WALTHAM, Mass. - Brandeis University senior guard Jessica Chapin of Mendon. N.Y., has become the first woman in school history to be named the Women Basketball Coaches Association/State Farm All-America Team. The 2010 University Athletic Association Player of the Year was one of 10 players named to the team. Chapin also earned a spot on the D3hoops.com All-America fourth team.
Chapin, whose previous honors also include first-team All-UAA, All-ECAC and All-NEWBA New England, and pre-season All-America honors from D3hoops.com, was a WBCA/State Farm All-Region selection for the second year in a row. Six other times in head coach Carol Simon's tenure a Brandeis player has been named a WBCA/State Farm All-America Honorable Mention (Danielle Fitzpatrick '04, 2004; Caitlin Malcolm '07, 2006 and 2007; Jaime Capra '08, 2007 and 2008; and Chapin in 2009), this is the first time the Judges have had a player selected to the 10-person team. The Judges have also had two previous D3hoops.com All-Americans - Fitzpatrick, who was a third-team selection in 2004 and Malcolm, an honorable-mention choice in 2006.
Chapin, was a first-team All-UAA selection for the second year in a row. She was the second Brandeis player to be named UAA Player of the Year, joining Capra , who shared the honors in 2008.
Chapin was a four-time UAA Player of the Week this season and was the league's leading scorer, averaging 16.9 points per game, 64th in all of NCAA Division III play. She also finished second in the league in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.6 a/to) and minutes played (32.0 mpg), third in 3-pointers made (46 3FGs), fourth in steals per game (2.2 spg) and free-throw percentage (75.9%) and sixth in assists per game (3.0 apg) and 3-point percentage (34.8%). Chapin led the Judges in scoring 17 times in their 24 games, was the squad's top rebounder five times and topped the team in assists 10 times, posting four double-doubles. She set three school records this season, with 167 career 3-pointers and 36 points and seven trifectas in a game against Carnegie Mellon on Feb 7.
Chapin wrapped up her career as the only player in school history to rank among the top 10 in points (1,280, sixth), rebounds (521, eighth), assists (262, sixth) and steals (243, third). With 405 points on the season, Chapin turned in just the fourth 400-point campaign in Brandeis history.
Overall this season, the Brandeis women posted a 16-8 record, while their string of four-straight NCAA tournaments was snapped. The Judges faced the sixth-toughest schedule in the nation according to D3hoops.com, facing seven NCAA tournament teams, including a season-sweep of UAA foe Rochester, who has gone on to reach this weekend's Final Four in Bloomington, Ill.
Chapin is a 2006 graduate of Honeoye Falls-Lima High School. She is the daughter of Michael and Deborah Chapin, Mendon, N.Y.