UConn Women’s Trio Named WBCA All-Americans

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Senior center Stefanie Dolson, senior guard Bria Hartley and sophomore forward Breanna Stewart have all been named to the 2014 Women’s Basketball Coaches Association Division I Coaches’ All-America Team as announced by the WBCA on Saturday.

UConn has now had 31 all-time selections to the prestigious team and Stewart is the 18th Husky to be honored on the WBCA All-America squad.  Dolson was selected to the squad last year while Hartley earned All-America status in 2012.

This marks the ninth time that multiple Huskies were named WBCA All-Americans and the third time three made the squad.  Sue Bird, Swin Cash and Diana Taurasi were selected in 2002 while Tina Charles, Renee Montgomery and Maya Moore made the team in 2009.

Stewart is only the sixth UConn sophomore to be named to the team along with Svetlana Abrosimova (1998-99), Diana Taurasi (2001-02), Moore (2008-09), Hartley, and Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis (2012-13).  Moore was also selected to the team during her freshman campaign.

Stewart, who was selected to the Associated Press All-America First Team earlier this week, leads the Huskies with an average 19.4 points per game and ranks second on the UConn roster in rebounding with 8.1 boards per contest. Stewart not only delivers on the offensive end, but the 6-4 forward leads the squad with 106 blocks on the season, helping UConn set a new NCAA single-season record for rejections with 313.

Among her numerous career numbers this season, Stewart registered a career-high in points after she netted 37 against Temple in January, representing the eighth-highest total by a Husky in program history. She has logged 11 double-doubles this season and scored more than 20 points on 20 occasions. Opponents have held Stewart to fewer than 10 points in just two games this season. The American Athletic Conference Preseason Player of the Year, Stewart went on to lock up the league’s Player of the Year award before earning Most Outstanding Player in the American Tournament by averaging 21.3 points and 7.0 rebounds in UConn’s run to the inaugural championship. The Syracuse native was named a USBWA All-American earlier this week along with fellow New Yorkers Stefanie Dolson and Bria Hartley. Stewart is also a finalist for the Wade Trophy, the Wooden Award, and the Naismith Trophy. EspnW.com also chose Stewart as their Player of the Year recipient.

An Associated Press Second Team All-America selection, Hartley has been exceptional in her final season at Connecticut, averaging 16.3 points per game and dishing out 166 assists. On Feb. 19, Hartley earned membership to an elite UConn club when she grabbed her 500^th rebound to join Maya Moore and Diana Taurasi as the only trio to amass 1,500 points/500 assists/500 rebounds. The senior currently owns 1,968 career points, needing 32 to become just the eighth Husky to reach 2,000 career points. Her 255 3-point field goals ranks fifth all-time at Connecticut. Hartley is a finalist for the Wade and Wooden Awards and was named a USBWA All-American.

Dolson, the 2013-14 American Conference Defensive Player of the Year and Sportsmanship Award winner, enters the Final Four averaging 12.4 points per game and leading the team in rebounding with 9.2 boards per contest. The senior ranks 11^th all-time in program scoring with 1,770 career points and joins the elite company of Tina Charles, Maya Moore, Rebecca Lobo, and Jamelle Elliott to register at least 1,000 career points and 1,000 career rebounds.  Dolson also boasts the distinction of joining Kara Wolters as the only two Huskies to four-peat as conference All-Tournament selections. To top the list, the senior recorded just the program’s second triple-double against Oregon on Nov. 20 before Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis posted the third. Dolson is also a finalist for the Wade and Wooden Awards and joined Hartley and Stewart with her second consecutive USBWA All-American laurels.  She is also a finalist for the WBCA National Defensive Player of the Year Award.

The 10-member team was decided from a group of 52 finalists by the selection committee at an in-person meeting held during the 2014 WBCA National Convention.