The University of Akron Athletics
Akron Women's Basketball Celebrates 2015-16 Campaign
May 06 | Women's Basketball
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AKRON, Ohio - The University of Akron women's basketball team celebrated its 2015-16 campaign at the squad's annual award dinner on Friday, May 6, at FirstMerit Foundation Club Level (fifth floor) of InfoCision Stadium - Summa Field, as head coach Jodi Kest handed out awards to four student-athletes.
The Zips registered a 19-14 ledger, including an 11-7 record in the Mid-American Conference, marking the fourth-consecutive season in which Akron has won 19 or more games, a first in program history
Collectively, the Zips registered its fourth straight and sixth overall postseason appearance with a berth in Women's National Invitation Tournament hosting Bucknell in Akron's first-ever postseason home game.
A pair of Akron players earned All-MAC recognition as senior Anita Brown (Warren, Ohio) was named a first-team selection, while junior Hannah Plybon (Orrville, Ohio) was tabbed to the second team.
The 2015-16 Zips set several new single-season records, including, most games played (33), three-pointers made (258) and attempted (780) and triples made in a game (15) versus Buffalo in the semifinals of the MAC Tournament.
Akron's senior class of Megan Barilla (Fairview Park, Ohio), DiAndra Gibson (Ravenna, Ohio) and Brown capped an unprecedented run in Akron women's basketball success garnering more victories (87) than any other class in program history. The trio also became the first Zips' senior class to appear in the postseason during every year of their four-year careers.
In addition to its team accomplishments, Akron fielded several impressive individual accolades. Brown and Plybon registered the third- and ninth-best single-season scoring outputs in program history scoring 701 and 537 points, respectively. Plybon connected on a single-season record 104 three pointers, while Barilla recorded the first-ever triple-double in Akron's Division I history with a 10-point, 10-rebound and 10-assist performance in a 74-54 victory past Central Florida.
Additionally, Kest earned her 375th career victory at Eastern Michigan, 68-65, in overtime, before collecting her 150th triumph at Akron over Bowling Green, 71-55.
Brown was honored as the Zips' most outstanding player. Turning in a stellar campaign as a senior, Brown garnered first-team All-MAC accolades after starting all 32 games in which she appeared for Akron this season en route to leading the conference in scoring (21.9) and ranking sixth in rebounding, pulling down a team-best 7.4 rebounds per game.
She scored in double figures in all 32 games and led the squad in scoring 21 times en route to being named by CollegeSportsMadness.com as a high major fourth-team All-American.
Brown capped her career rated sixth in scoring (1,568), ninth in points per game (12.3) and 10th in rebounds (641) and assists (239) at Akron, while playing in 127 career games, fourth most in program history.
The most improved player award went to junior Alex Ricketts (Mercer, Pa.). The honor is bestowed upon the player whose contributions on the court have shown the most improvement from the previous season as well as through the course of the regular season campaign.
Ricketts appeared in all 33 games for Akron, including making a pair of starts, and was a key contributor to the offensive and defensive success of a Zips' squad that registered the fourth-highest single-season totals in program history in points (2,353) and rebounds (1,354). She recorded 3.4 points and 2.8 rebounds per contest, totals that lead all reserves for the Zips.
The Barb Hlivko award was presented to redshirt freshman Megan Sefcik (Austintown, Ohio). The award is annually bestowed upon the player that continually strives to work to not only make herself and her team better in whatever way that she can, whether it be through on-court contributions or being a consummate team-first player who is willing to sacrifice herself for the overall success of her team. It is named in honor and memory of Barb Hlivko, who was an avid Akron women's basketball supporter and donor as well as a Varsity 'A' Member for many years before passing away in 2009 due to illness.
Making her return from an ACL injury which sidelined her for the entire 2014-15 campaign, Sefcik appeared in 27 games for the Zips and averaged 2.3 points per game. A strong outside shooter, Sefcik scored six or more points for Akron in five contests.
The Scholar award went to junior Sophia Simone (Silver Lake, Ohio), who boasts a 3.542 overall grade-point average, majoring in nursing. The award is given to the player who earned the highest GPA in a calendar year. Simone maintained a 3.52 GPA for the spring, summer and fall semesters for 2015.
The final honor of the evening was the Community Service award, which was also presented to Simone. The honor is awarded to the player(s) who complete the most community service hours during the school year.
Akron also celebrated a number of accomplishments both on and off the court.
Mid-American Conference Awards:
• First-Team All-MAC – Anita Brown
• Second-Team All-MAC – Hannah Plybon
MAC Commissioner's Award:
• Alli Ball
• Sophia Simone
MAC Academic Honor Roll Certificates:
• Megan Barilla
• Kaitlyn Flowers
• Lauren Hung
• Alex Ricketts
• Hannah Scipio
• Megan Sefcik
Academic All-MAC Certificates:
• Alli Ball
• Hannah Plybon
• Hannah Scipio
• Megan Sefcik
MAC East Player of the Week Certificates:
• Anita Brown - (Nov. 17, Dec. 14, Jan. 25 and March 6)
Achievement Basketballs:
• Megan Barilla – first triple-double in Akron women's basketball Division I history
• Anita Brown – 1,000 career points scored
• Hannah Plybon – 1,000 career points scored
Additional Awards Recognition:
• Anita Brown – season-record plaque for most field goals made in a season
• Hannah Plybon – season-record plaque for most three-pointers in a season
First-Year Letter Award Winner:
• Fredniqua Walker
Four-Year Letter Award Winner:
• Megan Barilla
• Anita Brown
• DiAndra Gibson
