Women's Basketball | 2/22/2023 1:58:18 PM
Russell Sage College sophomore guard Syrita Faraj was named Player of the Year, as the Empire 8 Conference announced its 2022-23 Women’s Basketball All-Conference awards on Wednesday, February 22. The awards are voted on by the league's head coaches.
Faraj, who was named Empire 8 Rookie of the Year last season, is enjoying a tremendous sophomore season for the Gators, leading the Empire 8 in scoring, averaging 20.0 points per game to go along with 8.6 boards per contest, fifth most in the league. In addition, Faraj is averaging 2.0 steals per game and has made 134 free throws this season, nearly 50 more than any other E8 student-athlete. A model of consistency, Faraj has scored in double figures in all 25 games this season. She has 13 games with at least 20 points and scored a career-high 32 points on two occasions. In 17 league games, Faraj averaged 20.5 points per game while shooting 47.3 percent from the floor and 79.5 percent from the foul line. Faraj is Russell Sage’s first Empire 8 Player of the Year in program history.
Junior guard Claire Kruszka of St. John Fisher University was named the 2021-22 Empire 8 Defensive Player of the Year. Kruszka, the 2021 Empire 8 Rookie of the Year, garnered her third All-E8 honor this season and leads a defense that allows just 49.9 points per game, lowest in the league. The Cardinals defense forces a league-high 23.6 turnovers per game. Kruszka leads the Empire 8, averaging 4.1 assists per game, has the best assist/turnover ratio in the conference and is second, averaging 2.6 steals per game. She is also tenth in the league in scoring, averaging 11.5 points per game.
Houghton University guard Crysta Lacrosse and Nazareth College forward Brielle Reidinger forward were named Empire 8 Co-Rookies of the Year. Lacrosse leads all E8 first-year players and is 11th overall in scoring, averaging 11.5 points per game and is fifth in the league in assists per game, averaging 3.5. She is second in assists/turnover ratio and has scored in double figures 14 times this season. Reidinger is averaging 11.0 points per game to go along with 9.3 rebounds per contest, fourth best in the league. A three-time E8 Rookie of the Week, Reidinger has recorded 10 double-doubles this season.
Regular Season champion St. John Fisher head coach Melissa Kuberka and her staff of assistant coach Hannah Rehbaum and volunteer coach Sidney Wentland earned Empire 8 Coaching Staff of the Year honors for the second straight season. The Cardinals set an Empire 8 record by finishing 18-0 in league play and have a 23-2 overall mark heading into the postseason. St. John Fisher is also receiving votes in the current D3hoops.com national poll. It is St. John Fisher’s third E8 Coaching Staff of the Year honor.
Nazareth’s Jadyn Abrams became the first E8 women’s basketball student-athlete to garner All-Conference honors for a fifth straight season. The two-time Empire 8 Player of the Year earned her third straight first team accolade this season, while moving into third place on the Empire 8’s all-time leading scorer list with 1,720 career points. Elmira sophomore forward Desiree Roy earned first team honors, while averaging 14.3 points, 9.5 rebounds, 1.8 steals and 1.6 blocks per game, in addition to shooting 48.1 percent from the floor. Faraj and the St. John Fisher duo of senior forward Kaitlyn Walker and sophomore guard Sidney Tomasso rounded out the first team selections. Walker, who was also a first team pick in 2021 and second team selection in 2022, has averaged 12.4 points, 8.0 boards and 1.2 blocks per game, while shooting a league best 53 percent from the floor. Tomasso leads the top-seed Cardinals in scoring, averaging 14.4 points, while grabbing 5.1 rebounds, to go along with 1.9 steals per game, while shooting 47 percent from the field.
Top-seeded St. John Fisher will host the semifinals and championship of the 2023 Empire 8 Women’s Basketball Championship this weekend. The Cardinals will take on No. 5 seed Elmira, Friday, February 25 at 5:30 p.m. in one semifinal, while No. 2 seed Nazareth will face No. 3 Russell Sage in the second semifinal at 7:30 p.m. The two semifinal winners will meet for 2023 Empire 8 Championship at 3 p.m. on Saturday, February 26. The Empire 8 Champion receives an automatic berth into the 2023 NCAA Division III Championship Tournament.
One member of each team was named that institution's representative on the 2022-23 Women's Basketball Sportswoman of the Year Team. The Empire 8 Conference emphasizes that "Competing with Honor and Integrity" is an essential component of a student-athlete's experience in conjunction with an institution's educational mission. These honorees have distinguished themselves and consistently exhibit the critical traits as outstanding sportswomen.
2022-23 Empire 8 Women’s Basketball
All-Conference Selections
Player of the Year: Syrita Faraj, So., G, Russell Sage
Defensive Player of the Year: Claire Kruszka, Jr., G, St. John Fisher
Co-Rookie of the Year: Crysta Lacrosse, Fr., G, Houghton
Co-Rookie of the Year: Brielle Reidinger, Fr., F, Nazareth
Coaching Staff of the Year: St. John Fisher, led by head coach Melissa Kuberka
Empire 8 First Team
Desiree Roy, So., F, Elmira
Jadyn Abrams, Gr., G/F, Nazareth
Syrita Faraj, So., G, Russell Sage
Sidney Tomasso, So., G, St. John Fisher
Kaitlyn Walker, Sr., F, St. John Fisher
Empire 8 Second Team
Leah Harkinrider, Jr., G, Alfred
Crysta Lacrosse, Fr., G, Houghton
Brielle Reidinger, Fr., F, Nazareth
Giuliana Pritchard, Gr., F, Russell Sage
Claire Kruszka, Jr., G, St. John Fisher
Empire 8 Third Team
Carlee Miller, Jr., F, Houghton
Erin Hardick, Sr., G, Medaille
Presleigh Brunner, Fr., G, St. John Fisher
Katie Moravec, So., G, St. John Fisher
McKenzie Simmons, Fr., F, Utica
Empire 8 Sportswoman of the Year
Alyssa Dimilo, So., G, Alfred
Taylor Albrecht, Sr., G, Elmira
Angelina Maselli, Jr., G, Hartwick
Carlee Miller, Jr., F, Houghton
Ellen Lavonas, So., F, Keuka
Erin Hardick, Sr., G, Medaille
Sarah Simmons, Gr., G, Nazareth
Lily Batule, Sr., F, Russell Sage
Emilia Johnson, Fr., G, St. John Fisher
Kristine Miller, Sr., F, Utica
ABOUT THE EMPIRE 8 CONFERENCE
The members of the Empire 8 Conference are committed first and foremost to the pursuit of academic excellence and the league is regarded as an outstanding NCAA Division III conference. The membership has distinguished itself among its peer group for its quality institutions, spirited and sportsmanlike competition, outstanding services and highly ethical policies and practices. Its commitment to serve the educational needs of its student-athletes is the hallmark of the E8. For more on the Empire 8 visit
www.empire8.com and
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