HICKORY, N.C. --- Tusculum College's Jasmine Gunn has been named the South Atlantic Conference Women's Basketball Freshman of the Year announced league officials at the conference's awards banquet Friday night at the Catawba Valley Community College Arena.

Gunn becomes the first player in school history to earn this honor.

Gunn, the 5-0 rookie point guard from Nashville, Tenn., is averaging 13.2 points and 5.9 assists per game while earning All-Conference First Team honors as well as a spot on the SAC All-Freshmen Team.

Joining Gunn on the All-SAC First Team is sophomore teammate Stephany Neptune. The 6-0 Wallkill, N.Y. native leads the league in rebounding, averaging 11.1 boards per contest, which is also 10th in the nation (NCAA II). Neptune is also averaging 11 points per game and is second in the conference in blocked shots (1.9 bpg) and sixth in free throw percentage (50.9%). Earlier today, Neptune was named one of the 40 national finalists for the WBCA Division II All-America Team.

Junior guard Ashli Oliver was named to the All-SAC Second Team for a second straight year. Oliver, a 5-10 native of Kokomo, Ind., leads the Pioneers in scoring with 13.6 points per game and is tops in the SAC in three-point field goals per game (3.11). In just her junior year, she has already established a new school and conference record with 274 career three-point field goals, which are also 18th all-time in NCAA II history.

The Tusculum trio has guided the Pioneers to one of its best seasons in school history, posting a 25-3 overall record, including 13-1 in the league to claim the program's first SAC Championship. Tusculum (No. 19 in NCAA II) is the top seed in this weekend's Food Lion SAC Tournament and will take on No. 4 seed Newberry on Saturday at 3 p.m. at the CVCC Arena.



- SAC -



2008 All-South Atlantic Conference Women's Basketball Teams
ALL-SAC FIRST TEAM
NeKeithia Howard, Catawba
Amber Holt, Lenoir-Rhyne
Tonique Frasier, Newberry
Jasmine Gunn, Tusculum
Stephany Neptune, Tusculum
Anna Atkinson, Wingate

ALL-SAC SECOND TEAM
Shari Buford, Carson-Newman
Emily Mason. Carson-Newman
Andi Winney, Lincoln Memorial
Allison Schafer, Mars Hill
Ashli Oliver, Tusculum
Kasey Gillis, Wingate

ALL-FRESHMAN TEAM
LaCourtney Rann, Lenoir-Rhyne
Stephanie Wagner, Lincoln Memorial
Brittini Young, Mars Hill
LeAnne Watson, Newberry
Jasmine Gunn, Tusculum

COACH OF THE YEAR: Barbara Nelson, Wingate
PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Anna Atkinson, Wingate
FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR: Jasmine Gunn, Tusculum
SAC SCHOLAR-ATHLETE: Anna Atkinson, Wingate