Mount Ida sophomore forward Valerie Martin earned a spot on the 2017-18 Great Northeast Athletic Conference Women’s Basketball all-conference team for her efforts during the recently completed season, as she was selected to the third team all-league squad in a vote of the conference coaches.
A native of Derry, N.H. and a graduate of Pinkerton Academy, Martin recorded one of the top single-season performances in school history this winter, as she averaged 16 points, 8.4 rebounds and 2.6 steals per game while starting in 24 of 25 contests played. Valerie became the fourth player in school history to score 400-plus points in a single season and recorded eight double-double efforts along the way, including a career-high 30 points against Lasell on February 17th and a career-best 18 rebounds against Albertus Magnus on January 9th.
Martin became the first Mustang to earn a spot on the prestigious D3Hoops.com National Team of the Week on December 13th after averaging 23 points, 12 rebounds, four steals and 3.5 assists in a pair of triumphs over Fitchburg State and Mount Holyoke, as she was also tabbed to the New England Women’s Basketball Association’s honor roll for her performance. Valerie scored in double-digits in 19 of her 25 games played this year and connected at an 83 percent clip (148-178) at the foul line.
Martin helped lead Head Coach Katie Greene’s squad to the second highest single-season win total (13) in the program’s 19-year NCAA history, as Mount Ida earned its first post-season berth in six years and the ninth overall in team history. The Mustangs fell to eventual GNAC champion Saint Joseph’s (Maine) in last week’s conference quarterfinal round.