Walker earns MIAA MVP and MIAA Defensive Player of the Year

March 2, 2003

KANSAS CITY, Mo. —  Crystal Walker, a 6-foot senior forward from Osawatomie, Kan., was named MIAA Most Valuable Player Sunday night at the MIAA Media Welcome Reception. Walker was fourth in the MIAA in scoring with 15.8 points a game, seventh in rebounding (7.1 rpg) and fourth in field goal percentage (49.3 percent). She also earned MIAA Player of the Week honors twice this season.

On Jan. 18 earlier this season Walker became the 16th Washburn player to reach the 1,000 point plateau by netting 22 of her 24 points in the second half of a comeback win against Central Missouri State in Lee Arena. She also grabbed her 500th rebound against Northwest Missouri State on Jan. 15. She currently has 1,207 points and 605 rebounds in her career.

Walker is the first player to win back-to-back MIAA Most Valuable Player awards since Aneta Kausaite of Emporia State shared the award in 1996-97 and won the award again in 1997-98. She is the only Washburn Lady Blue to win MIAA MVP honors twice.

Walker also was a member of the MIAA's Inaugural All-Defensive Team and was selected as the MIAA Defensive Player of the Year.

Carissa Goeglein earned second team All-MIAA honors by averaging 13.1 points and 5.0 rebounds a game. Goeglein, a 5-11 junior from Yuma, Colo. was also a first team All-MIAA selection as a junior in 2001-02.

Washburn (24-3, 15-3 MIAA), which won its second-ever MIAA title outright with a 61-55 win over Missouri Southern Saturday, opens the Sonic MIAA Tournament as the No. 1 seed with a 12 p.m. game Thursday against No. 8 seeded Truman State (9-17, 5-13 MIAA). The Bulldogs were the last team to beat Washburn 76-71 in Kirksville, Mo. on Feb. 1.