STANDISH, Maine – The 2015-16 Maine Women's Basketball Coaches Association (MWBCA) postseason accolades have been announced and three Saint Joseph's College players have been honored.
Senior center Morgan Cahill (Yarmouth, Maine) has collected First Team All-MWBCA honors, freshman guard Kelsi McNamara (West Newbury, Mass.) has claimed MWBCA Co-Rookie of the Year, Second Team All-MWBCA, and MWBCA All-Rookie Team acclaim, and freshman forward Emily Benway (Rochester, N.H.) has earned MWBCA All-Rookie Team mention.
Cahill, a two-time Second Team All-MWBCA honoree, claims her second-consecutive First Team award after averaging 15.2 points and 8.2 rebounds per game while shooting 48% (182-379) from the field and 70.4% (76-108) from the free throw line in 29 games this winter. The two-year team captain earned three MWBCA Player of the Week honors and led the Monks in scoring, rebounding, blocked shots (64), field goals made (182), field goal percentage, and free throws made during her senior season.
McNamara becomes the second Saint Joseph's player – Cahill being the other (2013) - to earn MWBCA top rookie honors after posting averages of 13.9 points, 3.0 rebounds, 4.1 assists, and 1.7 steals over 29 games as a freshman point guard. McNamara, a five-time MWBCA Rookie of the Week honoree, led the team in assists (117), steals (50), three-pointers made (65), three-point success (39.6%), and free-throw percentage (81.6%, 71-87) this season.
Benway averaged 7.3 points and 5.1 rebounds per game while shooting 46.8% (87-186) from the field as a freshman and emerged as a starter for the Monks early into her first collegiate season, with 21 starts and 28 games overall this winter. Benway was a major contributor down the stretch and in the playoffs and collected GNAC, MWBCA, and ECAC New England Rookie of the Week honors on February 22nd.
One of the truly elite players in the 39-year history of the SJC women's basketball program, Cahill capped her career ranked among the Monks' all-time leaders in points (1,651, 2nd), rebounds (876, 5th), field goals made (662, 2nd), field goals attempted (1,414, 2nd), free throws made (327, 4th), free throws attempted (479, 5th), blocked shots (222, 1st), rebounding average (8.0, 7th), and scoring average (15.0, 7th). In a true testament to her dominance and consistency, Cahill is the only player in team history to lead the Monks in scoring and rebounding in four-consecutive seasons.
An impact player as a freshman, McNamara – who also earned 2015-16 Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Rookie of the Year and Second Team accolades – made the second-most three-pointers in a season in team history (trailing only Kristen Chavarie, who made 68 during the 1996-97 season).
McNamara shares the annual MWBCA honor with Maine Maritime Academy freshman forward Alayne Felix (Mahopac, N.Y.), who led the state in scoring averaging 17.7 points per game while grabbing 7.0 rebounds per contest and shooting 51.2% from the floor and 75.7% from the free throw line.
As the top seed in the 2016 GNAC Tournament, Saint Joseph's topped #8 Rivier University, 72-62, in the quarterfinal round and defeated #4 Suffolk University, 74-58, in semifinal action to advance to the GNAC championship tilt. Led by 23rd-year Head Coach Mike McDevitt '83, the Monks defeated perennial powerhouse Emmanuel College, 66-62, in the GNAC Championship on Saturday, February 27th in Standish to claim an automatic qualifier into the NCAA Tournament, the program's second in the last three seasons.
Saint Joseph's faced Christopher Newport University, ranked 23rd nationally, in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament at Muhlenberg College on Friday, March 4th. The Monks and Captains battled to a tie score at the end of two quarters, but CNU powered past SJC in the third and fourth stanzas to claim a 65-47 victory and effectively end the Monks' 2015-16 campaign.
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Saint Joseph's College is Maine's only Catholic liberal arts college, providing a supportive, personalized and career-focused education for more than 100 years. From its 474-acre campus on the shores of Sebago Lake, the College offers more than 40 undergraduate programs to a population of approximately 1,000 students. Saint Joseph's College Online provides certificates, undergraduate and advanced degrees for working adults through an online learning program. For more, visit www.sjcme.edu.
