Wednesday, March 1, 2006
POWERS GAINS ALL-NESCAC SECOND TEAM NOD IN BASKETBALL
MEDFORD – Capping a superb career with the Tufts University women's basketball team, senior tri-captain Jessica Powers (Massapequa, NY/Massapequa) has earned a spot onto the All-New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) Second Team for 2006.
The NESCAC Rookie of the Year in 2003 and a Second Team All-Conference pick in 2004, Powers returns to the All-Star line-up this winter after leading the Jumbos with 11.6 points per game, 57 assists, 36 steals and a .792 free throw percentage. Currently 13th in scoring among NESCAC players, her free throw shooting mark is fifth-best in the league.
Powers scored 22 points against Babson on November 29 early in the season, 23 points with seven rebounds at Simmons on December 8 and 24 points at Salve Regina on February 7. She was an extraordinary 14 of 16 from the free throw line (.875) in the Salve Regina game. Her six assists at Connecticut College on January 28 were the team-high for the season, and she drained four three-pointers at Fitchburg State on January 7.
In her recently completed Tufts career, Powers started all 95 games for Coach Carla Berube's team. She scored her 1,000th career point at Wellesley on December 10 this season. She finished with 1,174 points for her career, third all-time at Tufts. Her 108 career three-pointers are second on the Jumbo list and she's fourth with 297 career assists. She finished tied for fourth in steals with 183 in four seasons.
Tufts stumbled to a 10-13 finish this winter after posting winning seasons in the first three years of Powers' career. Nevertheless, Powers leaves the team after helping it to a 59-36 record, a .621 winning percentage and the best four-year record by the team since 1989-93.
The Jumbos finished seventh in NESCAC this season and lost at #6 Bowdoin in the first round of the conference tournament, 52-41, after leading the Polar Bears at halftime. Powers played all 40 minutes and scored 12 points in the final game of her career.
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