Tom Jessee Named SSC Coach of the Year, Three Spartans Tabbed All-SSC

MELBOURNE, Fla. - The Sunshine State Conference recognizes 15 women's basketball student-athletes as All-SSC in 2021-22. The University of Tampa, regular-season champions, boasts four All-SSC awards, including Coach of the Year.

Head coach Tom Jessee earned SSC Coach of the Year honors, as LaShayla Wright-Ponder earned a spot on the first team. Teammates Aliyah Abney and Dori Nagy were each recognized as second team performers.

Maya Price of Eckerd College collects SSC Player of the Year accolades. The 6-2 center paced the Tritons to a 19-3 overall record and a #3 seed in the conference tournament. The junior from Bury St. Edmunds, England, is fifth in SSC scoring per game (14.4) and rebounds per game (7.0) across 22 contests. She is also first in league blocks per game (2.2) and second in field-goal percentage (.558). Price is the second Eckerd player to be honored as Player of the Year, first since 2016-17¹.

All-SSC History: SSC Players and Coaches of the Year| All-SSC Teams

Eckerd's Lauryn Vieira earns Defensive Player of the Year accolades after piloting a Triton defense that led the league in opponent field-goal percentage (.328) and opponent three-point field-goal percentage (.264) during the regular season. The 5-3 sophomore point guard from Haute-Savoie, France, started all 22 games for Eckerd this season and ranks second in SSC minutes per game (35.5) and third in steals per game (2.2). Vieira is the second player in Eckerd's program history named Defensive Player of the Year².

Whitney Jacob from Florida Southern College takes Newcomer of the Year honors after averaging 16.6 points, 6.2 rebounds, 1.6 steals, and 29.0 minutes per game. The 5-11 graduate student forward from Parker, Colorado, played in 25 of the Moccasins' 26 games this season, starting 19 times. Jacob is the first women's basketball athlete from FSC to win the award.

Florida Southern's Sara Wohlgemuth and Lynn University's Rachel Romich share the Freshman of the Year honors in 2021-22. Wohlgemuth, a 5-4 guard from Madison, Connecticut, played in 26 games this season and averaged 6.2 points, 3.5 assists, 3.4 steals, and 26.5 minutes per game. Wohlgemuth becomes 10th FSC player named Freshman of the Year, first since 2015-16³.  Romich, a 5-9 guard from Groton, Massachusetts, led in SSC three-point field goal percentage (.479) in 2021-22. She was also Lynn's leading scorer, pouring in 293 points across 24 games. Romich is the second Fighting Knight to win the award and ends an 11-year Freshman of the Year drought for the program⁴.

Jessee is named Coach of the Year by his peers for the third consecutive season, sixth overall⁵. Jessee guided the Spartans to the program's seventh program title overall and second consecutive following a 17-3 conference record. Jesse now owns the second most Coach of the Year awards in SSC women's basketball history. He is also the first coach to win the award three straight seasons since 2000-01⁶.

Highlighting the repeat All-SSC winners are FSC's Julia Jenike and Tampa's Wright-Ponder, who earn their third consecutive First Team honors. Also repeating as First or Second Team All-SSC during their careers is Nagy of Tampa, Amanda Ulrich of Saint Leo University, and Nikki Tucker of Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University.

All-conference selections and individual award winners are determined by a vote of Sunshine State Conference head coaches with oversight and approval from member institution Athletic Directors.

Player of the Year: Maya Price, Eckerd

Defensive Player of the Year: Lauryn Vieira, Eckerd

Newcomer of the Year: Whitney Jacob, Florida Southern

Freshman of the Year: Sara Wohlgemuth, Florida Southern & Rachel Romich, Lynn

Coach of the Year: Tom Jessee, Tampa

* = 2020-21 All-SSC First Team                         ^ = 2019-20 All-SSC First Team                                ~ = 2019-20 All-SSC Second Team

† = 2019-20 All-SSC Newcomer Team             $ = 2019-20 Player of the Year                                ‡ = 2019-20 Newcomer of the Year

# = 2019-20 Freshman of the Year                   % = 2018-19 All-SSC First Team                                π = 2018-19 All-SSC Second Team

@ = 2018-19 All-SSC Newcomer Team            & = 2018-19 Newcomer of the Year                       Δ = 2017-18 All-SSC Newcomer Team

! = 2017-18 Newcomer of the Year                  × = 2017-18 Freshman of the Year

 1 Victoria Vine (2016-17) & Felecia Felton (2001-02)

2 Kacie Juday (2017-18)

3 Camile Giardina (2015-16), Megan Dzikas (2008-09), Chelsea Johnson (2007-08), Nicolle DiRaimo (2006-07), Lucresia West (2001-02), Allison Gerdeman (1992-93), Angie Robinson (1990-91), Stacey Ungashick (1989-90), Stacey Kreul (1987-88)

4 Kira Harvey (2009-10)

5 Tom Jessee (UT) Coach of the Year: 2002-03, 2009-10, 2013-14, 2019-20, 2020-21

6 Glenn Wilkes (Rollins) leads with nine Coach of the Year awards, Wilkes won three in a row from 1998-99 to 2000-01.