WBCA AWARDS: Rueck West Region Coach of the Year, Shielee All-America Finalist

NEWBERG, Ore. – A record-shattering year for the George Fox University women’s basketball team has earned coach Scott Rueck the Rawlings Athletic/WBCA West Region Coach of the Year award in the NCAA Division III, while center Kristen Shielee has been named a finalist for the State Farm Coaches’ All-America Basketball Team as voted on by members of the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association.

Rueck, who recently received his third consecutive Northwest Conference Coach of the Year award and sixth overall, has guided this year’s Bruins to a 28-0 record and national rankings of No. 2 in the USA Today / ESPN / WBCA NCAA Division III poll and No. 3 in the D3hoops.com poll.  The Bruins won the conference title with a 16-0 record, won the NWC Tournament to earn the league’s automatic bid to the NCAA National Championship Tournament, defeated Chapman University in the second round after receiving the only first-round bye in the playoffs, and now face Oglethorpe University in the “Sweet 16” Friday at Thomas More College in Crestview Hills, Ky.

Rueck also earned NWC Coach of the Year honors in 1999-2000, 2000-01, 2004-05, 2006-07, and 2007-08, taking the Bruins to NWC championships or co-championships in each of those seasons.  He was named the West Region Coach of the Year by D3hoops.com last year. In his 13 years at George Fox, the Bruins have never had a losing season, and have had winning records in 16 straight seasons, counting the previous three seasons under Sherrie Murrell.  His overall record is 256-85, a .751 winning percentage. 

This season’s success, however, has been achieved despite having lost seven seniors and all five starters from last year’s team that went 25-5 and reached the “Sweet 16” before losing to then-No. 1 Hope College.  With a roster of only four returning letter winners and 10 freshmen, the Bruins were picked to finish fifth in the conference in the pre-season coaches’ poll.  Instead, they reeled off only the second undefeated conference season ever, with only two league games decided by less than 10 points.  The Bruins have established school records for wins, best start to a season, and longest winning streak.   

George Fox has an 8-5 record in NCAA Tournament play, having advanced to the playoffs six times in the school’s 10 years of NCAA eligibility.  The Bruins reached the “Sweet 16” round in ’00, ’05, ’08, and this year, and the “Elite 8” in ’05.

One of the biggest reasons for the Bruins’ remarkable record has been the play of Shielee, the 2008-09 Northwest Conference Player of the Year.  A native of Gresham, Ore., she follows two-time winner Katy Campbell in giving the Bruins three consecutive NWC Player of the Year awards. 

Shielee averages 12.2 points per game, ninth in the conference, and 9.6 rebounds, which ranks third, but it is her imposing 6-4 presence in the middle on defense that truly sets her apart.  She has shattered the George Fox single-season record for blocked shots this year with 104, and ranks sixth nationally in that category with 3.7 per game.  Her field goal percentage of .629 is third nationally and is well on a pace to set a new Bruin single season record.

During the season, Shielee recorded at least one block in 27 of the Bruins’ 28 games, with a record-tying high of 10 vs. Bridgewater in the Las Vegas Hoopla Tournament on Dec. 20.  In that same game, she scored 12 points and had a career-high 21 rebounds for the second triple-double in George Fox history.  She reached double figures in points 21 times, with a high of 20 vs. Puget Sound in the NWC Tournament championship game, and in rebounds 12 times, posting nine double-doubles. 

Shielee led the Bruins scoring five times and in rebounds 19 times.  She was named the NWC Women’s Basketball Student Athlete of the Week once (Dec. 15-Jan. 4), was nominated for the award four other times, and was a five-time winner of the Bruin Athletic Association’s Women’s Athlete of the Week.

Shielee is one of 42 finalists from the WBCA’s eight geographic regions who were voted upon by the member coaches of each region.  The entire pool of regional nominees is now eligible to be selected to the 10-member State Farm Coaches’ All-America Team. 

To see the entire list of regional Coaches of the Year or the All-America candidates, visit the WBCA web site at http://www.wbca.org/PressReleases.asp.