Vanguard’s coach, two players lauded

Vanguard University’s Russ Davis has been named NAIA Coach of the

Year by the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association, while Lion

standouts Lisa Faulkner and Kelly Schmidt have earned All-American

recognition.

Faulkner, a 5-foot-4 senior point guard, is a repeat first-team

All-American honoree. She posted a single-game tournament record 17

assists in Vanguard’s first-round NAIA tournament win Wednesday over

Edward Waters College of Florida.

Faulkner entered the tournament averaging 12.9 points, an

NAIA-leading 10.6 assists, and 3.8 rebounds. She was shooting 39.9%

from three-point range and also led the nation in assist-to-turnover

ratio (3.85).

Schmidt, the Golden State Athletic Conference Player of the Year,

and a second-team All-American choice as a freshman last season,

averaged 22.4 points and 8.2 rebounds during the regular season. The

6-0 forward shot 55.5% from the field and had a team-leading 65

steals. Schmidt’s scoring average ranked second among NAIA Division I

players.

Schmidt had 29 points in the 79-44 first-round win, which

propelled the Lions (31-3) to today’s second-round contest against

Carroll of Montana (29-6).

Davis, in his ninth season at Vanguard, is 226-73 entering today’s

game. His teams have won five GSAC championships and have made six

appearances in the NAIA tournament. He has been Coach of the Year in

the GSAC three times.

Vanguard won the GSAC regular-season and tournament titles for the

second straight season and has achieved its second straight 30-win

season.

The Lions were 31-3 last season, when they lost in the NAIA

tournament quarterfinals to Brescia.

In 2002-03, the Lions reached the NAIA tournament final four,

falling in the semifinals to Southern Nazarene of Oaklahoma.

The Lions held the No. 1 national ranking for three weeks this

season and are currently ranked No. 2 in the national poll, behind

Houston Baptist of Texas.

All tournament games are played at Oman Arena in Jackson, Tenn.