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Washington State women’s basketball guards Lia Galdeira and Tia Presley became the first teammates to earn All-Conference honors in the same season in program history on Tuesday. Both players were named to the 15-member All-Pac-12 team that is voted on by the conference’s coaches. The guards became the first players to capture first team honors since Tricia Lamb in the 1998-99 season.
For Galdeira, this is her fourth and fifth career all-conference accolades; last season she earned All-Pac-12 honorable mention and a spot on the conference’s All-Freshman team. Galdeira followed up her freshmen campaign with a memorable sophomore year that saw her finish the conference schedule leading the league with 47 steals and she finished ninth in scoring at 17.6 ppg.
Presley earned her second career all-conference honor – she also earned an honorable mention last season. In her junior season, Presley earned Pac-12 player of the week honors for her performance during the Cougs road trip to Colorado and Utah. This season also saw Presley finish sixth in the conference in scoring, with 18.9 ppg.Her aggressive style of play led to her taking 212 free throws -- second most in the conference -- and 54 steals this season.
These two guards are a major reason that the season finished the regular season with a .500 record overall, and in conference play. The offense primarily ran through Presley and Galdeira because of their versatility near the hoop and out around the arc. Their offensive versatility helped to create offensive opportunities for other players: senior Sage Romberg hit 42 of her 104 three point shots.
On the defensive end of the court both guards played aggressively -- that's the primary reason they recorded so many steals -- but it often led to them getting beat easily by the other teams.
This announcement comes as the team is preparing to take on Oregon in the Pac-12 tournament in Seattle, Wa. and after the team’s best season in 19 years.
Here is the link to WSU’s press release.