March 18, 2009

O'Keefe, Slater earn All-Region; Harris named Coach of Year

GROVE CITY, Pa. -- Two Grove City College basketball players earned All-Great Lakes Region honors from D3Hoops.com Tuesday night through voting by the region's sports information directors. Junior center Andy O'Keefe (Perry, Ohio/Perry) earned Third Team All-Region honors on the men's side while sophomore forward Christine Slater (Aliquippa, Pa./Center) received Third Team recognition.

In addition, the region's SIDs also honored Grove City head women's basketball coach Sarah Harris as the Great Lakes Region Coach of the Year.

O'Keefe led Grove City in scoring average (12.8) and rebounding (4.6) while finishing second on the squad with 57 assists. The 6-foot-7 O'Keefe also blocked a team-high 23 shots this year, helping the Wolverines lead the conference in field-goal percentage defense.

O'Keefe started all 25 games this year and shot 59 percent from the field this year, which ranked second in the conference. He also ranked third in the conference in blocked shots. O'Keefe earned Second Team All-Presidents' Athletic Conference following the season.

He is a two-year starter and three-year letterman.

Slater led the conference with 11 double-doubles this season. She ranked third in the league in scoring, averaging 15.4 points per game. Her 9.9 rebounds per game ranked second in the conference. Slater also ranked third in minutes played, averaging 34.5 per game. She also drained 20 three-point goals.

This year, Slater became the fifth Grove City player to score 400 points or more in a season. Her 400 points this year is the eighth-highest single-season total in program history. Slater is a two-time Second Team All-PAC honoree.

Harris earned Coach of the Year recognition after guiding Grove City to a 7-7 record in conference play. The Wolverines finished fourth in the PAC and hosted a PAC Championship Tournament game for the first time since 2004, despite having just seven healthy players for the majority of the season.

Grove City opened the season 0-5 but rebounded by winning six of its next nine games. The Wolverines (11-15) swept longtime rivals Geneva and Westminster this year. Grove City also defeated North Coast Athletic Conference runner-up Allegheny.

Hope forward Jesse Reimink is the Great Lakes Region Men's Player of the Year. Hope center Carrie Snikkers earned the region's Player of the Year on the women's side. John Carroll head men's basketball coach Mike Moran received the region's Men's Coach of the Year award.

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