Mocs Alicia Payne Named SoCon Defensive Player of the Year

SPARTANBURG, S.C. — University of Tennessee at Chattanooga senior Alicia Payne was named the Southern Conference Defensive Player of the Year by the league coaches, the SoCon announced Tuesday. She is joined on the all-conference list by three teammates.

Payne was named to the SoCon All-Conference Second Team along with junior Queen Alford, sophomore Keiana Gilbert, and junior Jasmine Joyner.

This is Payne’s second straight Defensive Player of the Year honor. She won the award last season after entering the starting lineup at point guard. She led a stalwart Chattanooga defense this season that ranks 11th in the nation for fewest points allowed (52.8), second for fewest personal fouls (11.5), third in blocked shots per game (6.5) and fourth in 3-point field goal percentage defense, allowing opponents to make less than 25 percent per game.

Joyner earned a spot on the all-conference first team. She leads the team in scoring and is ranked first in the league in rebounding while sitting atop the national stats in blocked shots with 114 so far this season. She earned SoCon Player of the Week honors three times and was named the January Player of the Month.

Joining Payne on the Second Team is Alford who leads the team in scoring against the league with 14.4 points per game. She topped double figures 11 times against SoCon opponents and leads the Mocs in 3-point shooting this season where she ranks second in the SoCon for field goal percentage beyond the arc. She was selected the SoCon Player of the Week once.

Gilbert ranks second for the Mocs in scoring and rebounding and among the best in the NCAA making 46.9 percent of her shots. She has scored in double figures 22 times in 28 games this season, including a season-high 21 points against East Carolina.

Also on the first team was ETSU’s Tianna Tarter, Furman’s Whitney Bunn, Kahlia Lawrence of Mercer and UNCG’s Lucy Mason who leads the SoCon in scoring. Along with Chattanooga’s three selections on second team were ETSU’s Shamauria Bridges, Holli Wilkins of Furman and Samford’s Taylor Reece.

Mercer’s Kahlia Lawrence was selected the SoCon Player of the Year and teammate Linnea Rosendal was named Freshman of the Year. The Bears’ Susie Gardner picked up Coach of the Year honors and UNCG’s India Timpton received the Ann Lashley Inspiration Award.

Lawrence led the Bears to their first SoCon title in just their second year in the league. She averaged 18.5 points per game this season and a conference-best 21 ppg in SoCon play. Rosendal averaged 9.3 points per game to lead all freshmen and shot 37.3 percent from 3-point range, third best in the league.

Gardner claimed coach of the year distinction after leading Mercer to its first share of a SoCon regular-season title. The Bears went 22-7 overall and 12-2 in conference play in just their second season in the league, and their 22 wins set a program record for most victories in a season during the NCAA Division I era.