This week had one of the strongest groups of performances all season. The group of six finalists for women’s player of the week compiled several career-highs and wrote their names in the program record books.
The nominees are the following: Meghan Andersen (Fairfield), LaReesha Cawthorn (Tennessee Tech), Erin Condron (UC San Diego), Timaya Lewis-Eutsey (Marshall), Elodie Lutbert (Tarleton State) and Olivia Owens (San Diego).
Meghan Andersen (Fairfield)
Andersen went off against Marist and scored a program-record 40 points in the Stags’109-48 win. She nearly outscored the Red Foxes by herself as she shot 15-for-20 from the field and 8-for-10 from downtown as she edged the previous record by one point. The junior also pulled down eight rebounds.
The Wantagh, N.Y., native closed the week with 14 points in a win over Iona. She averaged 27 points per game while converting 70% from the floor and 67% from deep in just 25.4 minutes of action.
Anderson is third in the MAAC in scoring at 16.7 points per game this season. She leads the conference at 42.9% from 3-point land.
LaReesha Cawthorn (Tennessee Tech)
Cawthorn had a monster game with 27 points and 27 rebounds in a 75-70 overtime win over Eastern Illinois. That’s the most rebounds in a game for a Golden Eagle player since the 1975-76 season. The freshman was a big spark in TTU’s comeback as she had 17 points and 13 boards in the second half as the Golden Eagles outscored the Panthers 22-8 in the fourth quarter. She also had four blocks.
The forward from Kentucky preceded that performance with another double-double as she registered 15 points and 14 rebounds in a loss to Western Illinois. She began the three-game week with 11 points and six rebounds in a win at Tennessee State.
Erin Condron (UC San Diego)
Condronpoured in a Tritons’ Division-I single-game record with 32 points in a 64-53 win at Long Beach State. She pulled down 13 rebounds for a double-double. The Australian converted 14 of her 16 free throw attempts, which was also a Tritons D-I program record, and shot 60% (9-for-15) from the field.
She reached double figures for a 20th time in 25 games this season with 12 points, five rebounds and a career-best three blocks in a win over Hawai‘i. The big averaged 22 points, nine rebounds, 2.5 blocks and 1.5 steals per game for the week.
Timaya Lewis-Eutsey (Marshall)
Lewis-Eutsey had a career day in the Thundering Herd’s 88-81 win over Central Michigan in the MAC-SBC Challenge. She notched career highs with 36 points and eight steals. She shot 14-of-25 from the field and grabbed four rebounds as well. The guard from Trenton, N.J., is the second player this season with a 35-point, eight-steal game, joining Notre Dame’s Hannah Hidalgo. She’s had five 30-point games. The senior opened the week with 17 points and six assists in Marshall’s win over South Alabama.
Elodie Lutbert (Tarleton State)
Lutbert registered consecutive double-doubles this week. She opened the week with 16 points and 13 rebounds in a loss at Abilene Christian. She followed it up with 15 points and another 13 boards versus in a loss to California Baptist.
The freshman center delivered in the biggest moment in the Texans’ biggest comeback at the Division-I level. She scored the go-ahead basket with 55 seconds left as TSU overcame an 18-point deficit to defeat Southern Utah 59-57. She finished the game with nine points. She averaged 13.3 points and 9.7 rebounds per game for the week.
Olivia Owens (San Diego)
Owens had a couple of statsheet-stuffing games this week. The freshman from Columbus, Ohio, poured in a career-high 31 points to go along with 11 rebounds and six assists in a loss to Washington State. She shot 10-of-20 from the floor and 4-of-7 from deep. That’s the second 30-point double-double in the WCC this season. (Lauren Whittaker of Gonzaga had the other.) The guard closed the week with 20 points, 13 rebounds and seven assists in the Toreros’ win over Seattle U. She averaged 25.5 points, 12.5 rebounds and 6.5 assists per game.