INDIANAPOLIS -- Green Bay sophomore Mehryn Kraker (West Allis, Wis.) is the Horizon League Women’s Basketball Player of the Week while Youngstown State’s Indiya Benjamin (Lima, Ohio) is the Freshman of the Week for the week of Nov. 24-30.
Green Bay (5-2) headed south to compete in the Gulf Coast Showcase in Germain Arena over the holiday and had an impressive outing over the three days of competition. The Phoenix kicked-off the Showcase with a 71-50 victory over the Atlantic Coast Conference’s Georgia Tech propelled by a strong offensive attack that amounted to an early lead that never dissipated. The following day, Green Bay took on Pac-12 opponent Arizona State in the semifinals and claimed a 63-57 win. Four players reached double figures for the Phoenix during the contest as the team battled back after trailing by as much as nine points in the second half. In the Showcase final, Green Bay fell to defending national champion and No. 3 ranked Connecticut, 89-53, while Megan Lukan and Kraker tabbed All-Tournament Team honors.
Kraker led Green Bay in scoring in all three games at the Showcase while reaching double figures during each contest. While shooting over 60 percent from the floor, Kraker averaged 17.0 ppg, 4.7 rpg and 1.4 bpg throughout the weekend games. The sophomore’s strongest scoring effort came against the Yellow Jackets, draining 20 points going 7-for-8 in field goals and 3-for-4 from behind the arc. She also grabbed six rebounds in her 37 minutes on the court. Kraker continued to put the ball in the basket in the semifinals where she tallied 19 points while going 9-for-12 from the floor against Arizona State. On Sunday versus No. 3 UConn, Kraker hit double figures for the third-straight day with 12 points on 4-for-11 shooting and 2-for-6 from three-point range. Over the course of the Showcase, the sophomore totaled 51 points, 14 rebounds, three assists, three steals and two blocks against top-notch opponents.
Youngstown State (6-0) remained undefeated on the season to match the program’s best start since entering Division I. The squad began the week against Bucknell and won 69-54 with four Penguin student-athletes reaching double figures in the contest. An early second-half surge pushed Youngstown State past the Bison as the team held on to collect its fourth win. The team then headed south to Nashville, Tenn. to participate in the Teresa Phillips Thanksgiving Classic at Tennessee State’s Gentry Center. The contest came down to the last possession as Youngstown State edged Nicholls State, 51-50, behind a strong defensive outing that withstood double-figure turnovers. To close out the Classic on Sunday, the Penguins defeated host Tennessee State, 73-66, as four post players tallied double figure points and Heidi Schlegel was named the Classic’s Most Valuable Player.
Benjamin was a steady presence on the court for Youngstown State throughout the three games, leading the squad in minutes while averaging 6.7 ppg, 5.0 rpg and 3.0 apg. The freshman went 4-for-9 from the floor and 2-for-3 from behind the arc to score in double figures in the early-week win over Bucknell as well as grab two rebounds, dish out three assists and tab one steal. In the first game of the Classic taking on Nicholls State, Benjamin scored the most integral point of the day on a free throw with seven seconds remaining in the game en route to a one-point victory. Overall for the contest, she scored seven points with six rebounds and two assists. On Sunday, the freshman collected seven rebounds and distributed four assists against Tennessee State to close out Penguins’ road stint.
Green Bay returns home to the Kress Center to host Western Michigan and Youngstown State welcomes Oberlin at Beeghly Center on Saturday, Dec. 6 for 2:00 p.m. ET tipoffs, respectively.
Top Players of the Week:
Ruvanna Campbell, UIC (Jr., F): Tabbed her eighth-straight double-double at Northwestern with 10 points and 15 rebounds. Against Illinois-Springfield the junior scored 15 points, grabbed eight rebounds, had three blocks, and collected two steals.
Alexis Eckles, Cleveland State (So., G): Posted a career-high 20 points against Notre Dame (Ohio) and led the Vikings with seven rebounds. The sophomore went 9-for-11 from the field throughout the contest.
Dani Franklin, Valparaiso (Fr., G): Averaged 14.5 points and 5.0 rebounds throughout the week and has scored in double figures in each game so far this season. Currently leads the Crusaders in scoring and steals off of the bench.
Ashley Green, Milwaukee (Sr., G): Led the Panthers in two games while averaging 20.0 points. The senior shot 56 percent from behind the arc, 78 percent from the line and grabbed 4.5 rebounds per game.
Olivia Nash, Oakland (Jr., F): Recorded team-highs with 17 points and seven rebounds against No. 16 Michigan State. Also tallied 13 points and nine rebounds in the Golden Grizzlies’ win over Miami (Ohio).
Rosanna Reynolds, Detroit (So., G): Reached double figures for the third-straight game against Niagara with 10 points and also dished out two assists.
Heidi Schlegel, Youngstown State (Sr., F): Posted two doubles-doubles and was a rebound shy of a third in the Penguin’s three games throughout the week. Went 8-for-13 from behind the arc in addition to being named the MVP of the Teresa Phillips Thanksgiving Classic.
Top Freshmen of the Week:
Shadae Bosley, Cleveland State (Fr., F): Posted a career-high five points and five rebounds against Notre Dame (Ohio) while playing a career-high 17 minutes against the Falcons.
Steph Kostowicz, Milwaukee (Fr., F): Recorded her first two starts of her collegiate career while averaging 9.0 points and 4.5 rebounds per game.
Darianne Seward, Detroit (Fr., G): Led Detroit with 12 points on the road at Niagara and tallied a season-high three steals and passed out two assists.
Leah Somerfield, Oakland (Fr., F): Scored seven points and grabbed five rebounds against No. 16 Michigan State.
Players of the Week
Nov. 10: Tay’ler Mingo, Wright State (Sr., G)
Nov. 17: Ruvanna Campbell, UIC (Jr., F)
Nov. 24: Mehryn Kraker, Green Bay (So., G)
Freshmen of the Week
Nov. 10: Nikki Arbanas, Youngstown State (Fr., G)
Nov. 17: Dani Franklin, Valparaiso (Fr., G)
Nov. 24: Indiya Benjamin, Youngstown State (Fr., G)
Tags: Cleveland State - Women's Basketball · Detroit Mercy - Women's Basketball · Green Bay - Women's Basketball · Horizon League - Women's Basketball · Milwaukee - Women's Basketball · Oakland - Women's Basketball · UIC - Women's Basketball · Valparaiso - Women's Basketball · Youngstown State - Women's Basketball
