Monica Wright Named To Preseason ?Wade Watch? List

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ATLANTA – Virginia senior guard Monica Wright has been named a member of the 2009-10 preseason “Wade Watch” list for the State Farm Wade Trophy Division I Player of the Year, the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) announced Thursday. Of the 25-member list, Wright is one of seven players to be a repeat selection, as she was selected as a finalist for the award last season.

Wright (Woodbridge, Va.) was also named a finalist for the Wooden Award and the Naismith Trophy for her efforts in 2008-09. Her accolades also included an Associated Press honorable mention All-America nod and a spot on the All-ACC first team.

She set the UVa single-season scoring record last year with 696 points, and led the ACC in scoring at 20.5 points per game.

The State Farm Wade Trophy, now in its 33rd year and named after the late, legendary three-time national champion Delta State University coach, Lily Margaret Wade, debuted in 1978 as the first-ever women’s national player of the year award in college basketball. This highly prestigious award, regarded as the “Heisman of Women’s Basketball,” is organized by the WBCA, in conjunction with the National Association for Girls and Women in Sport (NAGWS).

The 2010 State Farm Wade Trophy winner will be announced at the WBCA National Convention, held in conjunction with the NCAA Women’s Final Four, in San Antonio, Texas, April 2-6.

“I am excited to announce the 25 student-athletes who make up the 2009-10 State Farm Wade Trophy ‘Watch’ list,”said Jeanne Lenti Ponsetto, Chair of the State Farm Wade Trophy Committee and Athletic Director at DePaul University. “The committee has done a superb job yet again at selecting the best and brightest in the women’s game.”

This year’s list has 20 institutions and 10 conferences represented. The ACC, BIG EAST, Big Ten and Pac-10 each have four student-athletes on the list, followed by the Big 12 (3), SEC (2), Atlantic-10 (1), Mountain West (1), Sun Belt (1) and West Coast (1).

Two seniors in Jayne Appel and Tina Charles are making the list for the third year. Five others become two-time “Wade Watchers” including Allyssa DeHaan (Michigan State), Jantel Lavender (Ohio State), Kayla Pederson (Stanford), Andrea Riley (Oklahoma State) and Wright.

The only two-time winners of the Wade Trophy include Louisiana State’s Seimone Augustus (2005 and 2006) and Old Dominion’s Nancy Lieberman (1979 and 1980).

2009-2010 State Farm Wade Trophy Preseason List
The preseason candidates for The State Farm Wade Trophy are listed in alphabetical order:
Jayne Appel, Sr., F/C, Stanford
Jessica Breland, Sr., F, North Carolina
Tina Charles, Sr., C/F, Connecticut
Alysha Clark, Sr., F, Middle Tennessee
Allyssa DeHaan, Sr., C, Michigan State
Alexis Gray-Lawson, Sr., G, California
Tiffany Hayes, So., G, Connecticut
Allison Hightower, Sr., G, LSU
Ashley Houts, Sr., G, Georgia
Jantel Lavender, Jr., C, Ohio State
Danielle McCray, Sr., G/F, Kansas
Jacinta Monroe, Sr., F/C, Florida State
Maya Moore, Jr., F, Connecticut
Jené Morris, Sr., G, San Diego State
Deirdre Naughton, Sr., G, DePaul
Kayla Pederson, Jr., F, Stanford
Ta’Shia Phillips, Jr., C, Xavier
Jeanette Pohlen, Jr., G, Stanford
Samantha Prahalis, So., G, Ohio State
Andrea Riley, Jr., G, Oklahoma State
Danielle Robinson, Jr., G, Oklahoma
Jenna Smith, Sr., C, Illinois
Carolyn Swords, Jr., C, Boston College
Courtney Vandersloot, Jr., G, Gonzaga
Monica Wright, Sr., G, Virginia