Washington U.’s Melissa Gilkey Named to Honorable Mention All-America by WBCA, D3Hoops.com

WBCA ALL-AMERICA

D3HOOPS.COM ALL-AMERICA

St. Louis, Mo., March 15, 2013 – Washington University in St. Louis sophomore forward Melissa Gilkey was selected to the 2013 Women’s Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) Division III Coaches’ All-America Honorable Mention Team, and also received All-America honorable mention honors from D3Hoops.com.

Gilkey is the 11th player in school history to receive All-America honors from the WBCA. She is one of just three players to earn the recognition in her sophomore season, joining Amy Schweizer (honorable mention, 1995-96) and Alia Fischer (first team, 1997-98). Overall, Washington University’s 11 honorees have earned 16 WBCA All-America accolades. Gilkey was Washington U.'s first sophomore to receive All-America recognition from D3Hoops.com. Four other WUSTL student-athletes have earned five All-America awards from the website.

Gilkey was one of 40 players recognized on the 2013 WBCA All-America Team, with 10 named to the first team and 30 to the honorable mention. Two other players from the University Athletic Association (UAA) also received honorable mention accolades – senior center Misha Jackson of Emory University and sophomore guard Ally Zywicki of the University of Rochester. Gilkey and Zywicki were two of just five sophomores recognized on the All-America Team. Case Western Reserve University senior guard Evy Iacono was the only other UAA athlete named to the D3Hoops.com All-America team, joining Gilkey on the honorable mention.

A first-team All-Central Region honoree by D3Hoops.com, Gilkey was also a first-team all-UAA selection this season. She led the Bears with 15.4 points and 7.3 rebounds per game, while also recording 29 blocked shots, 31 steals and 28 assists. Gilkey, who was the leading scorer for the Bears in 17 games, tallied seven double-doubles and scored in double figures in 25 of 28 games played in 2012-13. She topped the 20-point mark seven times, including a career-high 25 points in Washington U.’s 82-73 win over Southwestern College (Texas) Dec. 30.

Gilkey was named to the D3Hoops.com Team of the Week for games played Dec. 17-30, and was the UAA Athlete of the Week Jan. 5. She has started all 56 career games at Washington U., recording 723 points and 402 rebounds in her first two collegiate seasons. She has 67 career blocks, which ranks ninth on Washington University’s all-time career leaderboard. Gilkey also ranks 10th on the career free-throw percentage list (.739).

Washington University ended the season with a 22-6 record, advancing to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Division III Women’s Basketball Championship for the 15th time in school history. It marked the 24th-consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance for the Bears.