mark for her career.
Frank, a junior forward from Granbury, tied with Trinity's Micah Weaver for Player of the Year honors and was named 1st Team All-SCAC after putting together one of the best single seasons in program history. Frank finished second in the conference with 18.0 points-per-game while also leading the SCAC in rebounding for the second year in a row, pulling down 10.5 rebounds-per-game. She also led the SCAC with a 54% field goal percentage, in addition to finishing fifth in assists-per-game with 3.3 per-game.
Frank was named the SCAC Player of the Week four times, in addition to being named to the D3Hoops.com Team of the Week twice. She was also tabbed by the US Basketball Writers Association as the National Player of the Week after the 'Roos stunned Washington University-St. Louis on the road in December.
Lewis, a senior guard from Waukesha, Wisconsin, was named a 2nd Team All-SCAC performer along with being the Defensive Player of the Year. Lewis led the SCAC in steals, coming away with 2.8 per-game, and totaling 71 on the year. Lewis had eight games with at least four steals, including coming one shy of the SCAC record of 11 steals when she had 10 in a road victory over Centenary. She also averaged 6.2 points, 3.2 rebounds, and 2.4 assists-per-game.
Savage, a junior guard from Tulsa, Oklahoma, was selected as a 2nd Team All-SCAC pick and was second on the team with 10.5 points-per-game, also good for 12th in the SCAC in that category. Savage also led the SCAC with 3.8 assists-per-game, while boasting a 2.5-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio. She also finished 12th in the league with 1.7 steals-per-game, and fifth in the conference with a three-point clip of 36%.
Walling, a freshman guard from Moss Beach, California, was an honorable mention All-SCAC pick after finishing fourth on the team with 7.6 points-per-game, and her 3.1 assists-per-game were good for sixth in the SCAC. She also ranked among the top 15 in the league with 1.5 steals-per-game, and added 4.6 rebounds while shooting 34.4% from three-point range.
Longaker, a freshman forward from El Granada, California, was an honorable mention All-SCAC selection after averaging 6.4 points and 4.9 rebounds-per-game, while shooting 46.1% from the field on the year. Longaker also finished third on the team in blocked shots, and posted career highs of 18 points and nine rebounds during the year.
West, a freshman guard from Sulphur, Oklahoma, was an honorable mention All-SCAC pick after finishing third on the team with 10.1 points-per-game coming off the bench for the 'Roos, shooting 34.9% from three-point range and leading the SCAC with an 83.3% free throw percentage. West reached double-digits in scoring in 15 of the team's 25 regular season games, including going for more than 20 points twice.
Austin College athletic teams participate as a member of the NCAA Division III and the Southern Collegiate Athletic Association.