Four Kent State Players Earn MAC Women’s Basketball Postseason Honors
3/10/2020 10:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
CLEVELAND, Ohio — For the second year in a row, Kent State led the way with four different student-athletes earning recognition, as the Mid-American Conference announced its 2020 women's basketball postseason awards on Tuesday (March 10) morning. Redshirt senior Megan Carter and freshman Katie Shumate were named All-MAC Honorable Mention selections, sophomore Lindsey Thall earned a spot on the MAC All-Defensive Team and Nila Blackford and Shumate were placed on the MAC All-Freshman Team.
The quartet led the Golden Flashes to an 11-7 conference record, a share of the MAC East Division title, the No. 3 seed in the conference tournament and the team's fourth consecutive quarterfinals appearance.
This is the second all-conference accolade for Carter, who was a third team performer last season. Despite playing through injury and sickness for much of the season, the Farmington Hills, Michigan native averaged 11.9 points, 3.8 rebounds and 2.0 assists per game. Carter reached double-figures in scoring in 20 of 26 games played, including five 20-point performances. She became the 22nd member of Kent State's 1,000-points club against St. Bonaventure on December 3 and currently sits 18th on the all-time scoring list with 1,234 points.
Shumate is the Golden Flashes' first freshman to garner All-MAC honors since Chenel Harris in 2008. The Newark, Ohio native was second on the team in scoring (12.4 ppg), rebounding (6.4 rpg), steals (1.2 spg), blocks (0.9 bpg) and three-pointers (34). Shumate tied for the team lead with three double-doubles and hit double-digits in scoring in 19 regular season games, including a career-high 27 points in a double-overtime thriller at Bowling Green on February 29. She finished eighth in the conference in three-point percentage, shooting 37.4 percent from behind the arc this season.
Thall led the conference in blocked shots for the second year in a row to land a spot on the All-Defensive Team. Her 63 rejections ranks 29th nationally and seventh in Kent State history, while her 2.2 blocks per game ranks 31st in the country. Thall averaged 2.7 blocks per game during conference play and swatted a season-best seven shots against Eastern Michigan on January 8.
Blackford finished fifth in the conference in rebounding with 7.8 boards per game, which ranks 11th in the country among freshmen. She tied for the team lead in double-doubles (3) and was third in scoring (12.3 ppg). The Louisville, Kentucky native scored a career-high 31 points against Robert Morris on November 24, which is the most by a Kent State freshman since Ellie Shields in 2008.
2020 MAC Women's Basketball Player of the Year
Micaela Kelly, Central Michigan
2020 MAC Women's Basketball Coach of the Year
Heather Oesterle, Central Michigan
2020 MAC Women's Basketball Freshman of the Year
Dyaisha Fair, Buffalo
2020 MAC Women's Basketball Defensive Player of the Year
Cece Hooks, Ohio
2020 MAC Women's Basketball Sixth Player of the Year
Gabrielle Bird, Central Michigan
2020 MAC Women's Basketball All-MAC First Team
Oshlynn Brown, Ball State
Micaela Kelly, Central Michigan
Courtney Woods, Northern Illinois
Cece Hooks, Ohio
Erica Johnson, Ohio
2020 MAC Women's Basketball All-MAC Second Team
Dyaisha Fair, Buffalo
Molly Davis, Central Michigan
Areanna Combs, Eastern Michigan
Lauren Dickerson, Miami
Breanna Mobley, Western Michigan
2020 MAC Women's Basketball All-MAC Third Team
Haliegh Reinoehl, Akron
Theresa Onwuka, Buffalo
Kyra Bussell, Central Michigan
Savannah Kluesner, Miami
Jordan Walker, Western Michigan
2020 MAC Women's Basketball All-MAC Honorable Mention
Jordyn Dawson, Akron
Angela Perry, Bowling Green
Megan Carter, Kent State
Katie Shumate, Kent State
Amani Burke, Ohio
2020 MAC Women's Basketball All-Defensive Team
Theresa Onwuka, Buffalo
Micaela Kelly, Central Michigan
Areanna Combs, Eastern Michigan
Lindsey Thall, Kent State
Cece Hooks, Ohio
2020 MAC Women's Basketball All-Freshman Team
Sydney Freeman, Ball State
Dyaisha Fair, Buffalo
Molly Davis, Central Michigan
Nila Blackford, Kent State
Katie Shumate, Kent State
Peyton Scott, Miami
