Three Olivet College women’s basketball players earn All-MIAA honors

OLIVET, Mich. – Three Olivet College women's basketball players, senior guard Kelsey Campbell (Olivet), senior guard Chelsea Ciba (Olivet) and junior center Stefanie Lang (Valparaiso, Ind.) have earned 2013-14 All-Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) honors. Campbell, now a three-time All-MIAA selection, and Lang are first-team picks, while Ciba is a second-team choice. All-league honors are based on a player's statistics during the 16-game MIAA schedule.

Under the direction of fourth-year Head Coach Nicole Burford, the Comets finished the season with a 22-4 overall record and was second in the MIAA standings with a 14-2 mark. The 22 overall wins and 14 MIAA victories both broke the single-season record. The second-place finish in the league standings was the highest finish in school history.

"I am very proud of this team," said Burford. "This is a special group and in particular these three ladies are well deserving of the honors. They have been crucial to our program's success over the last few years."

Campbell started all 16 games for the Comets and broke the MIAA single-season record for total assists (133) and assists per game (8.31). She was also among the top five in total assist/turnover ratio (second, 1.80), three-pointers made (third, 26) and three-point field goal percentage (fourth, .388). Campbell posted single-game highs in points (21), rebounds (nine) and assists (12) in an 82-73 win against Kalamazoo College Feb. 12.

For the entire 26-game schedule, Campbell started every game and set a single-season school record with 236 assists. She averaged 11.8 points and 4.1 rebounds, and made a team-high 41 three-pointers.

"Kelsey again did a great job being our floor leader," said Burford. "She really helped our team be successful with her ability to not only set up her teammates but also to be able to score herself."

Lang was the MIAA scoring (18.7 ppg) and rebounding (12.9 rpg) champion, while recording double-doubles in 13 games. She was the league leader in total blocks (28) and blocks per game (1.75), and also ranked among the conference leaders in field goal percentage (second, .537), free throw percentage (eighth, .742). Lang's single-game highs were 30 points at Saint Mary's (Ind.) College Feb. 19 and 19 rebounds at Kalamazoo College Jan. 9.

For the entire schedule, Lang broke the single-season school record for points (526), field goals made (217), field goals attempted (405), rebounds (348) and blocks (44). She is tied for first among all NCAA DIII women's basketball players with 22 double-doubles. Lang broke the single-game school record with 43 points against Kenyon (Ohio) College and 27 rebounds against Muskingum (Ohio) University at the College of Mount St. Joseph (Ohio) Tip-off Tournament.

"Stefanie really matured into a competitive player and was able to consistently dominate against competition," said Burford. "Her efficiency on offense was in my opinion not only the best in the conference but among the best in the region as well."

Ciba was ninth in the MIAA in scoring (13.5 ppg). She was second in total assists (76) and assists per game (4.75), third in assist/turnover ratio (1.77), and fourth in total steals (31) and steals per game (1.94). Ciba scored a single-game high 27 points at Calvin College Feb. 15.

For the entire schedule, Ciba ranked second on the team in scoring (14.1 ppg), while her total points (366) is the sixth-best in school history for a season. She also made a team-high 51 steals and was second with 126 assists.

"It was awesome to see Chelsea being recognized because she has been one of our hardest working athletes over the last two seasons," said Burford. "In the offseason, she worked really hard to improve and be a better offensive threat for us this season and she definitely did that this season."