Frazee, Cunningham honored as state’s best

Twelve months, hundreds of games and thousands of shots later, very little has changed.

Today, as in 2008, Liberty forward Megan Frazee is the pre-eminent player and Virginia Commonwealth University's Beth Cunningham the most conspicuously successful coach in state women's basketball.

Never before in the 14-year history of The Times-Dispatch all-state women's team have the same individuals captured the top two awards in consecutive seasons. But then, never before have the same individuals delivered encore performances of such quality. Frazee, a 6-3 senior, bounced back from a severe early-season ankle injury to average 20.3 points and 10 rebounds and earn Big South regular-season and tournament MVP distinction. Cunningham led VCU on a 26-7 joyride that included the program's first NCAA tournament bid.

Frazee, probably the most skilled and complete women's player ever to compete in the Big South, produced double-digit offense in 68 of her past 69 games. Still, splendid though it has been, her college career will forever be accompanied by a question: What might this remarkable talent have accomplished had she not missed nearly a season's worth of games because of knee and ankle problems? Certainly she would have smashed her school's career scoring and rebounding records. Instead, she ranks second in points (1,883) and third in rebounds (951).

"Obviously, I think anyone is going to wonder, 'What if?'" she said. "But for me, personally, I'm content with what the Lord has allowed me to do. I can honestly say, that's why I play basketball first and foremost: to honor the Lord. I feel so blessed each time He allows me to set foot on the court."

She said she was "at peace" while watching from the sidelines because "the Lord knows what is best for each and every one of us."

Don't mistake Frazee's off-court serenity for on-court complacency. She is an intense competitor who plays the game with the inner fire that only the special ones possess. She said her unscheduled eight-game layoff only heightened her affection for basketball.

"I think any time a person is away from something that they love, their passion is either going to increase or decrease," she said. "I couldn't wait until I was able to step back out onto the court."

It showed. Frazee was one of only two players in Division I to enter the NCAA tournament with averages of 20 or more points and 10 or more rebounds. Ohio State's Jantel Lavender was the other.

Joining the Flames standout on the Division I first team were two all-ACC first-team selections from the University of Virginia: junior guard Monica Wright (20.5 ppg, 93 steals) and senior forward Lyndra Littles (20.5 ppg, 6.4 rpg). Also selected: James Madison sophomore point guard Dawn Evans (23.9 ppg, 86 3-pointers) and VCU senior post player Quanitra Hollingsworth (14.8 ppg, 9.4 rpg). Both were named to the all-CAA first team.

The Division II-III team was led by Randolph-Macon post player Molly Ariail, the ODAC's player of the year and tournament MVP; and Saint Paul's guard Tatiana Ellis, the CIAA player of the year. Ariail, a 6-2 junior, averaged 17.7 points and 8.8 rebounds while pushing the Yellow Jackets to a third ODAC title in four years and a berth in the NCAA Division III playoffs. Ellis, a 5-9 junior, ranked 11th in Division II in scoring (22.1 ppg).

Also named to the Division II-III first team: R-MC's Amanda Hiltunen, a senior point guard from Hermitage High School; Christopher Newport guard Chelsie Schweers and Marymount forward Kathleen Brown.

Hiltunen (13.6 ppg, 143 assists) was named to both the all-ODAC first team and the ODAC's all-tournament team. Schweers (21.9 ppg, 80 3-pointers), a first-team all-USA South selection, was chosen as the MVP of her league's tournament. Brown averaged 15.4 points and 9.1 rebounds while earning all-CAC distinction for the second time in as many seasons.

Ariail, Hiltunen, Schweers and Brown last week were named honorable-mention Division III All-Americans.

Cunningham's club lost two key components, veteran point guard LaKea Jones and WNBA draftee Krystal Vaughn, at the end of the 2008 season. It lost another, power forward D'Andra Moss, to a February knee injury. Nevertheless, the Rams flourished. They won 26 games for the second time in as many seasons and reached the NCAA tournament for the first time in program history.

Said Drexel coach Denise Dillon, whose club finished half a stride ahead of the Rams in the race for the CAA's regular-season championship: "Beth did a great job with that team. What [VCU] accomplished this year was absolutely tremendous."