All-Conference Teams
ROCHESTER, NY – On Tuesday, the Empire 8 conference announced its end of the year women's basketball awards, headlined by Nazareth junior
Kiara Anglin being named the co-Defensive Player of the Year. Sophomore
Sarina McDowell was a First Team selection, while
Molly Benetti earned Second Team and
Katie MacLachlan Third Team.
Madilann Johnson was Nazareth's representative on the Empire 8 Sportswoman of the Year Team.
Anglin is the first Nazareth Defensive Player of the Year since Caley Cornwell earned the honor back in 2020-21. The Brighton High School graduate led the conference in steals, averaging 2.4 per game in 16 league contests. She was also fourth in blocked shots at 1.3 per game.
McDowell is making her first appearance on the all-conference after leading the Golden Flyers with 13.8 points per game on a 52.4 percent field goal percentage. The 13.8 points per game ranked 8
th in the conference. Her .9 blocks per game was also 10
th among league foes. She also averaged 5.6 rebounds per game.
Benetti has now earned Second Team honors in back-to-back seasons. Her 1.9 blocked shots per game was the second best in the league. The junior averaged 10 points and 6.2 rebounds per game.
A year after earning Second Team honors, MacLachlan takes home Third Team as a junior. She was third in the conference in assist/turnover ratio at 2.0. She averaged 8.7 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 4.1 assists in 16 conference games.
Johnson is Nazareth's representative on the Sportswoman of the Year Team. One member of each team was named that institution's representative on the 2024-25 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.
