NORFOLK, Virginia -- Florida A&M senior guard Jasmine Grice was named the 2014 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Player of the Year as announced by the conference on Monday. Hampton’s Malia Tate-DeFreitas was selected the Rookie of the Year, while teammate Alyssa Bennett repeated as the Defensive Player of the Year. Hampton Head Coach David Six was named the MEAC Coach of the Year.
All awards are voted on by the conference’s head women’s basketball coaches and sports information directors.
Grice led the conference in scoring, averaging 25.4 points and 6.4 rebounds. She shot 40-percent (150-of-381) from the field and 83 percent (94-of-114) from the free-throw line. She finished with five double-doubles, including a 27-point, 10-rebound performance in a win against Bethune-Cookman. Grice, a five-time MEAC Player of the Week honoree, scored a season-high 38 points on 15-of-37 from the floor and eight steals against North Carolina A&T. She also leads the conference in steals, averaging 3.9.
Tate-DeFreitas, a six-time Rookie of the Week honoree and two-time Player of the Week, ranked fourth in the conference with 19.0 points and 4.9 rebounds. She registered a season-high 33 points against Norfolk State and is second in the MEAC in 3-pointers made, average 2.3.
Bennett led the Lady Pirates defense by averaging 9.3 points and 1.4 steals. She reached double figures in rebounding 12 times, including a season-high 17 against Utah State. Bennett, a two-time MEAC Player of the Week, recorded 12 double-doubles of points and rebounds. Offensively, Bennett poured in a season-high 31 points on 14-of-30 shooting against Santa Clara.
Six repeated as Coach of the Year after guiding the Hampton Lady Pirates to their second consecutive 16-0 MEAC record. It marked the sixth time in conference history that a women’s basketball team has gone undefeated in MEAC play. Under his helm, the Lady Pirates closed out their season with a 15-game win streak. Hampton led the conference in scoring (72.0), scoring margin (+15.4), field-goal percentage (.331) and offensive rebounding (46.3).
Grice is joined on the 2014 All-MEAC First Team by Hampton’s Nicole Hamilton and Alyssa Bennett, Coppin State’s Kyra Coleman and Norfolk State’s Rachel Gordon.
Hampton clinched the MEAC regular season title with an 83-54 victory over Norfolk State. The Lady Pirates will enter the tournament as the number one seed and will face the winner of the No. 8 Howard/No. 9 North Carolina Central matchup on Wednesday, March 11 at 6 p.m.
The 2014 regular season champion, regular season runners-up, first team members and top honorees, including Player, Rookie, Defensive and coach of the Year selections, will be recognized in pre-game presentations prior to their first games of the 2014 MEAC Basketball Tournament. Tournament play tips-off March 10-15 at the Scope Arena in Norfolk, Virginia.
Coach of the Year: David Six, Hampton University
Player of the Year: Jasmine Grice, Florida A&M University
Rookie of the Year: Malia Tate-DeFreitas, Hampton University
Defensive Player of the Year: Alyssa Bennett, Hampton University
FIRST TEAM
| Name | School | Pos. | Ht. | Cl. | Hometown |
| Jasmine Grice | Florida A&M | G | 5-9 | Sr. | Quincy, Fla. |
| Nicole Hamilton | Hampton | G | 5-8 | Sr. | Hampton, Va. |
| Kyra Coleman | Coppin State | G/F | 5-10 | Sr. | Henrico, Va. |
| Alyssa Bennett | Hampton | F | 6-2 | Sr. | Hampton, Va. |
| Rachel Gordon | Norfolk State | F | 6-0 | Sr. | Woodbridge, Va. |
SECOND TEAM
| Name | School | Pos. | Ht. | Cl. | Hometown |
| Tracey Carrington | Morgan State | G | 5-9 | Jr. | Baltimore, Md. |
| Malia Tate-DeFreitas | Hampton | G | 5-8 | Fr. | Harrisburg, Pa. |
| Tracy King | North Carolina A&T | G/F | 5-10 | Sr. | Alexandria, Va. |
| Larrisa Carter | Coppin State | F | 6-0 | Sr. | Atlanta, Ga. |
| Aprill McRae | North Carolina A&T | C | 6-3 | r-So. | Raleigh, N.C. |
THIRD TEAM
| Name | School | Pos. | Ht. | Cl. | Hometown |
| Raven Bankston | Delaware State | G | 5-7 | Fr. | Detroit, Mich. |
| Ezinne Kalu | Savannah State | G | 5-8 | Sr. | Newark, N.J. |
| Kourtney Williams | South Carolina State | G | 5-9 | Jr. | Warren, Ohio |
| Racquel Davis | North Carolina Central | F | 6-0 | Jr. | Brooklyn, N.Y. |
| Kailyn Williams | Bethune-Cookman | C | 6-4 | r-Fr. | New Orleans, La. |
ALL-ROOKIE TEAM
| Name | School | Pos. | Ht. | Cl. | Hometown |
| Malia Tate-DeFrietas | Hampton | G | 5-8 | Fr. | Harrisburg, Pa. |
| Raven Bankston | Delaware State | G | 5-7 | Fr. | Detroit, Mich. |
| Te’Shya Heslip | Howard | G | 5-5 | Fr. | Dumfries, Va. |
| Logan Powell | Norfolk State | F | 6-0 | Fr. | Lebanon, Ky. |
| Kailyn Williams | Bethune-Cookman | C | 6-4 | r-Fr. | New Orleans, La. |
COURTESY MEAC MEDIA RELATIONS
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