BUFFALO, NY - The University at Buffalo women's basketball team announced its 2001-02 team awards at UB's annual Athletic Awards Banquet, held at Samuel's Grande Manor on Sunday, April 28. Sophomore Jessica Kochendorfer (Allen, MI/Quincy) was named the team's Most Valuable Player, freshman Allison Bennett (Springfield, OH/Kenton Ridge) was tabbed as the Top Newcomer, junior Rachel Martin (Kenmore, NY/Kenmore West) was selected as the team's Most Improved Player and junior Kate McMeeken-Ruscoe (Nelson, New Zealand/University of Hawaii) received the Coach's Award.

Jessica Kochendorfer

Kochendorfer led the Bulls in 2001-02 with 14.3 points, 7.6 rebounds and 1.36 blocks per game. Her 401 points on the year are the 10th highest in UB history, and her 38 blocks are sixth on UB's single-season record list. Kochendorfer earned All-Mid-American Conference Honorable Mention honors and Honorable Mention All-America honors from womenscollegehoops.com at the conclusion of the season. She surpassed the 600 career point plateau (607) and the 350 career rebound plateau (361) during the season, putting her on pace to become just the second player in UB history to score over 1,200 points and grab over 700 rebounds in her career.

Bennett saw action in all 28 games during her freshman campaign, starting 23 and averaging 4.4 points and 2.2 rebounds per game. Bennett shot 41.8 percent from the floor and scored a career-high 14 points at Western Michigan on February 5.

Martin was named Most Improved Player for the second consecutive year after averaging career highs of 4.2 points and 5.1 rebounds per game. She also finished third on the team with 17 blocks on the year and ranked 14th in the MAC in blocks per game (0.63). Martin earned a starting spot at the beginning of the season after coming off the bench in her first two seasons with the Bulls. She appeared in 27 games with 12 starts and shot 44.4 percent from the floor for the season.

McMeeken-Ruscoe served as a co-captain in 2001-02 and was one of only two players to start every game for the Bulls after sitting out the 2000-01 season due to NCAA transfer rules. McMeeken-Ruscoe scored in double figures in 18 games, including a team-high five games with 20 or more points. She finished second on the team with 12.2 points per game and led the team with 52 steals on the year (1.86 per game, 12th in the MAC). McMeeken-Ruscoe scored a career-high 26 points on back-to-back Saturday night games against Eastern Michigan and Akron.