RICHMOND, Virginia - After an exciting season that saw the Salem Women's Basketball finish runner-up in the USCAA Division 1 Small College Championship, the Tigers have some additional accolades to add to their season. The USCAA awarded a total of 5 Tigers with a total of 8 post-season awards, and 1 skills competition winner. Here is a brief recap of the Tiger's award winners:
The Tiger that brought home the most hardware was Nerea Arambarri Fernandez, who concluded her Salem career this season with First Team USCAA All-American honors, All-USCAA Tournament team honors, and was featured in the USCAA All-Academic team. Ferenandez has been a leader for the Tigers all season from her usual point guard role. She also led the team in overall points with 309, and in scoring average with 14.0 points per game.
Next to Fernandez, Daniela Quesada also brought home a total of 3 awards. She was also a First Team USCAA All-American, and was featured on the All-USCAA Tournament team. She brought home a USCAA All-Academic nomination as well. Quesada battled injury for part of the season, but played well down the stretch for the Tigers. She finished second in scoring average with 13.8 points per game.
Elena Pericic was the final Tiger with All-American honors as she earned an honorable mention nomination. She finished just behind Fernandez in overall scoring on the season with 303 points, and she was a USCAA Player of the week awardee early on in the season.
Next is Anete Bluma, who earned an All-Academic Team nomination for her work off the court for the Tigers this season. While her work in the classroom was strong, she also scored her season high at the USCAA Tournament opening round game against Bryant & Stratton - Albany with 21 points.
The final Tiger postseason award went to Emerson Wells. She showed off her 3 point shooting prowess by winning the Division 1 Three Point Shooting Contest on March 12th.
These postseason awards add a final note to a successful season for head coach Jessica Peatross' squad, and they will be looking to build on their progress this season in preparation for the 2023-2024 campaign.
