IRVINE, Calif. – For the second year in a row, Dominican’s
Natalie Diaz was selected as the PacWest Player of the Year, leading the PacWest Women’s Basketball All-Conference Team as the second-highest scoring player in the nation during the 2018-19 regular season.
Point Loma’s
Grace Brady was named the PacWest Defender of the Year, while Hawai`i Pacific’s
Amy Baum was selected as the PacWest Freshman of the Year. After leading Azusa Pacific to its third PacWest title in the last four years, head coach
TJ Hardeman was picked by his peers as the PacWest Coach of the Year and
Laura Pranger is the PacWest Newcomer of the Year.
Diaz leads the PacWest with 26.5 points per game this year to go along with a 48.9 field-goal percentage and 8.8 rebounds per game. Diaz has scored 689 points so far this season, which ranks fourth in PacWest history and is just 33 shy of her total last year. The native of Soquel, California, has scored at least 30 points in 10 different games this year, including a season-high 41 points against Concordia. Diaz also has 11 double-doubles this season as she helped the Penguins earn a No. 2 seed for the PacWest Championships.
Brady was the PacWest leader in blocks this season with 102, becoming just the fourth player in PacWest history to record triple-digit blocks in one season. The sophomore had at least one block in 27-consecutive games this season in the Sea Lions’ second win against Academy of Art. Point Loma finished the regular season on a 12-game winning streak and during that streak, Brady had multiple blocks in each win with a 14-point, 10-rebound, 6-block performance to beat Fresno Pacific.
Pranger transferred from Montana State to help Azusa Pacific defend its PacWest title. The first-team selection averaged 11.8 points and 5.7 rebounds in the regular season. The sophomore also has tallied 89 blocks, which is tied for the fifth most in PacWest history. She finished the regular season with a streak of 12-consecutive games with multiple blocks, including an Azusa Pacific single-game record 10 blocks against Chaminade in just 22 minutes. In the Cougars’ win at Dominican, Pranger scored a season-high 30 points with 11 rebounds and seven blocks.
Baum helped Hawai`i Pacific finish third in the PacWest standings in her first season of collegiate basketball. The native of Melbourne, Australia, averaged 9.0 points, 6.5 rebounds and 4.8 assists per game. In back-to-back home games, Baum was one stat away from a triple-double. Against Dominican, the freshman had 27 points, 14 rebounds and nine assists. In the next game against Chaminade, she registered 10 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds. Baum was also named to the third team All-PacWest.
Hardeman earned his first PacWest Coach of the Year honor after leading the Cougars to their third PacWest title in the last four years. The Cougars broke the PacWest record for conference wins in a regular season with a 21-1 record. The only conference loss came against Hawai`i Pacific, which the Cougars avenged in a nationally-televised game on ESPN3. Azusa Pacific is ranked No. 4 in the West Region.
Destiny Castro from Chaminade earned her third-career All-PacWest honor. She is joined on the first team by
Savanna Hanson from Azusa Pacific. Point Loma’s
Sydney Peterson and
Cara Liggins both made the team as sophomores along with Hawai`i Pacific’s
Breanna Mackenzie and Hawai`i Hilo’s
Allie Navarette.
| 2018-19 ALL-PACWEST WOMEN’S BASKETBALL AWARDS |
| Player of the Year |
Natalie Diaz |
Dominican |
| Defender of the Year |
Grace Brady |
Point Loma |
| Newcomer of the Year |
Laura Pranger |
Azusa Pacific |
| Freshman of the Year |
Amy Baum |
Hawai`i Pacific |
| Coach of the Year |
T.J. Hardeman |
Azusa Pacific |
| 2018-19 ALL-PACWEST WOMEN’S BASKETBALL TEAM |
| Name |
School |
Pos. |
Yr. |
Hometown/Previous School |
| FIRST TEAM |
| Destiny Castro ** |
Chaminade |
G |
Jr. |
Talofofo, Guam/Notre Dame |
| Natalie Diaz * |
Dominican |
G |
Sr. |
Soquel, Calif./Soquel |
| Savanna Hanson * |
Azusa Pacific |
G |
Jr. |
Edmonds, Wash./ King’s |
| Cara Liggins |
Point Loma |
G |
So. |
Albuquerque, N.M./Sandia |
| Breanna Mackenzie ** |
Hawai`i Pacific |
G |
Sr. |
Melbourne, Australia/Box Hill |
| Allie Navarette |
Hawai`i Hilo |
F |
So. |
Torrance, Calif./Mira Costa |
| Laura Pranger |
Azusa Pacific |
F |
So. |
Denver, Colo./Cherry Creek |
| Sydney Peterson |
Point Loma |
G |
So. |
Kent, Wash./Kentlake |
| SECOND TEAM |
| Bree Alvarez * |
Fresno Pacific |
G |
Sr. |
Lemoore, Calif./Lemoore |
| Daylee Hanson |
Azusa Pacific |
G |
Jr. |
Edmonds, Wash./ King’s |
| Alanna Scott |
Dominican |
G |
Sr. |
Rocklin, Calif./Whitney |
| Michaela VanderKlugt * |
Concordia |
C |
So. |
Antioch, Calif./Carondelet |
| THIRD TEAM |
| Amy Baum |
Hawai`i Pacific |
G |
Fr. |
Melbourne, Australia/Marist-Sion |
| Grace Brady |
Point Loma |
C |
So. |
Glen Cove, N.Y./Glen Cove |
| Samantha Lambrigtsen * |
Hawai`i Pacific |
G |
Sr. |
Oregon, Ill./Oregon |
| Jessica Malazarte |
Fresno Pacific |
G |
So. |
Carson, Calif./Bishop Montgomery |
| Alysha Marcucci * |
Hawai`i Pacific |
F |
So. |
Melbourne, Australia/Marist-Sion |
| Cassie Pisik |
Fresno Pacific |
F |
Jr. |
Lincoln, Calif./Lincoln |
Honorable Mention: Jazz Benn (Biola), Rachel Bozlee (Azusa Pacific), Ashley Cross (Fresno Pacific), Lily Perkins (Academy of Art)
* - Previous All-PacWest selection