Slagus Named Rookie of the Year, Roussell Coach of the Year in Patriot League

LEWISBURG, Pa. – The Bucknell women's basketball team just wrapped up the most successful regular season in program history, capped by a share of the Patriot League title. On Friday, the team was rewarded for some of its accomplishments as Aaron Roussell was named Patriot League Coach of the Year, Kaitlyn Slagus was voted the Rookie of the Year, two players were selected All-League, and another two made the All-Rookie Team.

Roussell earns his first Patriot League Coach of the Year award in his fourth season with the Bison. He guided the team to its first regular season title since 2007, while setting program records for wins in a season at 23-6 overall and in conference wins at 17-1. After starting the season with a 6-5 mark in non-conference play, the team reeled off eight straight wins against league opponents, and then topped that with its current nine-game winning streak that it will take into the quarterfinal round of the conference tournament.

Roussell adds the Patriot League Coach of the Year award to the three he won in the University Athletic Association during his eight-year tenure at the University of Chicago. He enters the 2016 postseason with an impressive career record of 233-98, which includes a 161-50 mark at the University of Chicago and a 72-48 record at Bucknell.

Much of Roussell's success has started with recruiting and development of young players, and Slagus's Rookie of the Year award is further proof of that. She joins current players Claire DeBoer and Jacquie Klotz to give the Bison the award in three straight seasons. They are the first team to accomplish the feat since Navy did so between 1994-96.

Slagus emerged as a big-time player when it counted the most, averaging 10.9 points and 5.6 rebounds in conference play. In the first league game of the season, she came off the bench to score 17 of her career-high 21 points in the second half of a win over Navy, and became a full-time starter the following game. She has made the most of that opportunity, earning a league-leading five Rookie of the Week honors during the season. She finished with a league-best 7.9 points per game, including double-digits in scoring in 11 of the 18 conference games.

DeBoer earned her second straight All-Patriot League accolade, landing a spot on the First Team for the first time during her career after averaging 15.9 points and 7.3 rebounds. She has four double-doubles this season and scored 20 or more points in a game eight times. With a full season still ahead of her, she has already become the 22^nd player in program history to eclipse 1,000 points for her career. She has since moved up to 18^th on the school's all-time list with 1,094 career points.

DeBoer is one of the most complete players in the Patriot League, especially at the forward position. She ranks in the top 10 in the conference in scoring (15.7), rebounding (7.3), field goal percentage (.493), assists (2.6), free throw percentage (.786) and steals (1.7). She had at least one steal in 28 of the team's 29 regular season games.

Coming off a rookie season in which she was named Rookie of the Year, Klotz made the First Team in her sophomore season. The guard is averaging 16.4 points and 10.0 rebounds, putting her on pace to become Bucknell's first player to average a double-double since Hall-of-Famer Desire Almind in 2004. She has been on fire from beyond the arc as of late, hitting 27 of her 44 attempts over the past seven games. She has 70 3-pointers on the season, breaking the program record of 66 set by Kate Franks in 2003.

Klotz has 12 double-doubles on the season and was just one point or one rebound away from adding five more. Her rebounding numbers rank well on a national level, putting her 29^th overall and fifth among guards. Klotz has had some of the biggest statistical games in Bucknell history, including a 33-point, 19-rebound performance in a win over Manhattan.

DeBoer and Klotz were joined on the First Team by Army West Point's Kelsey Minato, Lehigh's Lexi Martins and Loyola's Colleen Marshall. Minato was named the Patriot League Player of the Year for the third time, matching Molly Creamer as the only player to accomplish that feat.

Slagus and Kyi English were both voted to the All-Rookie Team, giving Bucknell five honorees in the past three seasons. English was expected to play a big role for the Bison anyway this season, but took on even more responsibility because of injuries. She hasn't disappointed, averaging 6.3 points and 2.1 assists. She was named the Patriot League Rookie of the Week twice.

Joining the Bucknell duo on the All-Rookie Team were American's Cecily Carl, Lafayette's Angela Ribarich and Lehigh's Hailey Pascoe.

Bucknell is the No. 2 seed for the Patriot League Tournament after finishing in a tie for first place with Army West Point. The Bison have a bye into the quarterfinal round, where they will play the winner of Saturday's No. 7 American vs. No. 10 Boston University first-round game. The Bison will open the tourney on Monday at 7 p.m. at Sojka Pavilion.

2015-16 Women's Basketball All-Patriot League Team and Major Awards

Player of the Year: Kelsey Minato, Army West Point (Sr., G)
Defensive Player of the Year: Justice Swett, Navy (Jr., G)
Rookie of the Year: Kaitlyn Slagus, Bucknell (Fr., F)
Coach of the Year: Aaron Roussell, Bucknell

First Team
Kelsey Minato, Army West Point (Sr., G)*
Claire DeBoer, Bucknell (Jr., F)
Jacquie Klotz, Bucknell (So., G)*
Lexi Martins, Lehigh (Jr., F)
Colleen Marshall, Loyola Maryland (Sr., G)*
*Unanimous first-team selection

Second Team^
Aimee Oertner, Army West Point (Sr., F/C)
Josie Stockill, Colgate (Sr., F)
Lisa Mifsud, Holy Cross (Sr., G)
Infiniti Thomas-Waheed, Holy Cross (So., G)
Jamie O'Hare, Lafayette (Sr., G)
Quinci Mann, Lehigh (So., G)

Third Team
Lauren Crisler, American (Jr., F)
Molly Hourigan, Holy Cross (Sr., C)
Kerry Kinek, Lehigh (Sr., F)
Jeneh Perry, Loyola Maryland (Sr., F)
^ - Due to a tie in the voting, there are six on second team and four on third team

All-Defensive Team
Janae McNeal, Army West Point (So., G)
Josie Stockill, Colgate (Sr., F)
Infiniti Thomas-Waheed, Holy Cross (So., G)
Colleen Marshall, Loyola Maryland (Sr., G)
Justice Swett, Navy (Jr., G)*
*Unanimous All-Defensive Team selection

All-Rookie Team
Cecily Carl, American (Fr., F)*
Kyi English, Bucknell (Fr., G)
Kaitlyn Slagus, Bucknell (Fr., F)*
Angela Ribarich, Lafayette (Fr., C)
Hailey Pascoe, Lehigh (Fr., G)
*Unanimous All-Rookie selection
Only freshmen in their first academic year are eligible for the Patriot League All-Rookie Team.