CAMBRIDGE, Mass. - The first weekend of women's basketball came to a close on Sunday and the America East is off to a 9-4 start with seven of the nine teams recording at-least one victory. Albany is off to a 2-0 start, including an impressive road win against Penn State. UMBC is also off to a 2-0 start, while Hartford, New Hampshire and Stony Brook are at 1-0. Maine and Stony Brook sit at 1-1. Here are the week one award winners:
Player of the Week
Shereesha Richards, Albany, Jr., Forward, Rae Town, Jamaica
- Averaged 18.5 points and 9.0 rebounds while shooting 51.9% from the field in a 2-0 week for the Great Danes.
- Notched 10 pts and four rebounds in a win over St. Francis Brooklyn.
- Exploded for 27 points and 14 rebounds on 10-of-16 shooting, while adding two steals in a 54-53 win at Penn State - her first double-double of the year.
- It was the first victory for Albany over a Power 5 conference team.
- Joined the Albany 1,000-point club.
Rookie of the Week
Imani Watkins, Binghamton, Fr., Guard, High Point, N.C.
- Averaged a league-best 20.0 points per game to go with 6.5 rebounds per game in a 1-1 week for Binghamton.
- Scored a team-high 19 points against Akron on Nov. 14 and followed that with a 21-point performance against Delaware State.
- The 10 points against Akron is the most scored by a Binghamton freshman in their debut since the program moved up to Division I in 2001.
- The 21 points marked the first time a Binghamton freshman reached the 20-point mark since Feb. 7, 2009.
Notes
- The America East is off to a 9-4 start. Two years ago, women's #AEHoops teams started 11-3 over the first three days of the season.
- Binghamton's Linda Cimino & Stony Brook's Carolin McCombs both earned their first wins as head coaches of their respective programs on Saturday.
- Albany's win over Penn State marked the first win for the program over a Power 5 conference and the second victory for the America East over a Big Ten school (Vermont over Wisconsin in the 2010 NCAA tournament).
- Binghamton reached 90 points for the first time since 2009 in a 90-84 win over Delaware State.
- UMBC reached the 90-point mark for the first time since 2009 in a win over Eastern.
- Stony Brook earned a win in its first game at Island FCU Arena, 56-40, over St. Peter's.