Six former Drake standouts have been selected to the Missouri Valley Conference Women’s Basketball All-Centennial team, which was determined by an online fan vote (www.mvc100.org), in-arena ballots at the recent MVC tournament in St. Louis and a centennial committee.
Heading the Bulldog delegation that was chosen to the 35-member team is Wanda Ford. She was inducted into the MVC Athlete Hall of Fame in 1981 and became the first woman to lead the nation in scoring (30.6 avg.) and rebounding (16.9 avg.) in the same season (1985-86).
Former Drake players Lorri Bauman (1980-84), Jan Jensen (1987-91), Tricia Wakely (1992-96), Tammi Blackstone (1996-2000) and Carla Bennett (1999-2003) also were named to the elite team.
Ford is the only player in league history to record over 2,000 career points (2,636) and 1,000 career (1,815) rebounds. She was the NCAA’s all-time leading rebounder.
Bauman, a finalist for the Wade Trophy as a senior in 1984, owns the top individual career scoring average (26.0) in the history of the MVC and is the career scoring leader in Drake’s history with 3,115 points.
In 1990-91, Jensen became the first player to lead the nation in scoring (29.6 avg.) and to be named the Academic All-American player of the year. She was named the 1991 MVC Player of the Year.
Wakely was named the Academic All-America Co-Player of the Year, the MVC Player of the Year in 1996 and the most valuable performer of the 1995 MVC Tournament.
In 2003, Bennett became the third player in MVC history to be named to the league’s all-conference first-team all four playing years. She was named the MVC Freshman of the Year in 2000.
Blackstone, who is Drake’s career leader in blocked shots (218) and field goal percentage (.624) was named the most valuable performer at the 1998 MVC Tournament.
More than 3,500 votes were cast for the women’s basketball team, and all 10 schools had at least one representative on the team. As part of the MVC Centennial Celebration, the league office is naming all-centennial teams for each of the Valley’s sponsored sports.