Harper Named WAC Player of the Year; Olaeta is Defensive Player of the Year
3/7/2022 11:01:00 AM | Women's Basketball
DENVER – The Western Athletic Conference announced on Monday that California Baptist University women's basketball forward Caitlyn Harper has been named the 2021-22 WAC Player of the Year. Last season's Player of the Year, CBU guard Ane Olaeta, has been named the WAC Defensive Player of the Year as both Lancers' make the cut for First Team All-WAC accolades.
Collecting the remaining major conference awards were Bree Calhoun, Seattle U, as Sixth Woman of the Year, Jamie Bonnarenas, Abiliene Christian, as Newcomer of the Year, Akasha Davis, Lamar, as Freshman of the Year, and Mark Kellogg, Stephen F. Austin, Coach of the Year. Harper's First Team honor makes her the third Lancer to earn a spot on the team since joining the conference in 2017-18, joining teammates Britney Thomas (2018-19 & 2020-21) and Olaeta (20-21 & 21-22). Olaeta breaks new ground as the program's first-ever Defensive Player of the Year honoree.
Harper, a redshirt-sophomore from Hartland, Wisconsin, led the conference in scoring with 523 total points, averaging 18.0 per game on 52.7 percent shooting from the field. She reached double figures in 27 of her 29 games played this season, topping 20 points 11 times during the year, and seven times in WAC play. Harper did it all, rebounding at an average of 6.0 per game, while also averaging 1.6 blocks and 1.3 steals per game.
Olaeta nabbed 2.6 steals per game while averaging 35.0 minutes per game, the third-highest per game amount in the WAC. She also maintained the best assist-to-turnover ratio in the league, 2.7 per game, and led the conference in assists-per-game for the fourth-straight year, dishing out 7.24 dimes per game and dolling out 210 assists total during the 2021-22 regular season.
This marks the ninth time since 1990-91 that a WAC team has had back-to-back Player of the Year winners (twice happening when the conference was split into divisions from 1994-2000). It is just the fourth time that the repeat winners were different players.
Post-season awards are nominated and voted on by all 13 conference head coaches. The top vote getter for First Team All-WAC is awarded Player of the Year honors, the same goes for the Defensive Player of the Year and Newcomer of the Year award categories.
Player of the Year: Caitlyn Harper, CBU
Defensive Player of the Year: Ane Olaeta, CBU
Sixth Woman of the Year: Bree Calhoun, SU
Newcomer of the Year: Jamie Bonnarens, ACU
Freshman of the Year: Akasha Davis, LU
Coach of the Year: Mark Kellogg, SFA
First-Team All-WAC
Jamie Bonnarens, ACU
Faith Cook, SHSU
Amara Graham, GCU
Caitlyn Harper, CBU
Aiyana Johnson, SFA
Ane Olaeta, CBU
Stephanie Visscher, SFA
Josie Williams, UVU
Second-Team All-WAC
Bree Calhoun, SU
Maria Carvalho, UVU
Aaliyah Collins, CSU
Akasha Davis, LU
Emily Isaacson, DSU
Zya Nugent, SFA
Taylor Muff, UTRGV
Bigue Sarr, NMSU
All-Defensive Team
Madelyn Batista, SHSU
Bree Calhoun, SU
Brianna Mitchell, SFA
Ane Olaeta, CBU
Stephanie Visscher, SFA
All-Newcomer Team
Jamie Bonnarens, ACU
Aaliyah Collins, CSU
Shanaijah Davison, DSU
Taylor Muff, UTRGV
Bigue Sarr, NMSU
Collecting the remaining major conference awards were Bree Calhoun, Seattle U, as Sixth Woman of the Year, Jamie Bonnarenas, Abiliene Christian, as Newcomer of the Year, Akasha Davis, Lamar, as Freshman of the Year, and Mark Kellogg, Stephen F. Austin, Coach of the Year. Harper's First Team honor makes her the third Lancer to earn a spot on the team since joining the conference in 2017-18, joining teammates Britney Thomas (2018-19 & 2020-21) and Olaeta (20-21 & 21-22). Olaeta breaks new ground as the program's first-ever Defensive Player of the Year honoree.
Harper, a redshirt-sophomore from Hartland, Wisconsin, led the conference in scoring with 523 total points, averaging 18.0 per game on 52.7 percent shooting from the field. She reached double figures in 27 of her 29 games played this season, topping 20 points 11 times during the year, and seven times in WAC play. Harper did it all, rebounding at an average of 6.0 per game, while also averaging 1.6 blocks and 1.3 steals per game.
Olaeta nabbed 2.6 steals per game while averaging 35.0 minutes per game, the third-highest per game amount in the WAC. She also maintained the best assist-to-turnover ratio in the league, 2.7 per game, and led the conference in assists-per-game for the fourth-straight year, dishing out 7.24 dimes per game and dolling out 210 assists total during the 2021-22 regular season.
This marks the ninth time since 1990-91 that a WAC team has had back-to-back Player of the Year winners (twice happening when the conference was split into divisions from 1994-2000). It is just the fourth time that the repeat winners were different players.
Post-season awards are nominated and voted on by all 13 conference head coaches. The top vote getter for First Team All-WAC is awarded Player of the Year honors, the same goes for the Defensive Player of the Year and Newcomer of the Year award categories.
Player of the Year: Caitlyn Harper, CBU
Defensive Player of the Year: Ane Olaeta, CBU
Sixth Woman of the Year: Bree Calhoun, SU
Newcomer of the Year: Jamie Bonnarens, ACU
Freshman of the Year: Akasha Davis, LU
Coach of the Year: Mark Kellogg, SFA
First-Team All-WAC
Jamie Bonnarens, ACU
Faith Cook, SHSU
Amara Graham, GCU
Caitlyn Harper, CBU
Aiyana Johnson, SFA
Ane Olaeta, CBU
Stephanie Visscher, SFA
Josie Williams, UVU
Second-Team All-WAC
Bree Calhoun, SU
Maria Carvalho, UVU
Aaliyah Collins, CSU
Akasha Davis, LU
Emily Isaacson, DSU
Zya Nugent, SFA
Taylor Muff, UTRGV
Bigue Sarr, NMSU
All-Defensive Team
Madelyn Batista, SHSU
Bree Calhoun, SU
Brianna Mitchell, SFA
Ane Olaeta, CBU
Stephanie Visscher, SFA
All-Newcomer Team
Jamie Bonnarens, ACU
Aaliyah Collins, CSU
Shanaijah Davison, DSU
Taylor Muff, UTRGV
Bigue Sarr, NMSU
Players Mentioned
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