by By Mario Bravante
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Redshirt senior guard Chelsea Dungee (Cherokee Nation) was named an All-American, announced today by the Associated Press. It is the first All-American nod for Dungee, who was voted to the Third Team, and the first AP All-American recognition for Arkansas Women’s Basketball since Shameka Christon was named to the Third Team back in 2004.
With the nod, the Sapulpa, Okla. native becomes just the program’s third AP All-American ever, and joins Christon as the only players in program history to be voted onto one of the three All-American teams. Christy Smith was voted as an honorable mention during all four of her seasons at Arkansas.
Dungee was certainly deserving of the honor, as the First Team All-SEC selection put up monster numbers during her final season on the Hill. Her 22.2 points per game leads the SEC, and she is one of just 14 players in the NCAA averaging 22 points or more. The redshirt senior does a lot of her damage from the foul line – she currently leads the nation in free throws made (163) and is third in the nation in attempts (206). All that scoring added up for Dungee, as she now has 2,120 career points, the most points in a collegiate career ever by a Razorback Women’s Basketball player.
When looking at the numbers in SEC play, Dungee was somehow even better. She averaged 23.1 points per game, the most in the league in conference only games, scored 20 or more in 12 of Arkansas’ 15 league games, and dropped 30+ against Ole Miss, Florida and Tennessee. However, it was her game against No. 1 UConn, in which she scored 37 points, that put Dungee firmly on the national radar. Her performance, which led to Arkansas’ 90-87 win over the Huskies, was the most points given up to a single player by the Huskies this century.
Dungee’s Honors This Season:
^ Third Team All-American (AP)
^ First Team All-SEC
^ Ann-Meyers Drysdale Award Finalist
^ Wooden Award National Ballot
^ 2x SEC Player of the Week (Feb. 2 & Dec. 8)
^ USBWA National Player of the Week (Feb. 2)
^ ESPN National Player of the Week (Feb. 1)
^ Gulf Coast Showcase All-Tournament Team
