Virginia women’s basketball senior guard Faith Randolph (Derwood, Md.) earned Preseason All-ACC honors, being named to both the ten-member Blue Ribbon Panel and the coaches’ Preseason All-ACC teams announced Wednesday (Oct. 21) by the Atlantic Coast Conference.
Additionally, the team has been predicted to finish eighth in the official 2015-16 Blue Ribbon Panel ACC Preseason Poll as well in a polling of the ACC head coaches.
Randolph, a second-team All-ACC honoree last season, ranked sixth in the conference in scoring at 16.4 points per game. Randolph tallied 11 20-point games last season en route to scoring her 1,000th career point during the 2015 ACC Tournament.
Sophomore forward Briana Turner of Notre Dame was named the 2015-16 ACC Preseason Player of the Year in both the Blue Ribbon Panel and the coaches’ votes.
Notre Dame received 41 first-place votes from Blue Ribbon panel voters, and 11 of the 15 from the head coaches, to emerge as the clear-cut favorite in both polls. Florida State received eight first-place votes from the Blue Ribbon and four from the coaches to finish second in the balloting, followed by Louisville (two first-place votes by the Blue Ribbon Panel) and Duke. North Carolina was selected seventh in both polls, right ahead of Virginia, while the Cavaliers edged NC State in both predictions.
The Cavaliers open the season on Friday, Nov. 13, at Middle Tennessee State and will play their first home game on Monday, Nov. 16 when they host Norfolk State at 7 p.m. at John Paul Jones Arena.
Virginia returns seven letterwinners, including Randolph and 2015 ACC All-Freshman Team member Mikayla Venson (Arlington, Va.), from last year’s team. The Cavaliers are joined by three talented freshman post players, Debra Ferguson (Amherst County, Va./Amherst County High), Moné Jones (Durham, N.C./Riverside High) and Shakyna Payne (Acworth, Ga./Southwest Atlanta Christian Academy) and a transfer redshirt sophomore guard, J’Kyra Brown (Rocky Mount, N.C./East Carolina).
Blue Ribbon Panel ACC Preseason Poll
- Notre Dame – 753 points (41 first place votes)
- Florida State – 695 (8 first place votes)
- Louisville – 649 (2 first place votes)
- Duke – 638
- Syracuse – 544
- Miami – 477
- North Carolina – 435
- Virginia – 364
- NC State – 336
- Pitt – 329
- Georgia Tech – 328
- Boston College – 204
- Virginia Tech – 148
- Wake Forest – 139
- Clemson – 81
Blue Ribbon Panel Preseason All-ACC Team
- Rebecca Greenwell, R-So., G, Duke
- Azura Stevens, So., F/G, Duke
- Adut Bulgak, Sr., C, Florida State
- Leticia Romero, Jr., G, Florida State
- Mariya Moore, So., G, Louisville
- Adrienne Motley, Jr., G, Miami
- Lindsay Allen, Jr., G, Notre Dame
- Brianna Turner, So., F, Notre Dame
- Alexis Peterson, Jr., G, Syracuse
- Faith Randolph, Sr., G, Virginia
Blue Ribbon Panel Preseason ACC Player of the Year
- Brianna Turner, So., F, Notre Dame
Blue Ribbon Panel ACC Newcomer Watch List
- Angela Salvadores, Fr, G, Duke
- Asia Durr, Fr, G, Louisville
- Destinee Walker, Fr., G, North Carolina
- Marina Mabrey, Fr., G, Notre Dame
- Arike Ogunbowale, Fr., G, Notre Dame
ACC Head Coaches Preseason Poll
- Notre Dame – 221 points (11 first place votes)
- Florida State – 212 (4 first place votes)
- Louisville – 190
- Duke – 185
- Syracuse – 162
- Miami – 146
- North Carolina – 118
- Virginia – 113
- NC State – 105
- Pitt – 93
- Georgia Tech – 85
- Boston College – 57
- Virginia Tech – 52
- Wake Forest – 43
- Clemson – 18
Coaches Preseason All-ACC Team
- Rebecca Greenwell, R-So., G, Duke
- Azura Stevens, So., F/G, Duke
- Adut Bulgak, Sr., C, Florida State
- Leticia Romero, Jr., G, Florida State
- Mariya Moore, So., G, Louisville
- Adrienne Motley, Jr., G, Miami
- Lindsay Allen, Jr., G, Notre Dame
- Brianna Turner, So., F, Notre Dame
- Alexis Peterson, Jr., G, Syracuse
- Faith Randolph, Sr., G, Virginia
- Coaches Preseason ACC Player of the Year
- Brianna Turner, So., F, Notre Dame
Coaches ACC Newcomer Watch List
- Kyra Lambert, Fr, G, Duke
- Angela Salvadores, Fr., G, Duke
- Asia Durr, Fr., G, Louisville
- Destinee Walker, Fr., G, North Carolina
- Stephanie Watts, Fr., G, North Carolina
- Arike Ogunbowale, Fr., G, Notre Dame
*due to a tie in voting, an extra member was added to the Newcomer Watch List
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