April 13, 2008
Lady Lion Banquet Photo Gallery
UNIVERSITY PARK, PA. - The Penn State women's basketball team held its annual postseason banquet today at the Nittany Lion Inn and honored both players and supporters of the program for their dedication and commitment during the season.
Kam Gissendanner (Clairton, Pa.) took home the Joanie O'Brien Award for the Lady Lions' Most Outstanding Player and the Nittany Lion Club Award in recognition of the Lady Lion senior with the highest grade point average. Junior guard Mashea Williams (Erie, Pa.) claimed the Jeanette Goss Courage Award, while sophomore guard Meggan Quinn (Red Lion, Pa.) received the Tom Caldwell "Unsung Hero" Award. Sophomore guard Nicole Arcidiacono (Langhorne, Pa.) garnered the Robin Lombard Award in of those qualities that exemplify the true spirit of Lady Lion basketball and freshman post player Janessa Wolff (Park Rapids, Minn.) earned the Academic Achievement Award. Junior guard Brianne O'Rourke (Pittsburgh, Pa.) and sophomore forward Meredith Monroe (Olney, Md.) shared the inaugural Most Improved Player Award.
Athletics Director Tim Curley was recognized for his outstanding service to Lady Lion basketball with the Hank Gambocurta Award. The Kent Petersen Student Fan of the Year Award was presented to Jessica Bogniak, the organizer "The Other Lady Lions" (TOLL) portion of the Roaring Pride student section. Hubie Wian of Centre Hall garnered the Ruth Ingram Award in recognition of a Lady Lion Basketball fan for outstanding enthusiasm and support.
Gissendanner was an All-Big Ten third team selection by the coaches this season after finishing in the Top 10 in the Big Ten in both scoring (10th - 13.4 ppg) and rebounding (8th - 6.5 rpg). She was also ninth in the Big Ten in free throw percentage (.827). Gissendanner set personal career marks for rebounds (202), blocks (24), steals (33) and double-doubles (6). In the Jan. 10 win over Northwestern, Gissendanner became the 30th Lady Lion to reach 1,000 career points and she finished her career 21st on the Penn State career scoring charts with 1,238 points in just three campaigns. During her career, Gissendanner was also honored with the Jeanette Goss Award in 2006-07 and the Tom Caldwell "Unsung Hero" Award in 2005-06.
Williams, one of the team's tri-captains with Gissendanner and O'Rourke, had a solid season as she finished fourth on the team in scoring (9.7) and rebounding (4.0). She also led the squad in steals with 35 and was second in assists with 73. Williams, who was the Jan. 7 Big Ten Player of the Week, had a career-high 22 points to go along with six rebounds in the stunning victory over #10/11 Duke on Dec. 2. She also posted her first career double-double with 17 points and 11 rebounds at Bucknell on Dec. 15. Williams reached a pair of career milestones in the Feb. 28 game against Ohio State. She registered her 100th career steal and also surpassed the 600-career point mark. Williams took home the Tom Caldwell Award last season.
Quinn returned to the court after tearing her ACL in the middle of her freshman season. The sophomore was a solid reserve for the Lady Lions this season, accounting for 56 points, 22 rebounds and 18 assists. She had a career night in a tough loss to Big Ten Tournament champion Purdue on Jan. 17 with 11 points, including a trio of three-pointers. Quinn also knocked down her first career triple in the upset win over #10/11 Duke on Dec. 2. Quinn was previously honored as the 2006-07 Robin Lombard Award winner.
Arcidiacono joined the Lady Lions in October as a walk-on and immediately immersed herself in her role. She could usually be seen screaming encouragement from the bench and pounding of the floor to pump up her teammates. Arcidiacono appeared in eight games this season, earning two starts against Michigan State and Illinois. She scored her first career points against the Illini on a fastbreak lay-up. She also grabbed one rebound, had two assists and one steal on the year.
Wolff made a splash on the court and in the classroom in her first season in the Blue & White. She averaged 6.2 points and 4.5 rebounds per game with 19 blocked shots and 12 steals in 31 appearances. Her 140 caroms are seventh on Penn State's freshman season charts and her 53.8% (71-132) field goal percentage in 14th on the freshman list. In the classroom, Wolff, who is going to major in child psychology, posted a perfect 4.0 grade point average during the fall semester.
O'Rourke, an All-Big Ten third team selection by the media, has been a consistent force on the floor for the Lady Lions each of her three seasons at Penn State. This season was no different as the junior led the Big Ten and was 51st in the NCAA in overall assists per game (4.7). With her 4.94 assist average during conference game, she won the Big Ten assists crown for the second time in her career (2005-06), becoming the fourth Lady Lion to win multiple Big Ten assist crowns. O'Rourke also set career marks with 348 points (11.2 ppg), which ranks third on the team and 19th in the Big Ten, and an 83.8% free throw percentage, which is seventh in the Big Ten and 39th in NCAA Division I. The junior also became the 10th player in school history to reach 400 career assists and is the 14th player in school history to register 150 career steals.
With the graduation of Amanda Brown and Charity Renfro, Monroe had more involved role this season in the post. Monroe, who earned her first two career starts this season, accumulated 44 points and 58 rebounds in 29 games. She connected on 10 of her 13 shots from the free throw line, including making her last six shots from the charity stripe to end the season.
2007-08 Lady Lion Basketball Award Winners
Robin Lombard Award - Nicole Arcidiacono
Academic Achievement Award - Janessa Wolff
Jeanette Goss Courage Award - Mashea Williams
Joanie O'Brien Award - Kam Gissendanner
Tom Caldwell Unsung Hero Award - Meggan Quinn
Most Improved Player - Brianne O'Rourke and Meredith Monroe
Nittany Lion Club Award - Kam Gissendanner
Hank Gambocurta Award - Tim Curley
Kent Petersen Student Fan of the Year Award - Jessica Bogniak
Ruth Ingram Award - Hubie Wian