March 5, 2013

FRISCO, Texas - The Southland Conference, as part of its year-long 50th Anniversary commemoration, has announced its All-Decade Women's Basketball Team from the 1990s. A total of 20 student-athletes make up the 1990s All-Decade Team with at least one player from six member institutions during that period.

Jennifer Boniol, Natasha Johnson and Tayna Strong represented UT Arlington on the All-Decade Team for the SLC.

Boniol and Strong were both named Newcomer of the Year for the SLC as they immediately made an impact for the Mavericks. Johnson is second in the Mavericks history book in the 1,000-point club with 1,695 points scored for UTA. Strong averaged 9.8 rebounds during her career at UTA, which ranks her third overall for the Mavs.

In addition to the selection of the 20 all-decade players, two of the picks, Katrina Price (1994-98) of Stephen F. Austin and Joskeen Garner (1992-96) of Northwestern State, were selected as the Co-Players of the Decade.

Price was a four-time all-conference selection and a two-time conference player of the year while being named the 1995 Freshman of the Year and tournament most outstanding player in 1998. During her time at SFA, the Ladyjacks won three regular-season titles and three conference tournaments, earning trips to the NCAA tournament each time. In the three tournament appearances, the Ladyjacks earned three wins including a trip to the 1996 Sweet 16. Price led the league in scoring in 1997 and 1998 with 19.6 and 22.0 points per game, respectively. The Waco, Texas, native still ranks as one of the top five scorers in Southland history.

Garner is one of three players ever to earn first-team all-conference all four years. During her time at Northwestern State, Garner was named the 1995 and 1996 Southland Player of the Year and was tabbed as the league's top freshman in 1993. The Lady Demons won the regular season in 1995 and earned a berth in the Women's National Invitational Tournament in 1993 and 1995. In the 1993 WNIT, the Lady Demons won the consolations bracket after dropping the opening game, and in 1995, Northwestern State reached the championship game. Garner led the conference in rebounding from 1993-96 and is second all-time in career rebounding for players who spent all four seasons in the Southland. The Florien, La., native still ranks in the career top 10 in scoring (1,985), field goals made (829), rebounds (1,388), rebounding average (11.6), steals (353), steals average (2.9), blocks (211) and blocking average (1.8).

Price was joined on the all-decade team with eight other Ladyjacks including Deneen Parker (1989-93), a two-time player of the year selection and 1993 tournament MVP. Forward/centers Latonia Bonnett (1992-96) Lori Davis (1989-93), Anitra Davis (1995-99) and Christie Smith (1993-97), guards Stacy Brown-Hargrove (1989-92) and Dayna Reed (1987-91) and forward Trenia Tillis (1990-94) are the remaining Ladyjacks represented on the all-decade team.

Along with Garner, five Lady Demons appear on the all-decade team featuring guard Judy Clark (1996-00), who was named Player of the Year in 1999 and Freshman of the Year in 1997. Garner and Clark are joined by guards Angela Simpson (1992-96) and Kim Hill (1991-93) and forward Anika Moore (1990-93).

Sam Houston State's Sirena Autman (1987-91) also earned all-decade recognition, along with Louisiana-Monroe's Crystal Steward (1990-94) and Texas State's Yolanda Wilkerson (1994-97).

The 1990s all-decade team consists of six conference players of the year, three of whom were multiple honorees, four freshmen of the year, three newcomers of the year and a four-time first-team all-conference selection.

The Co-Head Coaches of the Decade honor went to Stephen F. Austin's Gary Blair, who coached the Ladyjacks from the 1989-90 season through the 1992-93 season, and Northwestern State's James Smith, who coached the Lady Demons throughout the decade.

At SFA, Blair led the Ladyjacks to four conference regular-season and tournament titles while advancing to the NCAA tournament each year. He never lost an opening NCAA game while at SFA and led the Ladyjacks to national rankings of No. 4 (1991-92), No. 6 (1989-90), No. 12 (1992-93) and No. 14 (1990-91) while being named conference coach of the year four consecutive years. From 1990-93 Blair posted a 110-16 overall record including a near perfect 62-2 mark in conference play. Blair was inducted in the SFA Hall of Fame in 2008, the Southland Conference Hall of Honor in 2009 and the Texas Sports Hall of Fame in 2011. In June 2013, Blair, the current head coach at Texas A&M, will be one of six members inducted into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame.

Smith led the Lady Demons to regular-season titles in 1995 and 1999 with a trip to the Women's National Invitational championship game in 1995. Northwestern State also appeared in the WNIT in 1993, winning the consolation bracket. In the decade, Northwestern State made it to the conference championship five times and averaged more than 19 wins per season. Smith coached two different conference players of the year, two freshmen of the year and a newcomer of the year in the 1990s. In the decade, Smith posted a 191-96 overall record with a 116-52 conference record. Smith, who became the winningest coach in conference women's basketball history during his time at Northwestern State, was inducted into the Southland Hall of Honor in 2005.

The Southland Conference has previously announced the All-Decade Teams in the 1960, 1970 and 1980s and will recognize the All-Decade Team for the 2000s later this week.

To best assess the candidate pool for the all-decade team, the Southland Conference developed a metric that analyzed numerous elements of a student-athlete's performance and value within the league at the time. Most notably, the Conference honored `real-time" factors such as all-conference selection by coaches and a player's statistical performance among his peers at the time. Further, other components of selection including a player's effort toward helping her team win a championship or finish near the top of the conference, whether she earned individual honors from the league and if she participated in postseason tournaments.

 

Southland Conference 1990s All-Decade Women's Basketball Team

                                                                                                                                                      

Co-Players of the Decade:                                                                                           

Katrina Price, Stephen F. Austin, 1994-98

Joskeen Garner, Northwestern State, 1992-96                                                        

                                                                                                                                                      

Co-Head Coaches of the Decade:                                                                                                      

Gary Blair, Stephen F. Austin

James Smith, Northwestern State