Inside HOKIE SPORTS | Vol. 12 No. 4 | March 2020

inside.hokiesports.com 7 Kitty Newton Photo KitKatNewt1@gmail.com “The Farmhouse... Eating Great Food here for over 30 Years.” – Coach Frank Beamer thefarmhousechristiansburg.com 285 Ridinger Street, Christiansburg, VA 24073 • (540) 251-7600 Prime Rib • Steaks • Seafood • Outdoor Courtyard • Private Dining • Weekend Brunch Kitley, Baptiste receive top ACC honors Elizabeth Kitley and Trinity Baptiste each made Virginia Tech women’s basketball history after securing two of the league’s top honors shortly after the regular season. Kitley, from Greensboro, North Carolina, was named the ACC Freshman of the Year after a debut regular season inwhich she averaged 12.4 points and 7.6 rebounds per game. Her scoring led all freshmen in the league, and she finished second in the league overall in blocks (60) and in shooting percentage (56.4%). On three occasions, she was named the ACC Freshman of the Week following terrific performances. Baptiste, a junior from Tampa, Florida, was named the ACC Sixth Player of the Year. She came off the bench to average 9.5 points and 6.4 rebounds per game during the regular season, and she led the Hokies in free-throw shooting at 84%. Of note, the Hokies went 11-1 during the regular season when Baptiste scored in double figures, with the lone loss coming against then-No. 5 Louisville in the regular-season finale. The naming of both players to those accolades marked a first in Tech women’s basketball history. Other Hokies honored at the end of the regular season included Aisha Sheppard and Taja Cole. Sheppard earned second-team All- ACC honors, while Cole was an honorable mention selection, and she earned a spot on the league’s All-Defensive Team. Sheppard led the Hokies at 15.2 points per game during the regular season, and she set a school single-season record with 84 3-pointers, while Cole averaged 1.45 steals per game. In addition, Cole averaged 9.7 points, 6.6 assists and 5 rebounds per game during the regular season. Nolley makes ACC All-Freshman Team Landers Nolley II, a redshirt freshman from outside of Atlanta, made the ACC All-Freshman Team, as announced by the league on March 9 following the conclusion of the regular season. by Jimmy Robertson Nolley became the fifth Hokie ever to make an ACC All-Freshman Team and the first in six years. He joined former players Devin Wilson (2014), Dorian Finney-Smith (2012), Jeff Allen (2008) and Deron Washington (2005) as Hokies to earn a spot on the team. He averaged a team-best 15.6 points per game during the regular season, and he added 5.9 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game. He was named the ACC Freshman of the Week on a school-record five occasions. In addition, Nolley was named an honorable mention choice to the All-ACC team. He was the lone Hokie on that squad. Basketball players make All-ACC Academic Teams All five Virginia Tech women’s basketball starters and two players on the men’s basketball team made the All-ACC Academic Team, as announced by the league in early March. Minimum requirement for each selection including a 3.0 grade- point average for the previous semester and a 3.0 cumulative grade- point average during one’s academic career. Athletics achievements during the most recent season also factor into the selection process. The following list of players made the team: Tech women’s basketball team •Taja Cole, graduate student (agriculture & life sciences, leadership studies) •Elizabeth Kitley, Fr. (human nutrition, foods & exercise) •Dara Mabrey, So. (multimedia journalism; sports media & analytics) •Lydia Rivers, graduate student (agriculture & life sciences, leadership studies) •Aisha Sheppard, Jr. (multimedia journalism; sports media & analytics) Tech men’s basketball team •Landers Nolley II, r-Fr. (public health) •Nahiem Alleyne, Fr. (human development) Mabrey made the team for the second time, while all the others earned the honor for the first time in their careers.