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 Kenan Cole was named GW's Most Improved Player at its awards banquet on Thursday. |
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Cole Earns Three Awards at Women's Basketball Banquet
April 28, 2005
WASHINGTON, DC - Sophomore Kenan Cole took home three awards at the GW Women's Basketball Annual Awards Banquet held on Thursday, April 28 at The Charles E. Smith Athletics Center. Cole was presented with the team's Most Improved Player Award and also earned the squad's Strength & Conditioning and Academic Excellence awards.
Cole saw her scoring average improve by six points from her freshman to sophomore seasons (1.3 ppg to 7.3 ppg). She started 20 games in 2004-05 was the team's leading scorer with 11 points in GW's second-round NCAA Tournament contest versus North Carolina. She also grabbed a personal-best eight rebounds against the Tar Heels.
Senior Anna Montañana was named the team's Most Valuable Player. Montañana, who ranked third in the Atlantic 10 in scoring (16.7 ppg), was not in attendance to receive her award. She is currently in training camp with the Connecticut Sun of the WNBA. The 6-1 forward was a 2005 WBCA/Kodak Honorable Mention All-American was named to the Atlantic 10 All-Championship team after leading the Colonials to the tournament's title game.
Sophomore Whitney Allen earned Defensive Player of the Year honors. Allen routinely drew the opposing team's most potent perimeter threat. She held Mississippi's Armintie Price to 10 points in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, more than seven points below her season average. Allen grabbed at least five rebounds in seven of GW's last 12 games, including a career-best 12 boards in the Atlantic 10 Championship game. She ranked third on the team with 15 blocked shots and also had 39 steals.
Other honorees were freshman Kimberly Beck and Sarah-Jo Lawrence. Beck was chosen as the team's Newcomer of the Year after a sensational first-year campaign which saw her win the A-10 Rookie of the Year Award and become just the third freshman to lead the conference in assists (5.1 apg). Beck also ranked second in the league in steals per game (2.16). Lawrence was presented with the team's Unsung Hero Award. Lawrence started four games and played in all 32 contests for the Colonials last year. She routinely provided a lift off the bench with timely scoring and intense defense. Lawrence averaged 4.3 points per game and tallied eight points in a reserve role against Mississippi, six of which came as GW rallied past the Lady Rebels in the second half.
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Senior Tylon Harris received the Courage Award for the fourth time. Harris participated in just three games in her GW career, missing most of the previous four years with injuries. She remained with the team throughout, attending practices and games as a student-assistant coach. Classmate Liz Dancause was the recipient of the 2005 Abbie Oliver Smith Award, presented for athletic and academic achievement. Dancause, a 2005 team captain, scored a season-best nine points against Yale on Jan. 7, 2005, and was second on the team in blocks (16).
The Colonials finished 2004-05 with an overall record of 23-9. They advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the 12th time in the past 16 years and posted more than 20 victories for the 14th time in the last 15 seasons.
