Big South Announces Women's Basketball Players of the Week - Dec. 22

Big South Announces Women's Basketball Players of the Week - Dec. 22

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CHARLOTTE, N.C. (www.BigSouthSports.com) – Longwood forward Otaifo Esenabhalu (Valdosta, Ga.) and High Point forward Nevaeh Zavala (Plano, Texas) have been named the Big South Women’s Basketball Co-Players of the Week, while Radford forward Georgia Simonsen (Fairfax, Va.) is the Freshman of the Week for games played Dec. 15-21, it was announced today.
 
Esenabhalu tied a career high with 16 points and grabbed 10 rebounds as Longwood defeated UNC Wilmington, 98-72. She shot 7-of-9 from the field (77.8 percent), went 2-of-2 from the free-throw line and added two assists and one steal. She scored 10 points in the second half, while seven of her 10 rebounds came on the offensive glass, as the junior recorded her league-leading fifth double-double in just 17 minutes off the bench. The Lancers secured their third straight win and fifth in six games.
 
Zavala averaged 18.0 points and 7.5 rebounds in two games for High Point, highlighted by a double-double and the game-winning free throws with 0.5 seconds remaining in a double-overtime victory over Yale. The senior shot 52.0 percent from the field (13-of-25), 40.0 percent from 3-point range (4-of-10) and 66.7 percent from the free-throw line (6-of-9). She finished with 15 points at Davidson and then posted 21 points and 14 rebounds against Yale to become the second Big South player this season with a 20-point, 10-rebound double-double.
 
Simonsen averaged 11.7 points, 8.3 rebounds and 2.3 assists in three games for Radford. She added 1.0 blocks and 0.7 steals while shooting 53.6 percent from the field (15-of-28) and 50.0 percent from 3-point range (1-of-2). She totaled eight points, eight rebounds and two blocks in 14 minutes against Concord, then recorded a 12-point, 12-rebound double-double with three assists in an overtime win at Hampton. The freshman closed the week with 15 points against Virginia Tech, tying her career high, along with five rebounds and three assists.
 
Also nominated for Player of the Week: Tyonna Bailey (Charleston Southern), Joi Williams (Radford), Aubrie Kierscht (USC Upstate) and Amourie Porter (Winthrop).
 
Also nominated for Freshman of the Week: Kinley Paterson (USC Upstate) and Ryiah Wilson (Winthrop).