Phillips Ends Career with Second All-America Laurel
William Penn University Athletics
Oskaloosa–Alyssa Phillips (Sr., Gurnee, Ill., Communications) concluded a remarkable career with one final award as the 2016-2017 NAIA Division I Women’s Basketball All-America teams were announced Thursday.
Phillips received an Honorable-Mention accolade, the second such laurel of her career. She was one of 40 honorable mentions, while 10 players each were honored on the first, second, and third teams.
Daniela Wallen of Oklahoma City was named the WBCA-NAIA National Player of the Year, while her head coach Bo Overton was named as the NAIA Coach of the Year after leading the Stars to the national title.
Phillips becomes the 19th All-American in program history and the fifth player to earn multiple awards. She guided William Penn to an 18-14 overall record (16-10 Heart) and a trip to the national tournament, snapping a 29-year postseason drought for the program.
The senior averaged 13.0 points and 8.3 rebounds per contest in addition to also posting 63 blocks, 44 steals, and 27 assists. She shot 54.9% from the floor and 61.4% from the line.
The forward ranked ninth in NAIA Division I in total blocks, 11th in blocks per game (2.0), 18th in offensive rebounds per game (3.6), 24th in total rebounds (264), and 43rd in total rebounds per game.
Phillips ends her career with 1,298 points, good for 13th on WPU’s all-time scoring list. An extremely efficient scorer, she walks away as the second-best shooter in Statesmen history at 57.8%. She also ranked in the top-10 for career rebounds (746, 9th), blocks (131, 4th), field goals (500, 9th), and free throws (298, 4th).
