HADLEY, Mass. – Tufts junior Maggie Russell has been selected as the NESCAC Player of the Year by the league's coaches. Russell is the fourth junior and fifth Jumbo to garner the award (Khalilah Ummah-2008; Hayley Kanner-2015; Michela North-2016; Erica DeCandido-2020).
 
Russell, who also earned a spot on the All-NESCAC First Team for the second straight year, averaged 15.5 points and 14.0 rebounds over the final two games of the NESCAC Championship and poured in a career-high 40 points in a quarterfinal victory to help the Jumbos win their fourth NESCAC title. The junior ranks third in the NESCAC in scoring, averaging 19.3 points per game, and leads the league on the boards at 11.9 caroms per contest. Tufts earned the NESCAC's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament and will host first and second-round games at Cousens Gymnasium.
 
Maddy Mandyck was voted as the NESCAC Defensive Player of the Year and was an All-NESCAC First Team selection. She is the fourth Eph (Kerri McMahon-2003; Kaylan Tildsley-2007; Ellen Cook-2015) to be named NESCAC Defensive Player of the Year. Mandyck was one of two Ephs to start all 26 games this season and averaged a double-double of 12.6 points and 10.9 rebounds per game. She led the NESCAC in blocks averaging 3.1 per game while totaling 81 for the year, including a season-high 12 blocks versus Stevenson in the non-conference portion of the schedule. Mandyck also ranked second in the NESCAC in steals (57) and field goal percentage (47.4%) and third in rebounding (10.9 rpg). Mandyck helped the Ephs earn the No. 2 seed in the NESCAC Championship and advance to the semifinals.
 
Hamilton's Taylor Lambo was selected as the NESCAC Rookie of the Year and is the first Continental to garner the honor. Lambo, who also garnered a spot on the All-NESCAC Second Team, led Hamilton in scoring and ranked ninth in the NESCAC at 13.6 points per game. The forward also averaged 8.2 rebounds per contest (7th in the NESCAC). She was one of two Continentals to start all 23 games and totaled seven double-doubles this year. Lambo's play helped Hamilton earn its highest seed in program history in the NESCAC Championship at No. 5.
 
Tufts head coach Jill Pace was voted the NESCAC Coach of the Year by her peers. She earns the honor for the second time in her four seasons at the helm of the Jumbos. She also picked up the honor in 2020, her first season on the Tufts sideline. Pace led the Jumbos to the top seed in the NESCAC Championship and the Jumbos' fourth conference title in program history. Tufts will host first and second-round games in the NCAA Tournament.
 
2023 NESCAC Women's Basketball Awards
Player of the Year: Maggie Russell, Tufts
Defensive Player of the Year: Maddy Mandyck, Williams
Rookie of the Year: Taylor Lambo, Hamilton
Coach of the Year: Jill Pace, Tufts

All-NESCAC First Team
Pos-Name	School	Yr	Hometown	Previous Honors
C - Reilly Campbell	Trinity	Jr.	Wallingford, Conn.
G - Meghan Graff	Bates	Sr.	South Portland, Maine	2022 POY, 2022 1st Team, 2020 2nd Team
F - Maddy Mandyck	Williams	Sr.	West Hartford, Conn.
G - Alexa Mustafaj	Middlebury	So.	Yonkers, N.Y.	2022 ROY, 2022 2nd Team
F - Maggie Russell	Tufts	Jr.	Morristown, N.J.	2022 1st Team
All-NESCAC Second Team
Pos-Name	School	Yr	Hometown	Previous Honors
G - Kori Barach	Amherst	So.	Carlisle, Mass.
G - Sofia Gonzalez	Tufts	So.	Glendale, Calif.
G - Sydney Jones	Bowdoin	So.	Chestnut Hill, Mass.
F - Taylor Lambo	Hamilton	Fy.	Watertown, Mass.
F - Emma Wax	Trinity	Jr.	Pine Brook, N.J.