North Coast Athletic Conference Athletes of the Week | Jan. 7, 2025
 
Men’s Basketball Athlete of the Week – Cameron Smith, Denison
Denison senior guard Cameron Smith (Cleveland, OH/University School) helped lead the Big Red to a 4-0 record with wins over Hanover (82-70), Olivet (78-67), Ohio Wesleyan (92-63), and Kenyon (72-57). In the win over the Panthers, Smith recorded 10 points, five rebounds, three assists, and three steals. Against the Raiders, the guard tallied five rebounds, three points, one assist, and one steal. In conference play against the Battling Bishops, Smith led the Big Red with a season-high 20 points as he made 7-of-8 field goal attempts, which included shooting 5-for-6 from three-point range. He also recorded five rebounds, one assist, and one steal in the 29-point win. Against the Owls, Smith contributed 13 points, going 3-for-5 from deep, while also adding five rebounds, three assists, and two steals to his stat line. Over four games, the senior sank 63 percent of his field goal attempts, including going 10-for-19 from deep and averaged 11.5 points, 5.0 rebounds, 2.0 assists, and 1.75 steals per game.
 
Women’s Basketball Athlete of the Week – Ava Hassel, DePauw
DePauw senior guard Ava Hassel (Portsmourth, OH/Notre Dame) guided the Tigers to a 3-0 stretch with wins over Adrian (87-57), Milwaukee School of Engineering (MSOE) (69-47), and Hiram (81-42). Against the Bulldogs, the senior scored 21 points after shooting 8-for-12 from the floor, which included going 2-for-3 from three-point range, to go along with three rebounds, one assist, and one steal. Against the Raiders, Hassel posted 19 points, four rebounds, six assists, and five steals to propel the Tigers to the Amy Hasbrooke Memorial Tournament title and earn her Most Valuable Player honors. In the conference win over the Terriers, the senior reached the 1,000-point milestone after posting 14 points. The Portsmourth, Ohio native finished the game with five steals, four assists, and two rebounds. Over the three-game stretch, Hassel averaged 18.0 points, 3.7 assists, 3.7 steals, and 3.0 rebounds per game, while shooting 49 percent from the floor, 46 percent from deep, and 78 percent from the charity stripe.
 
NCAC Milestones & Records (Dec. 23 – Jan. 6)
 
Ohio Wesleyan, Women’s Basketball – Fifth-year guard Kasey Schipfer (Mechanicsburg, OH/Mechanicsburg) recorded 10 points against Principia on Dec. 30, raising her career total to 1,809 points, which moves her into second place on the all-time Ohio Wesleyan scoring list, passing Krista Jacobs (1,802, 1988-92) … Fifth-year point guard Elizabeth Homan (Cincinnati, OH/Anderson) was named the Bishop Classic/"Hoops for Hope" tournament's Most Valuable Player after setting a tournament single-game record with 12 assists on Dec. 30 and finishing with 19 assists during the tournament. The dozen assists against Principia broke the tournament single-game record, surpassing the mark of 10 set by Sarah McQuade against Penn State-DuBois on Dec. 29, 2011, and equaled by Megan Kuether against Goucher on Dec. 29, 2016, while the 19 overall assists surpassed the tournament mark of 16 set by Brittney Wilson of Franklin during the 2009-10 season … Sophomore post Macy Miller (Marysville, OH/Milford Center Fairbanks) was named to the Bishop Classic/”Hoops for Hope” all-tournament team after she recorded 24 points, 22 rebounds, five steals, three blocks, and one assist over two games.
 
Wooster, Men’s Basketball – The No. 6 Fighting Scots defeated the Wittenberg Tigers 67-57 on Saturday, marking their ninth-straight win in the rivalry. With the win, Wooster broke four previous eight-game winning streaks to claim the longest streak between the two teams. Wooster also set a new record with a 10-game lead (70-60) in the all-time series standings.