Marist's Willow Duffell Named To All-Met First Team
NEW YORK, New York – Marist Women's Basketball senior captain Willow Duffell was selected to the Metropolitan Basketball Writers Association's (MBWA) All-Met First Team, the organization announced on Monday morning.
This is the first time Duffell has earned an All-Met nomination in her career. It is the fifth time in the last six years that a Red Fox has earned a spot on the All-Met First Team – Rebekah Hand placed on the team in the previous three seasons, while recent Dallas Wings training camp signee Tori Jarosz garnered recognition in 2016.
Duffell led the Red Foxes in rebounding and was second on the team with 12.2 points per game (first in total points) while starting every game for the MAAC Champion Red Foxes, who went 18-4 with a 13-3 conference record. After earning Preseason All-MAAC Third Team honors, she was named to the All-MAAC First Team after finishing in the top 15 in the conference in 10 different categories, including rebounds per game (3rd) and free throw percentage (6th).
In three games during the MAAC Tournament, she averaged 17 points, 12 rebounds, and 4.7 assists per game to garner the MAAC Championship MVP award, leading the team in scoring and securing two double-doubles.
On the season, she notched seven double-doubles, and her 9.1 rebounds per game was the ninth-highest single-season mark in program history. She finishes her career seventh all-time in the Marist annals with 730 career rebounds, and 10th all-time with a career .472 field goal percentage.
Rutgers' Arella Guirantes was chosen as the All-Met Division I Player of the Year, while her teammate Diamond Johnson was named the All-Met Rookie of the Year. Former Stony Brook Head Coach Caroline McCombs, who recently accepted the head coaching position at George Washington, earned the Maggie Dixon Coach of the Year honor.
The annual All-Met Haggerty Awards dinner, which was originally scheduled for April 29th, was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The MBWA plans to publish a viewable and downloadable journal at their website.
About the Metropolitan Basketball Writers Association
The Metropolitan Basketball Writers Association is the home of the All-Met Player of the Year selection since 1936, given to the top tri-state metro area men's basketball player. The All-Met Player of the Year award is named in memory of Lt. Frank J. Haggerty, a former co-captain who played forward for St. John's in 1939-40 and was the first student from the school who was killed in World War II. In more recent years, the awards platform has been expanded to include all three NCAA divisions for men and women. Currently, the MBWA's reach encompasses 72 Met area schools across Divisions I, II and III. The Haggerty Awards and the All-Met Haggerty Awards Dinner, held every April in conjunction with the NIT, is a premier collegiate basketball event in the Metropolitan area.