D3hoops Region 8 Teams

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. - Three Titans were recognized Monday, March 16, as D3hoops.com announced its regional awards. Seniors Ava Bardic (Lincolnshire, Ill.-Stevenson) and Sawyer White (Downers Grove, Ill.-Montini Catholic) as well as freshman Caitlin Leyden (Park Ridge, Ill.-Maine South) represented the Illinois Wesleyan University women's basketball team in the D3hoops.com Region 8 awards.

Bardic was voted a first team selection, while White landed second team honors. Leyden rounded things out as the Region 8 Rookie of the Year.

Bardic put together a career year for the Titans in her final season donning the Green and White. The Lincolnshire, Ill. product averaged 19.3 points per game on 45.6 percent shooting with 58 made three-pointers. She has tacked on 74 assists, 71 steals, and 14 blocks. A unanimous First Team All-College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin selection, Bardic posted 16 20-point games and led the team in scoring on 19 occasions. Bardic's 561 points rank as the third-most in a single season in IWU history and the most since Kendall Sosa put up 617 in 2019-20.

White, a premiere defensive player across Division III, was a unanimous First Team All-CCIW pick as Illinois Wesleyan's floor general. She ranked second on the team with 13.4 points per game. She dished out 129 assists, 17th-most nationally, while registering 111 steals. Her 111 thefts sit sixth across Division III, while her career total of 373 is sixth-most among active NCAA student-athletes. A CCIW Player of the Week pick, White posted double-digit points in 24 games and notched one double-double. 

Leyden, the CCIW Newcomer of the Year, was a steady force for the Green and White in her debut season. Playing in 29 games, making 28 starts, Leyden averaged 8.4 points and 7.2 rebounds per game for the Titans. Her 210 rebounds topped the team, while she was third in steals and blocks. Leyden scored in double figures 14 times, while posting a team-high six double-doubles. 

Illinois Wesleyan posted a 23-6 overall record this season, advancing to the second round of the NCAA Tournament. The Titans shared the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin Regular Season title and went on to claim the CCIW's Tournament Championship on the road.