All-Conference Men’s and Women’s Basketball Teams Announced

ROCK HILL, SC - Wingate University junior guard Sean Barnette, who led the conference in scoring at 21 points per game and ranked in the top 10 in seven other statistical categories, and Wingate University senior guard Tanetra Barrett, who led the women in scoring and free-throw percentage, were named the 2006-07 South Atlantic Conference Men's and Women's Basketball Players of the Year, the league announced today.

Barrett was earns the women's Player of the Year for the third consecutive season. This season, Barrett a senior from Marshville, N.C. (Forest Hills HS) led the SAC in scoring at 19.1 points per game and had the top free-throw percentage at 82.1. She also ranked among the league leaders in field-goal percentage, rebounding, assists, steals, assist-to-turnover ratio and defensive rebounds.

Barnette led the SAC in scoring at 21.0 points per game, and ranked among the league top 10 leaders in rebounding, assists, free-throw percentage, 3-point percentage, 3-pointers made, blocked shots and defensive rebounds.

Sean Barnette

Antonio Houston

Chris Poore

Jim Baker

Tanetra Barrett

Amber Holt

Anna Atkinson

Johnny Jacumin

Joining Barnette on the men's All-Conference First Team are Brian Graves and Chris Wooldridge from Catawba, who helped lead the Catawba Indians to the SAC regular-season title; Reggie Bratton from Lenoir-Rhyne; Sean Dixon from Presbyterian; Chris Poore from Tusculum and Justin Baker from Wingate. A tie in the voting expanded the first team to seven members.

The men's All-Conference Second Team consists Kente Hart from Carson-Newman; Josh Kindred from Lenoir-Rhyne; Clemente Martin from Newberry; Grant Herren from Presbyterian and Bryan Grier from Wingate.

Catawba's Antonio Houston, a freshman from Charlotte, N.C. (East Mecklenburg HS) who played a big part in the Indians' championship, was named Freshman of the Year. He averaged 16.4 points, third best in the conference, and was fifth in the league in 3-pointers made per game. He was joined on the All-Freshman Team by Jordan Dixon of Carson-Newman; Beau Brown of Lincoln Memorial; Stoney Polite from Mars Hill and Kendrick Johnson from Newberry.

Catawba coach Jim Baker, who guided the Indians to the regular-season championship, was named men's Coach of the Year. He wins this award for the fifth time in his career.

Joining Barrett on the women's All-Conference First Team are: Ne'Keithia Howard of Catawba; Amber Holt from Lenoir-Rhyne; Abby DeBusk from Mars Hill; Tonique Frasier from Newberry and Emily Paffrath from Wingate. Holt, a freshman from Charlotte, N.C. (Hopewell HS), was named the SAC Freshman of the Year. She averaged 14.4 points in her first season, ranking fourth in the league.

Named to the women's All-Conference Second Team are: Denise Moore from Lenoir-Rhyne; Allison Schafer from Mars Hill; Monica Alexander from Newberry; Morgan Johnson from Presbyterian and Anna Atkinson from Wingate.

Joining Holt on the women's All-Freshman team are: Shari Buford and Casha Foster from Carson-Newman; Jami Safrit from Lenoir-Rhyne and Andi Winney from Lincoln Memorial.

Wingate coach Johnny Jacumin, who led the Bulldogs to their fourth consecutive conference championship, was named Coach of the Year. Jacumin, who is retiring after this season, wins the award for the third time in his career.

The SAC Scholar Athlete Awards go to Anna Atkinson of Wingate and Chris Poore of Tusculum.

Atkinson, a Second-Team All-Conference selection, is a sophomore with a 4.0 GPA as biology major. She was the 2006 SAC Freshman of the Year and was named to the Women's Division II All-Freshman Team. This year she finished second in the league in assists, and led the league in steals and assist-to-turnover ratio.

She was named to the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District III First Team. She is a member of Phi Eta Sigma National Honor Society and was named Wingate's Freshman Chemist of the Year.

On campus and in the community, Atkinson has volunteered with various charitable fundraisers, including St. Jude's Hospital and Crimestoppers. She has donated child care service to a disabled child and is a member of Fellowship of Christian Athletes, Pre-Professional Health Care Organization and Wingate University Biology Club.

Poore is a senior with a 3.44 GPA as a physical education major. He has been named to the SAC Commissioner's Honor Roll, the Tusculum Athletic Director's Honor Roll, the Tusculum Dean's List and is a member of the Tusculum Physical Education Club.

Poore was named to the All-Conference Second Team. He leads the Pioneers in scoring and rebounding and ranked eighth in the league in scoring and 10th in rebounding. He ranks sixth all-time in field-goal percentage at Tusculum.

On campus and in the community, Poore volunteers with Nettie Day service projects and Boys and Girls Club projects. He has participated in reading to elementary school students and coached a youth softball team. He was a volunteer for Relay for Life and assists with Bible study at a local church.

The SAC Scholar Athlete Award is presented to one athlete from each of the SAC's 14 sports programs and represents a combination of athletic skill, academic achievement, and participation in community service and leadership roles.

The 2007 Food Lion South Atlantic Conference men's and women's basketball tournament begins Monday with first-round games at campus sites. Quarterfinals are schedule for Wednesday. The semifinals and finals will be held at Catawba Valley Community College in Hickory, N.C. on Saturday and Sunday. Tournament winners receive an automatic bid into the NCAA Division II National Championship Tournament.

2007 ALL-CONFERENCE TEAMS AND AWARD RECIPIENTS

MEN'S TEAMS
ALL-SAC FIRST TEAM
Brian Graves, Catawba
Chris Wooldridge, Catawba
Reggie Bratton, Lenoir-Rhyne
Sean Dixon, Presbyterian
Chris Poore, Tusculum
Sean Barnette, Wingate
Justin Baker, Wingate

ALL-SAC SECOND TEAM
Kente Hart, Carson-Newman
Josh Kindred, Lenoir-Rhyne
Clemente Martin, Newberry
Grant Herren, Presbyterian
Bryan Grier, Wingate

ALL-FRESHMAN TEAM
Jordan Dixon, Carson-Newman
Antonio Houston, Catawba
Beau Brown, Lincoln Memorial
Stoney Polite, Mars Hill
Kendrick Johnson, Newberry

COACH OF THE YEAR: Jim Baker, Catawba
PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Sean Barnette, Wingate
FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR: Antonio Houston, Catawba
SAC SCHOLAR-ATHLETE: Chris Poore, Tusculum

WOMEN'S TEAMS
ALL-SAC FIRST TEAM
Ne'Keithia Howard, Catawba
Amber Holt, Lenoir-Rhyne
Abby DeBusk, Mars Hill
Tonique Frasier, Newberry
Tanetra Barrett, Wingate
Emily Paffrath, Wingate

ALL-SAC SECOND TEAM
Denise Moore, Lenoir-Rhyne
Allison Schafer, Mars Hill
Monica Alexander, Newberry
Morgan Johnson, Presbyterian
Ashli Oliver, Tusculum
Anna Atkinson, Wingate

ALL-FRESHMAN TEAM
Shari Buford, Carson-Newman
Casha Foster, Carson-Newman
Amber Holt, Lenoir-Rhyne
Jami Safrit, Lenoir-Rhyne
Andi Winney, Lincoln Memorial

COACH OF THE YEAR: Johnny Jacumin, Wingate
PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Tanetra Barrett, Wingate
FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR: Amber Holt, Lenoir-Rhyne
SAC SCHOLAR-ATHLETE: Anna Atkinson, Wingate

MEN'S AND WOMEN'S BASKETBALL STATISTICAL CHAMPIONS

The SAC Statistical Champion Award recognizes those individuals and teams that have finished the regular season as SAC leaders in various overall statistical categories. Individual leaders must have participated in 75 percent of the team's games.
MEN'S BASKETBALL
Individual Scoring - Sean Barnette, Wingate, 21.0
Individual Rebounds Per Game - Bryan Grier, Wingate, 7.9
Individual Field Goal Percentage - Bryan Grier, Wingate, .672
Individual Assists Per Game - Brian Graves, Catawba, 6.41
Individual Steals Per Game - Beau Brown, Lincoln Memorial; Kai Wells, Lincoln Memorial, 2.37
Individual 3-Point Field Goal Percentage - Jordan Lear, Tusculum, .477
Individual 3-Pointers Per Game - David Lopez, Lincoln Memorial, 3.12
Individual Blocked Shots Per Game - Bryan Grier, Wingate, 3.26
Individual Free Throw Percentage - Bill Smith, Wingate, .881
Individual Assist-to-Turnover Ratio - Tyler White, Tusculum, 2.31
Team Scoring Offense - Wingate, 84.4
Team Field Goal Percentage - Lenoir-Rhyne, .494
Team Field Goal Percentage Defense - Tusculum, .409
Team 3-Point Field Goal Percentage - Presbyterian, .393
Team Assists - Catawba 16.63
Team Steals - Lincoln Memorial, 9.37
Team Scoring Defense - Presbyterian, 62.6
Team Rebounding - Wingate, 41.6
Team Free Throw Percentage - Carson-Newman, .750
Team Blocked Shots - Wingate, 6.67
Team Scoring Margin - Lenoir-Rhyne, +6.5
Team Assist-to-Turnover Ratio - Catawba, 1.11

WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
Individual Scoring - Tanetra Barrett, Wingate, 19.1
Individual Rebounds Per Game - Morgan Johnson, Presbyterian, 9.8
Individual Field Goal Percentage - Morgan Johnson, Presbyterian, .603
Individual Assists Per Game - Brooke Underwood, Tusculum, 7.81
Individual Steals Per Game - Anna Atkinson, Wingate, 2.33
Individual Free Throw Percentage - Tanetra Barrett, Wingate, .821
Individual 3-Point Field Goal Percentage - Abby DeBusk, Mars Hill, .479
Individual 3-Pointers Per Game - Ashli Oliver, Tusculum, 3.52
Individual Blocked Shots Per Game - Emily Paffrath, Wingate, 2.32
Individual Assist-to-Turnover Ratio - Anna Atkinson, Wingate, 2.82
Team Scoring Offense - Wingate, 72.9
Team Field Goal Percentage - Mars Hill, .448
Team Field Goal Percentage Defense - Wingate, .385
Team 3-Point Field Goal Percentage - Mars Hill, .369
Team Assists - Wingate, 16.37
Team Steals - Newberry, 11.56
Team Scoring Defense - Newberry, 54.0
Team Rebounding - Carson-Newman, 43.2
Team Free Throw Percentage - Mars Hill, .735
Team Blocked Shots - Tusculum, 5.07
Team Scoring Margin - Newberry, 11.7
Team Assist-to-Turnover Ratio - Wingate, 1.10

2006-07 SAC MEN'S AND WOMEN'S SENIOR AWARD RECIPIENTS

Carson-Newman
Kente Hart
Cassie Burks

Catawba
Brian Graves
Ahmad Murphy
Chris Wooldridge
Andrew Jones
Andrell Baxter
Gia Colombo
Tamekia Foster
Ingrid Easter
Erica Tackett

Lenoir-Rhyne
Eric Mauldin
Stephen Hinds
Marcus Springs
Ashley Gordon
Maggie Womack

Lincoln Memorial
Kai Wells
David Lopez
Artavius Mitchell
Joplin Johnson
Latoya Johnson
Madeline Richards
Kelsi Salas
Betsy Bowser
Wisemane Alcema

Mars Hill
Matt Williams
Chris Aline
Jamison McIver
Laura Snider
Abby DeBusk

Newberry
Zach Chandler
Alonzo Hinds
Tommy Burke
Eric Nwawel
Tygress Hope

Presbyterian
Sean Dixon
Grant Herren
Quinton Ferrell
Ryan Koppel
Brian Epperly

Tusculum
Tyler White
Larry Minnefee
Chris Poore
Gabe Story
Serge Poppe
Eric Williams
Chassity Martin
Brooke Underwood

Wingate
Tee Overman
Shaun Kirkland
Bill Smith
Justin Baker
Tanetra Barrett
Lakin Byer
Petra Nagy
Kerri Metzker
Emily Paffrath