| Seniors Alison Brown (Phoenixville, Pa.) and Brittney Cross (Durham, N.H.) have been named co-captains of the Vermont women’s basketball team for the 2006-07 season. Head coach Sharon Dawley made the announcement today.
“I believe Alison and Brittney are great role models on and off the court and will give us great leadership next season,” stated Dawley.
“Alison has become more versatile through her hard work. She has done everything we’ve asked her to do to become a better basketball player. Alison brings a positive attitude to practice every day and she is a terrific role model in the classroom and on the court for our younger players,” continued Dawley.
Brown played her best basketball to date last season. She entered the 2005-06 season having played in 13 career games off the bench. This past season she played in 25 games and got the starting nod six times and set new career-highs in every category, including a team-high 15 points and eight rebounds at Binghamton this season. Brown was a valuable player in Vermont’s frontcourt and finished the year ranked second on the team in blocks.
“Brittney has improved each year to the point where she is one of the top defensive players and ranked among the league leaders in assist-to-turnover ratio this past season. She is a tremendous floor leader and role model for us. She is the one of the hardest working, most positive student-athletes that I’ve ever worked with. As our starting point guard we are looking for her to bring along our freshmen and sophomore guards next season,” said Dawley.
Cross, who will serve as a co-captain for the second straight year, surpassed her career statistics averages in nearly every category in 2005-06 alone. She finished the year leading America East in free throw percentage, ranking 27th overall in the country, shooting 85.9% from the line, the fourth-best percentage in a single-season at Vermont. Cross also led the league in steals (2.30 pg) and her 62 thefts on the year is the ninth-best mark in a single-season at Vermont.
Cross was the only Vermont player to start all 27 games, after entering the 2005-06 season with nine career starts under her belt. She finished the season ranked second on the team in scoring (9.3 ppg) and rebounding (4.1 rpg).
Vermont finished the 2005-06 season with a record of 9-18 overall and 5-11 in America East. | 