March 2, 2009

GREENSBORO, N.C. – Regular-season co-champion Maryland placed a pair of student-athletes on the 2009 All-Atlantic Conference Women’s Basketball Team, as announced today by the conference office.

Kristi Toliver, the only repeat first-team selection from last season, is joined by Terrapin teammate Marissa Coleman. Virginia also placed two players on the first team, as Lyndra Littles and Monica Wright were selected by 45 members of the ACC’s Blue Ribbon Panel, which was formed last year and includes members of the media as well as ACC head coaches. Duke’s Chante Black completed the first-team selections.

North Carolina’s Jessica Breland and Rashanda McCants were named to the second team, as were Jacinta Monroe of co-champion Florida State, NC State’s Shayla Fields and Boston College’s Carolyn Swords.

Florida State led the third-team selections with Tanae Davis-Cain and Mara Freshour earning recognition. North Carolina’s Cetera DeGraffenreid, Clemson’s Lele Hardy and Georgia Tech’s Alex Montgomery completed the third unit.

Toliver, a 5-foot-7 senior guard from Harrisonburg, Va., ranks second among ACC scorers with 18.1 points per game and leads all conference players in assists per game at 5.1. Toliver also ranks second in the conference in 3-point field goal percentage and consistently stood out among the ACC’s top five free-throw shooters as Maryland (25-4, 12-2) completed a stellar run through the conference.

Coleman, a 6-foot-1 swing player from Cheltenham, Md., also played a huge role in Terps’ success. Coleman ranks fourth in the ACC in scoring at 17.1 points per game while shooting 47 percent from the field, is seventh in rebounding at 7.9 per contest and is tied for 10th in steals. Coleman shoots 80.3 percent from the charity stripe.

Virginia’s Wright leads the conference in scoring at 21.1 points per game and is tied for the third in the league in steals. The 5-foot-11 junior from Woodbridge, Va., also ranks among the ACC’s top-20 leaders in rebounding, assists and free-throw percentage. She is a key reason Virginia stands 22-8 overall and earned an upper division-finish in conference play with an 8-6 league record.

The Cavaliers’ Littles missed nine contests during the fall semester, but her 21.4 points per game scoring average would have led the conference has she played in the required 75 percent of her team’s games. She returned in time to make her presence felt in conference play, averaging 22.7 points in 14 ACC games. The 6-foot-1 foot senior from Washington, D.C., also contributes 6.3 rebounds per game.

Black, the only Duke player to start every game this year, led the 10th-ranked Blue Devils to a 24-4 overall mark and an 11-3 ACC finish. The 6-foor-5 senior from Winston-Salem, N.C., averages 14.8 points and 8.6 rebounds. Black has blocked 61 shots (third most in the ACC) and ranks second on Duke’s all-time list and sixth all-time among ACC players in blocked shots list with 253.

Overall, Florida State and North Carolina had three players named to the 2009 All-ACC teams. Maryland and Virginia had two apiece, while Duke, NC State, Boston College, Clemson and Georgia Tech each saw one player honored.

The 32nd annual ACC Women’s Tournament gets under way Thursday, March 5, at the Greensboro Coliseum. The four-day event concludes Sunday, March 8, with the championship game at 1 p.m.

The 2009 All-ACC women's teams, as voted on by 45 members of the Blue Ribbon Panel:

First Team
Chante Black, Duke
Marissa Coleman, Maryland
Lyndra Littles, Virginia
Kristi Toliver, Maryland
Monica Wright, Virginia

Second Team
Jessica Breland, North Carolina
Shayla Fields, NC State
Rashanda McCants, North Carolina
Jacinta Monroe, Florida State
Carolyn Swords, Boston College

Third Team
Cetera DeGraffenreid, North Carolina
Tanae Davis-Cain, Florida State
Mara Freshour, Florida State
Lele Hardy, Clemson
Alex Montgomery, Georgia Tech

Honorable Mention
Shenise Johnson, Miami
Aisha Mohammed, Virginia
Mickel Picco, Boston College
Alex Tchangoue, Wake Forest
Abby Waner, Duke