Monday, February 13, 2006

Macon, Ga. -- After having a 1-1 week which included an upset victory, Stetson's Nefertiti Walker (Atlanta, Ga./Business) was named Atlantic Sun Player of the Week today by the conference office.

The A-Sun Preseason Player of the Year has consistently led her team in scoring all season, despite the Hatters' lackluster 5-16 overall record (3-11 A-Sun).

Last Wednesday in the A-Sun/CSS Game of the Week, Stetson stunned Florida Atlantic in a 64-63 overtime upset, snapping the Owls' five-game win streak. Walker exploded for 31 points, including three treys and shooting a perfect 10-of-10 from the charity stripe. She also added six rebounds, five assists, two steals, and a block.

On Friday, Stetson fell, 55-60, to Mercer, but not without an effort from Walker. She again lit up for 31 points, this time shooting 5-of-8 from beyond the arc. She tallied nine boards in the loss.

Walker, who has scored 30 or more points four times this season, leads the league in scoring (21.0 ppg) and free-throw percentage (.926). She is among the nation's top-20 in scoring and top-10 in free-throw percentage.

The Atlantic Sun Conference announces the Player of the Week every Monday during the 2005-06 women's basketball campaign.

The 11-member league headquartered in Macon, Ga., consists of Belmont, Campbell, ETSU, Florida Atlantic, Gardner-Webb, Jacksonville, Kennesaw State, Lipscomb, Mercer, North Florida and Stetson.

Other Top Performers

Tonisha Jones, BEL (Sr. - F - Brownsville, Tenn. - Finance) -- Jones picked up her 500th career point and helped keep Belmont alone atop the Atlantic Sun for a second week in a row. She averaged 15 points and three rebounds per game last week, shooting 55.6 percent from the floor, 40 percent from behind the three-point arc and 54.5 percent from the charity stripe.

Marlena Murphy, CAM (So. - F - Fayetteville, N.C. - Undecided) -- Murphy finished the week averaging 10.5 points and 9.5 rebounds. She had 12 points and 12 rebounds in an overtime loss to Belmont and had nine points and five rebounds against Lipscomb.

B.J. Banjo, ETSU (Sr. - G - Baltimore, Md. - Public Heath) -- Banjo averaged 18.5 ppg in wins over Jacksonville and North Florida, netting 21 and 16 points, respectively. She shot 9-of-11 from beyond the arc for an outstanding 81.8 percent performance.

Shontavia Williams, FAU (Sr. - G - Miami, Fla. - Health Administration) -- For the week Williams scored 44 points and took down 14 rebounds. She shot 50 percent (15-of-30) from the floor and 80 percent (12-of-15) at the line. She also added five steals along the way.

Sequenta Blackman, GWU (Sr. - G - Raleigh, N.C. - Finance) -- For the week, Blackman averaged 19.5 points and five rebounds per game on 15-of-30 shooting.

Ashley Williams, JU (So. - F - Jacksonville, Fla. - Marketing) -- For the week, Williams averaged 17.5 points, 6.5 rebounds, 1.0 blocks and 1.0 steals with a victory over Kennesaw State and a loss to ETSU.

Shavonder Clarke, KSU (Sr. - F - Euxema, Bahamas - Sports Management) -- For the week, Clarke led the Owls to a 1-2 record while recording her eleventh and twelfth double-doubles on the year. Clarke scored a game-high 30 points and grabbed 15 rebounds against Jacksonville and scored 20 points and 11 rebounds against UNF.

Andrea Dill, UNF (Jr. - F - Bonner Springs, Kan. - Criminal Justice) -- Dill led the Lady Ospreys this week, averaging 15.5 points and eight rebounds, as the Lady Ospreys split a pair of games at Kennesaw State and ETSU. Dill set new career highs for points (20) and rebounds (10) against Kennesaw State to open the week.