Two Bowling Green State University seniors have been named to the All-Mid-American Conference women’s
basketball team. Lauren Prochaska was voted to the All-MAC First Team, while Tracy Pontius earned
all-conference third-team honors. The All-MAC Team and the league’s specialty awards were announced by
the league office on Tuesday morning (March 8).
Prochaska earned All-MAC honors for the fourth time in as many seasons. She was named to the
all-conference first team for the third successive year, after earning second-team honors in her
freshman season of 2007-08.
Prochaska becomes only the second player in BGSU history to earn All-MAC First-Team accolades as many as
three times in a career. Jackie Motycka was an all-league first-team choice in all four of her seasons
at BG.
Pontius garners all-conference accolades for the third year in a row. She earned all-league first-team
honors two seasons ago before being named to the second team in 2009-10.
Prochaska, a native of Plain City, Ohio (Jonathan Alder H.S.), leads the Falcons in scoring, with 18.1
points per game this season to date, and is second on the team in rebounding, assists, steals and
blocked shots. She ranks fourth in the nation in free-throw percentage, and also ranks among the top-50
in the country in scoring (36th) and three-point field-goal percentage (39th).
Prochaska is Bowling Green’s all-time scoring leader, and ranks third in MAC history with 2,225 career
points entering the MAC Tournament. She also holds the BGSU career records for three-point field goals
made (306), free throws made (589), free-throw percentage (90.8%), games started and consecutive games
started. The wing has started all 131 games since arriving on campus in the fall of 2007.
Prochaska ranks second in conference history in three-point field goals made, and she is on pace to end
her career ranked among the top-five players in NCAA Division-I history in free-throw percentage.
Earlier this season, she made an NCAA Division-I record 70 consecutive free throws. Prochaska is the
only player in BGSU history to score 500 points in each of her four seasons.
The senior has scored in double digits in 115 of her 131 career games, including 47 contests of 20 points
or more. She was named to the John R. Wooden Award, Naismith Trophy and Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award
preseason watch lists, and was chosen to the Naismith midseason list in mid-February.
Pontius, a native of Morton, Ill. (Morton H.S.), is averaging 11.9 points and a team-leading 3.6 assists
per game this season, and has hit a BG-best 67 three-point field goals. In MAC games only, she had 10.8
ppg and lead the team in assists and three-pointers made.
Pontius ranks seventh in school history in career assists, with 376, and she has hit 226 career
three-pointers, ranking second (behind Prochaska) at BGSU and 13th in MAC history. She has scored 1,344
career points heading into the MAC Tournament, ranking 14th on that BG list. Over 1,200 of those points
have come in the last two-plus seasons.
Prochaska and Pontius have helped the Falcons to a total of 107 wins in their careers to date. BGSU is
107-24 overall and went 55-9 in MAC regular-season games since that duo arrived in Northwest Ohio.
Buffalo’s Kourtney Brown was named the MAC’s Player of the Year for the 2010-11 season, while Toledo’s
Tricia Cullop earned league coach-of-the-year honors. Central Michigan’s Niki DiGuilio was chosen as the
conference’s freshman of the year.
Prochaska and Brown were joined on the All-MAC First Team by Eastern Michigan’s Tavelyn James, Toledo’s
Naama Shafir and Akron’s Rachel Tecca.
The second team consisted of the Kent State duo of Jamilah Humes and Taisja Jones, EMU’s Cassie Schrock,
Marke Freeman of Northern Illinois and CMU’s Kaihla Szunko.
Pontius was joined on the third team by CMU’s Shonda Long, UT’s Melissa Goodall, Ball State’s Emily
Maggert and Miami’s Courtney Osborn.
Honorable mention went to UA’s Kara Murphy, Ohio’s Tenishia Benson, MU’s Kristen Olowinski, CMU’s Brandie
Baker and Western Michigan’s Ebony Cleary.
The complete list of 2011 conference women’s basketball awards follows …
2011 ALL-MAC SELECTIONS AND SPECIALTY AWARDS
First Team
Kourtney Brown, Buffalo, Post
LAUREN PROCHASKA, Bowling Green, Wing
Naama Shafir, Toledo, Guard
Tavelyn James, Eastern Michigan, Guard
Rachel Tecca, Akron, Center
Second Team
Cassie Schrock, Eastern Michigan, Guard
Marke Freeman, Northern Illinois, Guard
Kaihla Szunko, Central Michigan, Forward
Taisja Jones, Kent State, Forward
Jamilah Humes, Kent State, Guard
Third Team
TRACY PONTIUS, Bowling Green, Point Guard
Melissa Goodall, Toledo, Forward
Emily Maggert, Ball State, Center
Courtney Osborn, Miami, Point Guard
Shonda Long, Central Michigan, Guard
Honorable Mention
Brandie Baker, Central Michigan, Guard
Ebony Cleary, Western Michigan, Post
Kristen Olowinski, Miami, Forward
Tenishia Benson, Ohio, Guard
Kara Murphy, Akron, Guard
All-Freshman Team
Niki DiGuilio, Central Michigan, Guard
Taylor Johnson, Central Michigan, Forward
Carly Young, Akron, Forward
Andola Dortch, Toledo, Guard
Shavon Robinson, Ohio, Guard
Co-Sixth Players of the Year
Jasmine Mushington, Akron
Taylor Johnson, Central Michigan
Defensive Player of the Year
Kourtney Brown, Buffalo
Freshman of the Year
Niki DiGuilio, Central Michigan
Player of the Year
Kourtney Brown, Buffalo
Coach of the Year
Tricia Cullop, Toledo
