Rachael Rose and Cecelia Collins continue to collect honors in their first season of college basketball.
The former Scranton Prep and NEPA Elite Clark 17U teammates were named as their conferences’ top first-year players – again – Monday.
Rose was selected as Big South Conference Freshman of the Week for the fourth time, tying a University of South Carolina Upstate school record for weekly conference honors in a season since the school moved to the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I level in 2007.
Collins is the Patriot League Rookie of the Week for the third time for her play at Bucknell University.
Rose played every minute of two games as USC Upstate split, moving to 2-1 in the Big South and 10-4 overall for its best start ever on the Division I level.
The 5-foot-7 point guard had 30 points and 13 rebounds. She was 10-for-17 (58.8 percent) in the two games while dishing out eight assists and turning the ball over just once.
Rose had her first career double-double in an 83-73 loss to High Point. She scored 19 points and pulled down a career-high 11 rebounds while going 6-for-9.
During a come-from-behind, 67-64 victory over North Carolina A&T, Rose contributed 11 points, 3 assists, 2 rebounds, a blocked shot and a steal.
Rose has played 13 of the 14 games, starting in all of her appearances. She leads the Spartans in minutes played (33.3 per game) and assists (3.5) and is the team’s most accurate shooter at 56.9 percent from the floor, 50.0 from 3-point range and 73.8 on free throws. Rose ranks second in points (12.5), rebounds (4.2) and steals (2.8).
USC Upstate, under the coaching of Abington Heights graduate Becky Burke, was picked to finish 10th in the Big South in a preseason poll of conference coaches. The Spartans are currently fifth out of 12 teams.
Collins is the first Bucknell player since 2015-16 to earn more than one Patriot League weekly honor in the same season. She leads Patriot League rookies in scoring with 11.7 points per game and is ninth overall in the league with 32.4 minutes and 12th in assists with 2.5.
The 6-foot guard was honored after scoring 16 points in a 56-45 win over preseason favorite Lehigh and leading the team with 14 points and 9 assists in a 62-52 win over American.
For more on Collins’ freshman season and her role in Sunday’s victory over American, see: https://nepasportsnation.com/collins-leads-third-straight-bison-win/.
