FARMINGTON, Utah — With regular season success comes the postseason accolades and Eastern Washington women's basketball earned the big awards this season. Separating herself on the court all season,
Jamie Loera earned Big Sky Player of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year, as well as two more honors. Head coach
Joddie Gleason earned Coach of the Year in her third season leading the Eagles. The Big Sky announced the award winners today.
EWU Honorees in 2023-24 Big Sky Women's Basketball Awards
Eastern now has 18 All-Big Sky first team and 13 second team selections since 1984. EWU now has three Big Sky Player of the Year and two Coach of the Year awards.
Joddie Gleason - Coach of the Year
Gleason is Eastern's second Coach of the Year recipient, joining Wendy Schuler who earned the award in the 2009-10 season.
Under Gleason's leadership this season, EWU set a program record in single season wins (26 currently) and conference wins (16). The 2023-24 Eagles also own the two longest win streaks in program history with a 10-game streak (Dec. 21-Jan. 27) and a nine-game streak (Feb. 3-current). The staple of the team is its defense, allowing 55.8 points per game that ranks first in the Big Sky and 18th in the NCAA. Eastern leads the conference in field goal defense (36.5%) and three-point defense (29.3%). The figures rank 22nd and 91st in the nation respectively.
The Eagles average 8.6 steals per game to rank second in the Big Sky. With a plus-5.2 turnover margin, the team ranks 17th in the NCAA. EWU is sixth in the nation with only 11.5 turnovers per game.
Jamie Loera - Player of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year, First Team All-Conference, All-Defensive Team
Loera earns the program's third Player of the Year award, joining Jule Piper (2010) and Brianne Ryan (2012). It is Eastern's fifth Defensive Player of the Year award as Loera earns the honor for the second-straight season. EWU's other recipients include Michelle Demetruk (2003), Joanna Chadd (2006) and Brianne Ryan (2010).
Loera affects all aspects of the game, leading the team in rebounds (5.9), assists (5.5) and steals (2.4). The Moses Lake, Wash. native leads the Big Sky in steals, while being second in assists and assist-to-turnover ratio (2.0). Nationally, Loera ranks 23rd in assists per game and 41st in steals per game, along with being 64th in assist-to-turnover ratio. Her rebounding figure is good for 11th in the conference. Against Portland State (12/28), Loera matched the program record with seven steals.
Loera averages 13.3 points per game to rank eighth on the conference leaderboard. She is shooting 41.2 percent overall and 41.2 from three-point range. For the season, Loera has three double-doubles and three 20-point games. She had a season-high 21 points against Weber State (2/17) and 12 assists against Utah State (11/10).
The graduate student earned Big Sky Player of the Week twice this season and was Co-Player of the Week once.
Aaliyah Alexander - First Team All-Conference
Alexander stepped into the role as the team's leading scorer, averaging 15.0 points per game. The figure ranks third in the Big Sky and Alexander has five, 20-point scoring games this season. She set a career-high with 31 points against Northern Arizona (1/27) earlier this season. Overall, Alexander has double digit scoring games in 26 of the team's 31 games.
From the floor, Alexander is shooting 42.4 to rank fifth in the Big Sky. The Federal Way, Wash. has a 78.2 free throw percentage to rank seventh in the conference.
Alexander has developed into a two-way player, averaging 5.3 rebounds per game. The stat ranks 21st in the Big Sky. The redshirt-sophomore has three double-doubles this season.
For the Eagles, Alexander is third on the team with 43 steals and 25 steals. Alexander was named Big Sky Player of the Week twice this season.
Jaleesa Lawrence - Second Team All-Conference
Lawrence has played multiple roles this season, making 24 starts and playing in all 31 games. Lawrence's growth this season is apparent, sitting third on Eastern with 10.7 points per game, also ranking 19th in the conference. The Meridian, Idaho native is shooting 41.7 percent this season, holding a 31.0 percent mark from three-point range. This season, Lawrence has three, 20-point games and 14 games scoring in double digits.
Lawrence matched her career-high in scoring with 23 points twice this season, posting the total against Southern Utah (11/8) and Omaha (1/3).
Adding to her scoring ability, Lawrence is second on the team in steals (42), third in blocks (11) and fourth in assists (35).
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ABOUT EASTERN WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY ATHLETICS
Eastern Washington University Athletics sponsors 14 intercollegiate sports, six for men and eight for women, both as learning opportunities for its most athletically talented students and as an enhancement to student and community life. Eastern is affiliated with Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and is a member of the Big Sky Conference, an association of 10 regional schools with comparable enrollments and academic goals.
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