Conference Carolinas Unveils 2022-23 Women’s Basketball All-Conference Honors
GREENVILLE, S.C. - Conference Carolinas released its 2022-23 women's basketball awards on Thursday, March 2, ahead of the start of the 2023 Atlantic Casualty Conference Carolinas Women's Basketball Championship on Friday, March 3 at Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium in Spartanburg, South Carolina.
The 2022-23 all-conference awards were chosen by the league's head coaches.
In Francis Marion’s second season as a member of Conference Carolinas, Lauryn Taylor captured Player of the Year honors for the Patriots. The 5-foot-11 junior center from Blythewood, South Carolina leads Conference Carolinas in scoring at 17.8 per contest, is third in rebounding at 8.8 per contest and is fifth in the league in field goal percentage (.465). Taylor helped Francis Marion to a 20-6 record on the season and an 18-2 mark in conference play which is good for the No. 2 seed in the conference tournament. She has 50 assists on the season, 24 steals and 13 blocks for the Patriots.
A graduate student at Chowan, Destiny Robinson became the first women’s basketball student-athlete in a Hawks uniform to win a major conference award as she was named Defensive Player of the Year. The 5-foot-10 forward from Hampton, Virginia leads the league and ranks fourth in NCAA Division II with 65 blocked shots, is second in rebounding at 9.2 per game and ranks fourth in scoring at 14.1 per contest. She is also fifth in the league in free throw percentage (.796) and sixth in field goal percentage (.461).
Mount Olive freshman Laila Anderson joined Tomeka Prichard (2005-06) as the only Trojans to earn Freshman of the Year honors. The 5-foot-5 guard from Burlington, North Carolina helped lead the Trojans to the No. 6 seed in the conference tournament as she averaged 12.1 points per game which is second on the team and 14th in the league. She is fifth in the league with 56 steals and has 61 rebounds this season with 35 assists and four blocked shots.
Belmont Abbey head coach Kim Lusk, in her first season at the helm, was chosen as the Conference Carolinas Women's Basketball Coach of the Year. Lusk led the Crusaders to a 22-4 overall record and the 2022-23 regular season title with a 19-1 league mark. Belmont Abbey is third in NCAA Division II in scoring defense at 51.3 points per game and earns the award for the fifth time in program history after Jason Williams earned the honor four times (2013-14, 17-18, 19-20, 20-21) at The Abbey.
2022-23 Conference Carolinas Women's Basketball All-Conference
Player of the Year
Lauryn Taylor, Francis Marion
Defensive Player of the Year
Destiny Robinson, Chowan
Freshman of the Year
Laila Anderson, Mount Olive
Coach of the Year
Kim Lusk, Belmont Abbey
First Team
Lauryn Taylor, Francis Marion
Abigail Crain, Belmont Abbey
Destiny Robinson, Chowan
Lauren Walker, Barton
Jeanetta Elder, Emmanuel
Second Team
Taylor Stelley, Belmont Abbey
Courtney Smith, UNC Pembroke
Jazmin Allen, Emmanuel
Kiana Lee, Francis Marion
Zaria Clark, UNC Pembroke
Third Team
Laila Anderson, Mount Olive
Jasmine Stanley, Francis Marion
Brittany Mack, Southern Wesleyan
Sydney Wyatt, Emmanuel
Reagan Hune, Mount Olive