For the second straight season and the seventh time in program history, Radford has placed two players on the All-Big South first team as announced by the league Tuesday afternoon. The conference’s 10 head coaches voted on the Big South women’s basketball postseason honors.
In all, five Highlanders were recognized, headlined by Destinee Walker and Jayda Worthy being selected to the first team. Janayla White was honored as an honorable mention selection, while Khiana Johnson was named to the all-freshman team. Rachael Ross was acknowledged on the all-academic team for the second straight season.
The core of Walker, Worthy, White and Johnson finished as Radford’s top four scorers; responsible for 41.2 of Radford’s 61.9 points per game.
The core of Walker, Worthy, White and Johnson finished as Radford’s top four scorers; responsible for 41.2 of Radford’s 61.9 points per game.
After adjusting to the college game and dealing with a nagging knee injury during her freshman season, Walker broke out for a sensational sophomore campaign. She ranked third in the Big South in field goal percentage (.470), fifth in scoring (14.1), ninth in rebounding (6.2), 10th in steals (1.4) and 12th in assists (2.4).
“We are so proud of Destinee and the regular-season she had. Destinee made the decision to elevate her game starting last summer, said head coach Mike McGuire. “It has been amazing to watch her growth as a player this season. Destinee really stepped up and was tremendous for us all season long.”
In addition to her .470 field goal percentage, Walker posted a .385 percentage behind the arc and a .776 free throw percentage.
Ranking in the Top 10 in seven statistical categories, Walker finished third in Big South Player of the Year voting. Walker ranked second in the Big South with six 20-point performances, scoring double-figures in 23 of Radford’s 29 contests, leading the Highlanders in scoring 19 times. Walker collected three straight double-doubles from (Nov. 26-Dec. 4) and won two Big South Player of the Week awards.
“We all knew Destinee had great ability and potential as a player. It was going to come down to her making the decision to work to maximize her ability and she is well on her way,” McGuire added. “We are excited for her and her future.”
After being named to the all-freshman team during the 2014-15 season, Worthy picked up her first All-Big South honor. Known to do all the little things on the basketball court; Worthy ranked second on the team with 12.0 ppg and 7.3 rpg. The 7.3 rpg was good enough to rank fourth in the league, while ranking second with 3.4 offensive rebounds per game. Worthy’s sweet shooting stroke led the Big South with a .593 field goal percentage. Worthy picked up 39 steals on the season, ranking 12th in the league with 1.3 per contest.
“We are really excited for Jayda being named to the first team. She has always been a player that has quietly done whatever the team needed from her in order for us to be successful,” McGuire noted. “Jayda really expanded her game offensively this year. I think she learned a lot about herself during last year’s conference tournament that motivated her to prepare for this season.”
Worthy posted six double-doubles, ranking second in the Big South, while leading the league with nine 10-plus rebound performances. She scored double-digits in 20 games on the season, posting three 20-point performances.
The season saw Worthy cross the 800-point, 500-rebound plateau. She is 149 points away from becoming the 12th player in program history to have 1,000 career points and 500 career rebounds.
“Jayda had such a well-rounded regular-season. She was easily one of the most efficient and consistent players all season long,” McGuire stated. “It has been fun to watch her growth, but we also appreciate the commitment she has made to the program since her arrival.”
“Jayda had such a well-rounded regular-season. She was easily one of the most efficient and consistent players all season long,” McGuire stated. “It has been fun to watch her growth, but we also appreciate the commitment she has made to the program since her arrival.”
Injuries plagued White early in the season as the preseason All-Big South selection battled back to average 8.8 ppg and 7.8 rpg to rank third in the Big South. She corralled 194 rebounds in only 25 games played to rank second on the team.
“Janayla really had to battle this season. I know that for most of the season, Janayla was not 100 percent as she was working through some nagging injuries,” McGuire said. “Janayla started to find her groove the last three weeks of the regular season. With all that she had to battle through, I am proud of her determination to help this team and regaining her confidence again.”
White collected 12 double-digit performances on the season, scoring double-figures in six of Radford’s final seven games to conclude the regular season. She finished with five double-doubles, four of which came in Big South play.
The Virginia Beach native earned her third straight postseason Big South honor with the honorable mention selection. Blocking two-plus shots in 10 games on the season, White finished the regular season with 37 blocks to give her 145 career blocks, which moves her into second in program history. She ranked second in the league with 1.5 per game.
“I think we all know that Janayla is one of the most versatile post players in the Big South,” McGuire added. “Like Jayda, Janayla has given a tremendous commitment to our program and it is great to see her receive all-conference recognition for the third straight season.”
Radford was represented on the all-freshman team for the third straight season as Johnson headlined the squad, marking only the third time in program history that the Highlanders have collected three consecutive all-freshman team honorees.
Providing a major spark off the bench, Johnson earned one of the five spots given to the league’s top freshmen. Johnson ranked third among Big South freshman with 7.5 ppg, ranking fourth on the Highlander squad. The Chesapeake, Va. native tallied double-figures in 11 games, scoring 14-plus points in five contests.
“Khiana is only scratching the surface of how good she is going to be. We receive many comments about Khiana and her potential as a player within our program,” McGuire noted. “Khiana played a crucial role in our team winning the regular-season championship.”
“Khiana is only scratching the surface of how good she is going to be. We receive many comments about Khiana and her potential as a player within our program,” McGuire noted. “Khiana played a crucial role in our team winning the regular-season championship.”
Johnson dished out 46 assists, ranking fourth on the team with 1.6 per contest, leading the team in assists seven times. Proving to be one of the best young free throw shooters in the conference, Johnson led the Highlanders with a .778 percentage from the charity stripe.
“Not only does Khiana have tremendous ability, she is competitive and wants to win,” McGuire added. “We are proud of her for making the all-freshmen team and look forward to her continued impact for years to come.”
Ross became the 21st Highlander in a row to be named to the Big South all-academic team, earning her second straight honor. The redshirt senior, who has already earned her bachelor’s degree in communication, has a 3.66 GPA while pursuing her graduate degree in corporate and professional communication.
“Throughout her career, Rachael has been an outstanding representative of our program. Academics are a priority for our women’s basketball program and Rachael has demonstrated a high-level commitment to her studies throughout her undergraduate and graduate work,” McGuire said. “She has set the bar high for our program and we appreciate her commitment.”
— Courtesy of RU Athletics
