OVERLAND PARK, Kan. – Thirty NCAA women’s basketball student-athletes who excel both on and off the court were selected as candidates for the 2016-17 Senior CLASS Award® in collegiate basketball. Two BIG EAST student-athletes were on that list in Creighton guard Marissa Janning and DePaul guard Jessica January.
To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence: community, classroom, character and competition. The complete list of candidates follows this release.
Janning averages 11.4 points and 4.7 rebounds per game this season. A fifth-year senior that returned this season after suffering a broken fibula last year, Marissa has climbed to fifth in Creighton history with 1,722 points. She is also among the all-time leaders at Creighton in assists (418 - 3rd), scoring average (14.6 ppg - 6th), field goals made (575 - 8th), three-pointers made (249-5th), free throws made (323 - 7th) and minutes played (3,778 - 5th). The 2013-14 BIG EAST Player of the Year, Janning was an All-BIG EAST First Team selection in both 2013-14 and 2014-15. She was also named a Preseason All-BIG EAST pick and is one of the leaders on a Bluejay basketball team that is off to a 9-5 start, including a 3-1 record early in BIG EAST play.
January has been named to the John R. Wooden Award Women’s Preseason Top 30, the Preseason Naismith Trophy Watch List and the Nancy Lieberman Award Watch List after making the top 10 last season. She is No. 18 in the nation in assists per game and No. 24 in total assists. January is a communication major who carries a 3.96 grade-point average out of a possible 4.0. In eight years of high school and college academics, she has received all A’s and one B. She has been involved in a number of community-service activities, most recently a DePaul women’s basketball toy drive for the children at the St. Vincent de Paul Center.
An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School ®, the Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities.
The 30 candidate class will be narrowed to fields of 10 finalists in February, and those 10 names will be placed on the official ballot. Ballots will be distributed through a nationwide voting system to media, coaches and fans, who will select one male candidate and one female candidate who best exemplifies excellence in the four Cs of community, classroom, character and competition.
The Senior CLASS Award winners will be announced during the 2017 NCAA Men’s Final Four® and NCAA Women’s Final Four® this spring. For more information on each of the candidates, visit seniorCLASSaward.com.
Women’s Basketball 2016-17 Candidates
Name, Position, School
Evelyn Akhator, F, Kentucky
Lindsay Allen, G, Notre Dame
Sophie Brunner, F, Arizona State
Nina Davis, F, Baylor
Jessica Jackson, F, Arkansas
Marissa Janning, G, Creighton
Jessica January, G, DePaul
Seanna Johnson, G, Iowa State
Brionna Jones, C, Maryland
Sigi Koizar, G, Maine
Kari Korver, G, UCLA
Kelsey Lang, C, Texas
Breanna Lewis, C, Kansas State
Marina Lizarazu, G, Iona College
Erica McCall, F, Stanford
Taylor McCarley, G, UMBC
Lanay Montgomery, C, West Virginia
Adrienne Motley, G, Miami
Kendall Noble, G, Western Kentucky
Ellen Nystrom, G, Colorado State
Kelsey Plum, G, Washington
Rosanna Reynolds, G, Detroit Mercy
Leticia Romero, G, Florida State
Elle Tinkle, G, Gonzaga
Shatori Walker-Kimbrough, G, Maryland
Madison Weekly, G, Northern Iowa
Lizzy Wendell, F, Drake
Kindred Wesemann, G, Kansas State
Sydney Wiese, G, Oregon State
Ronni Williams, F, Florida