TRAFFORD, Pa. (pacathletics.org) - The women's basketball All-Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) teams and annual award winners, determined through voting by the league's 11 head coaches, were announced Tuesday night. The teams were first revealed during an announcement show through the PAC Sports Network.

The PAC award winners feature Washington & Jefferson College junior guard/forward Meghan Dryburgh (Pittsburgh, Pa./Baldwin) earning PAC Player of the Year for the second season in a row. She is the first W&J player to win consecutive PAC Player of the Year awards since Leigh Sulkowski, who was recognized following the 2004-05 and 2005-06 seasons. 

The coaches of the conference voted Chatham junior guard Aurielle Brunner (Altoona, Pa./Bishop Guilfoyle) as the Defensive Player of the Year, while Newcomer of the Year laurels went to W&J freshman forward Jaden Wan (Newtown, Pa./Council Rock). This marks the first time a Chatham player has earned the top defensive award, while Wan's newcomer honor is the first for a W&J freshman since Lauren Gilbert in 2017-18.

Rounding out the PAC awards is long-time W&J coach Jina DeRubbo being voted the PAC Coach of the Year for the third year in a row. 

With this year's recognition, Dryburgh is now a three-time All-PAC selection with a pair of First Team honors. The 5-11 guard/forward continued to show a tremendous all-around game, finishing in the top 12 in the PAC in four different categories. Dryburgh averaged a double-double by scoring 11.4 points per game, 12th in the PAC, and grabbing 11.0 rebounds per game, second in the conference. She also ranked sixth in assists with 3.4 per game and eighth in steals with 2.1

After collecting 17 double-doubles during her sophomore season, Dryburgh totaled 10 more as a junior. She set a season-high on the boards by grabbing 21 in a Dec. 2nd win over Bethany and her top scoring game was in a Jan. 6th victory over Saint Vincent when she dropped in 25 points while also making a season-high five steals.

Brunner's work on the defensive end of the floor played a huge role in Chatham's PAC championship season. The Cougars ranked seventh in the nation by forcing 26.67 turnovers per game, which featured Brunner making 4.44 steals per game to rank fourth in Division III. The 5-9 junior guard had a dozen games with five or more steals, highlighted by a single-game school record nine in a Nov. 29th win at Bethany.

In addition to leading the conference in steals, Brunner was ranked second in assists with 3.9 per game and she also averaged 8.1 points and 2.8 rebounds per game.

Joining a deep W&J roster, Wan was able to contribute right away as a freshman. The 5-11 forward played in all 26 games this year and averaged 6.8 points and 3.0 rebounds while shooting 52.9 percent from the floor. Wan posted double-digit points in seven games, all against PAC opponents, including a season-high 17 in a win at Allegheny Jan. 13th. She also had 13 points and a season-best eight boards in the regular season finale against Allegheny, a 76-61 Presidents' victory in Washington.

In addition to being her third Coach of the Year award in a row, it's also the 10th in DeRubbo's career. In her 20th year guiding the Presidents, the program finished 23-3, their third consecutive year with 23+ victories. It also marks the 15th season with 20 or more victories since 2004-05. DuRubbo has compiled a 526-204 record (.721 winning percentage) during her 27-year coaching career (20 at W&J, 7 at Bethany).

Chatham (24-3) will be representing the PAC in the NCAA Tournament after earning the league's automatic bid with a 77-50 victory over Geneva in the conference tournament title game Feb. 24. It's the first PAC title for the Cougars and initial NCAA appearance. Chatham will open NCAA Tournament action Friday, March 1 at defending national champion Transylvania University (27-0) in an 8 pm tip-off in Lexington, Ky.

The PAC also released its 2023-24 Women's Basketball Sportsmanship Team (linked above). The PAC Sportsmanship Teams were established to recognize student-athletes who have distinguished themselves through demonstrated acts of sportsmanship and ethical behavior and are an ongoing effort to recognize and encourage positive sportsmanship among all PAC teams and student-athletes.

PAC Women's Basketball annual award winners
Player of the Year: W&J junior guard/forward Meghan Dryburgh (Pittsburgh, Pa./Baldwin)
Defensive Player of the Year: Chatham junior guard Aurielle Brunner (Altoona, Pa./Bishop Guilfoyle)
Newcomer of the Year: W&J freshman forward Jaden Wan (Newtown, Pa./Council Rock)
Coach of the Year: W&J head coach Jina DeRubbo

2023-24 All-PAC Women's Basketball Teams

First Team
Name	School	Pos.	Yr.	Hometown/High School
Emily Lauer	Allegheny	G	Jr.	Knox, Pa./Keystone
Lindsey Garrison	Bethany	G	Jr.	Triadelphia, W.Va./Wheeling Park
Ashlie Louden	Chatham	G	Jr.	Beallsville, Ohio/Beallsville
Mia San Nicolas	Geneva	F	Sr.	Sinajana, Guam/Academy of Our Lady of Guam
Meghan Dryburgh	W&J	G/F	Jr.	Pittsburgh, Pa./Baldwin

 

Second Team
Name	School	Pos.	Yr.	Hometown/High School
Jess Bickart	Allegheny	G	Sr.	Cranberry Township, Pa./Seneca Valley
Sarah Santicola	Allegheny	F	So.	Moon Township, Pa./Moon Area
Emily Cavacini	Saint Vincent	G	Sr.	Pittsburgh, Pa./Shaler
Stellanie Loutsion	W&J	G	So.	Canonsburg, Pa./Canon-McMillan
Natalie Murrio	Westminster	G	Grad.	Pittsburgh, Pa./Brentwood

 

Honorable Mention
Name	School	Pos.	Yr.	Hometown/High School
Makenzee Mason	Bethany	G	Sr.	Lithopolis, Ohio/Bloom-Carroll
Aurielle Brunner	Chatham	G	Jr.	Altoona, Pa./Bishop Guilfoyle
Alyssa Laukus	Chatham	F	So.	Irwin, Pa./Norwin
Taylor Milroy	Geneva	G	Jr.	Pittsburgh, Pa./Eden Christian Academy
Kat Goetz	Grove City	F	Sr.	Pittsburgh, Pa./Avonworth
Emily Thompson	Saint Vincent	G/F	Jr.	Erie, Pa./Mercyhurst Prep
Adalynn Cherry	W&J	G	Jr.	Altoona, Pa./Altoona Area