March 8, 2023
Asbury Men's and Women's Basketball Honored with NCCAA Mideast Region Awards
GREENVILLE, SC. --- Six players and both head coaches from the men's and women's basketball teams were recently honored by the NCCAA for their performance during the 2022-23 season. Split evenly between both squads:
Nick Fort,
Caleb Wallis, and
Dakota Walden represent the men's team; representing the women's team includes
Trinity Shearer,
Jaclynn Ruble, and
Haleigh Releford.
Women's Basketball Awards
Trinity Shearer, the junior guard from Stanford, Ky., was named to the NCCAA First Team All-Mideast Region Team for AU women's basketball. Shearer has played in all 27 games this year, averaging 13.6 points and 5.3 rebounds per game. Trinity leads Asbury in steals on the year with a total of 70. Last season Shearer gathered 71 steals, the second most every for an Asbury Eagle. Courtney Albin holds the record for 86 steals in a season set in the 2008-09 season. Trinity heads to the NCCAA National Tournament just 17 steals short of the shool record.
Jaclynn Ruble, the senior from Lawrenceburg, Ky., was named to the NCCAA Second Team All-Mideast Region Team. Ruble leads the team in threes with 39 made this year and recently became a part of the Asbury 1,000 career point club on February 14th against Kentucky State.
Haleigh Releford, the sophomore from Stanford, Ky was named to the NCCAA Second Team All-Mideast Region Team for the 2022-23 season. Releford leads AU in scoring with 13.8 points per game along with an average of 5.3 rebounds per game. Releford also leads the team in made field goals with 135 for the season. Releford is only six steals behind Shearer with 64 and seven steals short of being third all time for most in a season.
Men's Basketball Awards
Nick Fort, the graduate student from Shelbyville, Ky was named the NCCAA Mideast Region Player of the Year for the second straight season. Fort was also named a member of the NCCAA First Team All-Mideast Region for his incredible final season at Asbury. The six-foot-six forward is currently second in the entire NCCAA in points per game (24.4) and leads the NCCAA in rebounds per game (10.8) with a total of 16 double-doubles.
Caleb Wallis, the junior transfer from Jackson, Oh., was named to the NCCAA First Team All-Mideast Region Team. The five-foot-ten guard brings in a total of 88 rebounds, 101 made field goals, and leads the team in assists with 87.
Dakota Walden, the senior from Owensboro, Ky., was named to the Second Team All-Mideast Region Team. Walden ties Wallis with made field goals and ties Fort with steals (33). Starting all 24 games this season puts Walden with an average of 12 points per game.
Men's and Women's Basketball Coaching Awards
Will Shouse, Asbury men's basketball coach in his 15th year, and
Chad Mayes, Asbury women's basketball coach entering his fifth year, have both been named NCCAA DI Mideast Region Coaches' of the Year. Mayes was named the NCCAA Mideast Region Women's Basketball Coach of the Year while Shouse was named the NCCAA Mideast Region Men's Basketball Coach of the Year.
Both teams have punched their tickets through region championships to compete in the NCCAA National Tournaments hosted at Grace College in Winona Lake, In. Each team will begin their National Tournament competition next Wednesday, March 15th in Winona Lake.
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