IRVINE, CALIF. » Hawaii took what the Big West dished out on Monday with a smile and a curt thank you. After all, there’s much more to claim this week.
Four Wahine players were honored with the announcement of the Big West Conference’s postseason awards, with the most notable being an All-BWC first-team selection for junior forward Kamilah Martin.
Junior guard Sydney Haydel was named Defensive Player of the Year for her lockdown perimeter play, and junior wing Shawna Kuehu was the Sixth Woman of the Year for her inspired appearances off the UH bench. Wing Ashleigh Karaitiana was named to the All-Freshman team for the third-seeded Wahine, who begin Big West tournament play on Wednesday at UC Irvine.
Kuehu and Karaitiana were also named as all-league honorable mentions, meaning they received votes from some of the Big West coaches but not enough to make the first or second teams.
"Looking at it, I kind of feel like, you know, every coach is going to say they want more," UH coach Laura Beeman said. "But with the athleticism, the ability (in the Big West) and how tight the race was down the stretch, I feel pretty good about what we got."
Beeman orchestrated a significant turnaround — from 11-19 to 17-12 and counting — in her first season at the program’s helm, but was not selected as Big West Coach of the Year. That went to Lynne Roberts, coach of regular-season champ Pacific (24-6, 14-4).
Cal Poly junior center Molly Schlemer was named the BWC Player of the Year, making her the fourth straight Mustang to receive the league’s highest individual player award. Some of the league’s coaches said that race came down to Schlemer (12.7 ppg, 6.8 rpg, .556 FG pct) and Martin (15.4 ppg, 9.8 rpg, .482 FG pct).
If that bothered the stoic Martin, she wasn’t letting it show.
"It feels great, coming into a new conference, not knowing what to expect," said Martin, a WAC first-team pick last season. "I just want to thank my coaches and my teammates because they believe in me; even when I’m not making shots or whatever, they still believe in me and keep me focused throughout the game and throughout practice. So I just want to thank them."
Beeman said Haydel was a "dark horse candidate" for the league’s defensive award because she didn’t necessarily have the statistics for it (besides a team-high 32 steals). But Haydel impressed the league’s coaches with her consistent physical play against their teams’ best offensive guards.
"I’m honored that I was even considered for the award, let alone receiving it," Haydel said. "Defense, for me, is the most important part of my game. To be recognized like that was a great honor."
Kuehu returned to form as an impact-maker this season after missing nearly all of last year. The Punahou product contributed 8.3 points and 4.9 rebounds per game with 19 blocks and 25 steals, all with a minutes average of less than 20 thanks to the bench role she prefers.
And Karaitiana (8.6 ppg, 4.4 rpg) was a key addition after redshirting last season. She was edged out for BWC Freshman of the Year by UC Riverside’s Brittany Crain.
"You know, I’m excited for the young ladies," Beeman said. "It’s great to see hard work pay off. … This is a very athletic, talented conference. So to all the young ladies who’ve received awards, it’s well deserved."
The Rainbow Wahine wasted little time putting aside award talk and got in a practice Monday at an auxiliary gym near UC Irvine’s Bren Events Center, where they will play a to-be-determined opponent in the second round. They were afforded a bye as the third seed and play the lowest-seeded survivor of today’s matches — No. 8 Cal State Fullerton vs. No. 5 Long Beach State (3 p.m.), and No. 7 UC Davis vs. No. 6 Cal State Northridge (5:30 p.m.).
