CSC Academic All-District® Release
Erica Beaty, Ella Biondi, and Melissa Burtscher from The College of Wooster women's basketball team were among the College Sports Communicators Academic All-District® honorees as announced by the organization on Tuesday.
Beaty played in all 26 games this winter, 15 of which were starts. The sophomore guard averaged 3.9 rebounds, 3.2 points, and 0.8 assists per game. The two-year contributor matched a career-high with nine points against DePauw University in the quarterfinals of the North Coast Athletic Conference Tournament. Beaty, who hit three triples against DePauw, scored eight points in the regular season finale against the Tigers and in a 68-55 win over Waynesburg University. Beaty logged eight games with at least six rebounds this season, including back-to-back contests with eight against Wittenberg University and Oberlin College.
The biology major, who is also a member of the women's soccer team, spent last summer as a patient care technician at Highland Hospital in Rochester, New York. There, Beaty measured and documented patient vital signs, assisted with intake tasks, and documented physical and mental status changes. Beaty is a health coach through the College's Wooster Community Hospital Community Care Network program. With the program, Beaty works under close medical supervision of professionals and visits community patients who need companionship and encouragement in developing healthier lifestyles. Beaty works with patients to promote wellness, reduce the need for potentially unnecessary procedures and hospital visits, and promotes evidence-based care for patients who might otherwise overutilize hospital resources. On campus, Beaty is a biochemistry research assistant investigating mosquito DNA and viruses and works within the equipment room and for game operations.
Biondi, a two-year starter, ranked third on the team among those who played at least 20 games with 10.0 points per game. The forward's 7.0 rebounds per night were tied for the team-high, and the sophomore was tops on the team with 0.9 blocks per game. Biondi dropped in 36 points in a 111-100 overtime win against Miami University Hamilton, with the points marking the fifth-most in program history and top total since alumna Lauren Hancher's 38 against Ohio Wesleyan University in 2016. Biondi tied Wooster's single-game record with 16 made field goals in the Miami-Hamilton win. Biondi logged 15 double-digit scoring games on the year, dropping 18 points against Farleigh Dickinson University Florham and Hiram College. She opened the year with 14 rebounds against Houghton University and had consecutive 13-rebound games against Denison University and Hiram.
The archaeology and classical studies major took part in one of the College's TREK programs last summer. Through the program, Biondi traveled abroad to Greece where she studied and observed ancient history through a science lens and compared past to present research through the Ancient Science and Medicine of the Mediterranean course that was part of the program. Biondi is a member of the College's Archaeology Student Colloquium and is a member of Eta Sigma Phi, the campus chapter of the collegiate honor society for the study of classics. Elsewhere, Biondi works in game operations for Athletics and is involved in Greek life on campus.
Burtscher played in 24 games this season with five starts. The senior averaged 27.8 minutes per game over the final 10 games, and kick-started that stretch with a career-high 10 points in the win over Waynesburg. Burtscher averaged 2.3 points, 2.3 rebounds, and 1.4 assists per game as a senior. Other top performances included eight points in Wooster's 55-49 win over Kenyon College on Feb. 3, six rebounds at Wittenberg on Feb. 10, and six more rebounds against Ohio Wesleyan University on Feb. 14.
For Independent Study, Burtscher evaluated the content validity of current measures of sport participation motivation. The two-time all-conference golfer, who logged the second-highest individual conference finish as a junior, is actively involved with the College's Student-Athlete Advisory Committee. Burtscher works as a student assistant within game operations in Athletics and is a student desk attendant within the Scot Center. The psychology major is a member of Psi Chi, the College's chapter of the psychology honor society.
Each school with a CSC membership may submit up to four Academic All-District® honorees for women's basketball. Each nominee must have at least a 3.50 cumulative GPA, be at least a sophomore in academic standing, and either play in 90 percent of games or start 66 percent of games. The CSC Academic All-America® Team for women's basketball is scheduled to be announced on April 16.