FGCU's Bell Earns Player of the Year Again as @ASUNWBB Awards Announced
FGCU's Bell Earns Player of the Year Again as @ASUNWBB Awards Announced
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ATLANTA, Ga. – The ASUN Conference announced the 2021-22 Women's Basketball Postseason Honors and Awards on Wednesday as FGCU's Kierstan Bell earned the Player of the Year honor once more while the Coach of the Year award went again to the Eagles' Karl Smesko. North Florida's Jazz Bond earned the Defensive Player of the Year honor while North Alabama freshman Skyler Gill also earned the Defensive Player of the Year distinction while also taking home the Freshman of the Year accolade. Additionally, Stetson's Tatiana Streun was tabbed the league's Newcomer of the Year.
Bell is now the fourth-straight player from FGCU to earn the ASUN Player of the Year after helping guide the Eagles to a 26-2 overall record and a 15-1 mark inside conference play. Despite missing time due to injury, the Alliance, Ohio native led the ASUN in scoring at 23.4 points each time out. Highlights of the year included a 39-point effort against Tennessee Tech where Bell connected on 17 field goals in the win. She also played 38 minutes in an early season win at LSU and averaged 7.3 rebounds and 2.7 assists.
Bond earned Co-Defensive Player of the Year after claiming the award a year ago as she continued to be a force around the rim. The Murfreesboro, Tenn., native recorded 2.4 rejections per game to go along with a 15.4 ppg scoring average on the offensive end – which was second in the ASUN only to Bell. She was also third in boards in the league hauling down 7.9 rebounds per contest.
Even though she missed a handful of games to begin her career, UNA's Gill made an impact the moment she stepped foot on the hardwood this season. The Wichita, Kan., native is the second-straight Lion – and second in program history – to be named ASUN Freshman of the Year. Gill tallied 9.6 points, 8.6 rebounds, 3.2 blocks and 2.5 assists on average this year. She has broken and rewrote her own records already in her young career as she posted a school-record eight blocks against Jacksonville in early February.
The Hatters' Streun stepped right into the lineup for Stetson and tallied 11.2 points and 6.3 rebounds while connecting on 40.7 percent from beyond the arc. She scored a season-high 24 points against North Florida on the road in January and hit four treys at Central Arkansas on Feb. 5. Streun was Top 10 in league scoring during ASUN contests with an 11.5 average.
Smesko secured his fifth consecutive and 12th overall Coach of the Year honor after guiding FGCU to the No. 1 seed in the East Division following a regular-season finish of 26-2 (15-1 ASUN). The Eagles head into the postseason ranked No. 22 in both the Coaches Poll and the Associated Press. The team is preparing to defend its crown as ASUN Champions and will do so in the quarterfinals on Sunday after earning a first-round bye.
Player of the Year: Kierstan Bell, FGCU
Defensive Players of the Year: Skyler Gill, North Alabama & Jazz Bond, North Florida
Newcomer of the Year: Tatiana Streun, Stetson
Freshman of the Year: Skyler Gill, North Alabama
Coach of the Year: Karl Smesko, FGCU
ASUN First Team All-Conference
Kierstan Bell, FGCU, Jr., G
Tishara Morehouse, FGCU Sr., G
Mya Berkman, Liberty, R-Jr. C
Bridgette Rettstatt, Liberty, R-Sr., F
Jazz Bond, North Florida, Sr., F
ASUN Second Team All-Conference
Lucy Ibeh, Central Arkansas, Sr., F
Amani Johnson, Kennesaw State, Sr., G
Skyler Gill, North Alabama, Fr., G/F
Tatiana Streun, Stetson, Sr., F
Yazz Wazeerud-Din,Stetson, Sr. G
ASUN All-Freshmen Team
Randrea Wright, Central Arkansas, G
Jalisa Dunlap, Jacksonville, G
Bella Vinson, Lipscomb, G
Skyler Gill, North Alabama, G/F
Alyssa Hargrove, Stetson, G
The 2022 ASUN Women's Basketball Championship begins Wednesday with four first-round games. The quarterfinal and semifinal rounds take place on Sunday, March 6 and Wednesday, March 9. All games can be viewed on ESPN+ as the Championship Final takes place on Saturday, March 12.
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The ASUN, a Division I conference member of the NCAA, boasts a membership of institutions that share visionary leadership, bold ambition and creative innovation. As a nimble adaptive conference, unafraid to blaze a national pathway for better service to our student-athletes, teams, and institutions, the ASUN has a proud history of firsts, national academic and athletic achievements and a conference culture that walks the walk with its four ASUN Beams. Students First! Rise. Connect. Impact. #ASUNBuilt by Bellarmine (Louisville), Central Arkansas (Conway), Eastern Kentucky (Richmond), FGCU (Fort Myers), Jacksonville (Fla.), Jacksonville State (Jacksonville, Ala.), Kennesaw State (Ga.), Liberty (Lynchburg, Va.), Lipscomb (Nashville), North Alabama (Florence), North Florida (Jacksonville, Fla.), and Stetson (DeLand, Fla.). Austin Peay, based in Clarksville, Tenn., is set to join the league in the 2022-23 academic year.