VIDEO: Kayla Marosites Interview
ROCK HILL, S.C. – Addison Byrd and Kayla Marosites begin the 2019-20 season as preseason first-team All-South Atlantic Conference selections announced Wednesday by the league leading Carson-Newman into the year as the No. 2 team in the league.
The Lady Eagles join preseason favorite Anderson as the only two clubs in the conference to have a pair of players listed on the top squad entering the year. It is the second-straight year that Mike Mincey's crew places two on the first team after Haris Price and Mika Wester opened 2018-19 on the first team.
Byrd was named honorable All-SAC as a sophomore after tripling her scoring average from her freshman season scoring 12 points per game. The Nashville, Tenn. native produced double-digit scoring efforts 20 times including a string of 13 in-a-row from Nov. 10 through Jan 9. She scored a career-high 25 points in 31 minutes at Columbus State on Nov. 25 going 11-for-17 from the floor. Nearly a month later, she went 9-for-11 from the field and six of seven from long range to score 24 points at Shorter on Dec. 29
The junior ranked sixth in the SAC in field-goal percentage at 48 percent and eighth in field goals made with 144 a year ago. Byrd secured her first-career double-double with 10 points and a career-high 11 rebounds on Feb. 13 at No. 18 Anderson.
"I think the expectations are the same as they have always been," Byrd said. "We want to get the wins. Obviously we don't have a lot of finesse players anymore with Haris and Mika leaving. It's more of a who is going to out-tough the opponent. We want to make it to the NCAA Tournament and I feel like we can accomplish that if we work together."
A two-time all-league pick, Marosites was an all-region selection as a junior after producing the most double-doubles in school history with 21 last season. Her career total sits at 34 looking to track down Shari Buford's program record of 41 during this season.
"I just want to be a leader for my team," Marosites said. "I want to set an example out on the court to always go hard. Hopefully get more rebounds, more points and more assists this year and help my team to victory. There's a lot of hunger. When we had the Elite Eight year, there is nothing like that so we definitely want to get back there. We have to work hard and play together."
The Elizabethton, Tenn. native is in the top 10 for career rebounds with 702 ranking 10th. She is ninth in school history with 106 triples while she has 846 in the Orange and Blue aiming to be the 27th player in school history to be a 1,000-point scorer.
Marosites has a career rebounding average of 10.8, a number that ranks her third in the history of the SAC. Fredia Lawrence (Gardner-Webb, 1989-92, 11.60) and Tiffany Johnson (Newberry, 1996-2000, 11.00) are the only two individuals above her. If she posts a similar season to her first two at C-N, she would climb into the league's top 10 for career boards as Lawrence is 10th with 1,009.
After being the first player in school history to earn CoSIDA Academic All-District honors, Marosites ranked fourth in Division II in double-doubles (21), seventh in total rebounds (338) and 13th in rebounds per game (11.3). She reset the program record for rebounds in a game with 22 at Columbus State on Nov. 25.
Overall in her career, the guard has racked up 48 double-digit scoring efforts with 45 double-digit rebounding nights. She enters the season with at least 10 boards in in nine consecutive contests.
Every game this season will be broadcast on cneagles.com/live and 106.3 (WPFT-FM) starting 15 minutes before tip-off starting Nov. 8 as C-N takes on USC Aiken at 7:30 p.m. in Greenwood, S.C.
2019-20 SAC Women's Basketball Preseason All-Conference
First Team
Alexy Mollenhauer, Anderson
Mia Long, Tusculum
Madison Baggett, Anderson
Addison Byrd, Carson-Newman
Kayla Marosites, Carson-Newman
Talia Barnes, Catawba
Second Team
Taisha DeSazo, Catawba
Teliyah Jeter, Wingate
Madeline Hardy, Lenoir-Rhyne
Kristian Eanes, Queens
Kelsey McDermott, Newberry
Cynita Webb, UVa-Wise
- CN -
