Leedham Named Kodak/WBCA All-America Finalist
Ellesmere Port, England, native is Ravens first Kodak/WBCA All-Region pick in program history

RINDGE, N.H. (March 8, 2007) – Franklin Pierce women’s basketball standout Johannah Leedham (Ellesmere Port, England/Cheshire Academy) has been named one of five Region I finalists for the 2007 Kodak/Women’s Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) Division II All-America Team, the WBCA announced today, in cooperation with Eastman Kodak Company.

WBCA CEO Beth Bass will announce the Kodak/WBCA All-America Basketball Team at the NCAA Division II Women’s Basketball Banquet on Tuesday, March 20, 2007, in conjunction with the “Elite Eight” hosted by the University of Nebraska-Kearney.           

Leedham, who has also collected Daktronics All-Northeast Region first team, Northeast-10 Conference Freshman of the Year, first team All-Conference and NE-10 All-Rookie team honors this season, is the first Kodak/WBCA All-America finalist and All-Region selection in Franklin Pierce women’s basketball history. She is the lone freshman (and one of just two underclassmen) selected among the 35 finalists in the WBCA’s eight NCAA Division II regions and one of just two freshmen in Divisions I, II and III who remain as All-America candidates, along with University of Connecticut standout Tina Charles.

            Leedham took the Northeast-10 by storm in her first collegiate season, earning NE-10 Freshman of the Week honors 11 times and Player of the Week honors on six occasions, including a string of three-straight weeks leading into the holiday break. Leedham appeared in the “Faces in the Crowd” section of the January 15 issue of Sports Illustrated.

Leedham leads the Northeast-10 in scoring, averaging 23.1 points (4^th in Division II), to go with a Conference-best 4.0 steals (3^rd nationally), 7.9 rebounds (5^th NE-10), 3.3 assists (14^th) and 1.0 blocks (6^th) per game. She ranks fourth in the NE-10 in three-point field goal percentage (.390), seventh in free-throw percentage (.813) and ninth in field goal percentage (.490). In 20 NE-10 games played, Leedham averaged 23.6 points (1^st), 7.9 rebounds (5^th), 3.5 assists (12^th), 3.9 steals (1^st) and 1.1 blocks (5^th). She is also third in three-point percentage in Conference play, connecting at 40.9%.

Leedham scored 20-plus points in all but nine games played, reaching 30 points seven times, and recording ten double-doubles. She led the Ravens in scoring in 19 of their 28 games and rebounding 18 times. Leedham has already made an impact on Franklin Pierce’s record book, setting no fewer than 19 records (including freshman marks) in her first collegiate season. A list of Leedham’s records set this season is below:

LEEDHAM’S LIST
13-for-13 FT’s vs. Stonehill (Dec. 2) – single-game free-throw percentage record*
19 FT’s made vs. Molloy (Dec. 20) – single-game record for FT’s made*
11 steals vs. Northwood (Dec. 30) – single-game record*
165 FT’s made – single-season record*
100 steals – single-season record*
578 points – single-season freshman record
23.1 points per game – single-season record*
11 NE-10 Freshman of the Week awards
6 NE-10 Player of the Week awards*
Six-straight NE-10 Freshman of the Week awards
Three-straight NE-10 Player of the Week awards*
* - also program records for freshmen

  Franklin Pierce (17-10, 13-9 NE-10), ranked tenth in the final NCAA Division II Tournament Northeast Regional rankings, earned its fourth-straight postseason berth and hosted an NE-10 Tournament first round contest for the second-straight year.