EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. – The Ohio Valley Conference announced its All-OVC Women's Basketball honors Tuesday, and a pair of freshmen stood out for SIUE women's basketball. Kiyoko Proctor and Lauren Miller each earned accolades following standout debut season.
 
"Young players can sometimes not want to put in the work and these two definitely have and you can see now they've reaped the benefits of that," Head Coach Samantha Quigley- Smith said. "They've improved vastly in a few months."
 
Proctor capped the regular season by being named OVC Freshman of the Year, All-OVC Second Team and All-OVC Newcomer Team. Miller also earned All-OVC Second Team honors. Throughout the season, both players were frequent selections as OVC Freshman of the Week, with Proctor also collecting OVC Player of the Week recognition once.
 
"Their overall development as the season's gone on has been great, they've got to a point of being consistent scorers and contributors for our team," Smith said. "They don't play like freshmen."
 
Proctor leads the team in scoring at 13.7 points per game, which currently ranks eighth in the conference. She is the first freshman to lead the Cougar in scoring since the 2010-11 season. Proctor recorded four 20-point performances, including a career-high 26 points against Indiana State (Nov. 19). She also knocked down a career-best six three-pointers at Tennessee State (Feb. 21). Proctor has led SIUE in scoring 14 times and has reached double figures in 23 games.
 
"Kyoko from the beginning was leading it all, and coming down the floor, being the person that's got the ball in her hands 80 to 90 percent of the time," Smith said. "Her game has developed by becoming a scoring point guard, and someone that other teams have to scout for and must be ready for. She's a competitor, she's a winner, and she brings this championship mindset."
 
Miller, meanwhile, became the first player in program history to earn OVC Freshman of the Week honors five times in a single season. She ranks second on the team in scoring at 12.5 points per game, currently good for 15^th in the conference. Miller posted her first double-double at Tennessee State (Feb. 21) and poured in a career-high 25 points with nine rebounds earlier this season at Eastern Kentucky (Nov. 7).
 
"Lauren Miller, right from the jump, was a prominent scorer for us and proved to be someone that we wanted in our offense," Smith said. "She was someone we wanted to work with and work around."
 
Beyond the numbers, both freshmen have quickly grown into leadership roles.
 
"They've increased their ability to lead," Smith said. "When you play that many minutes, especially a young player, you start to gain respect. When those two speak, a lot of people listen."
 
The Cougars now turn their attention to the postseason. SIUE will face UT Martin in the first round of the OVC Tournament, with tip off set for 3 p.m.