MANHATTAN, Kan. – Kansas State rising senior Peyton Williams will take part in the 2019 U.S. Pan American Games Women’s Basketball Team Trials on May 16-20 at the United States Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
Williams is one of 36 players invited for the trials and is one of six players from the Big 12 Conference taking part in the five-day event. The last Kansas State player to play on the U.S. Pan American Games team was Laurie Koehn in 2003 in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.
The 12-member team will return to Colorado Springs for training camp, July 23-August 5, before competing in the women’s basketball tournament at the 2019 Pan American Games from August 6-10 in Lima, Peru.
The team will be guided by Michigan State head coach Suzy Merchant and assisted by Buffalo head coach Felisha Legette-Jack and Mississippi State head coach Vic Schaefer.
The USA Basketball Women’s Junior National Team Committee, chaired by George Washington University head coach Jennifer Rizzotti, is responsible for selecting the U.S. trials athletes. In addition to Rizzotti, the USA Junior National Team Committee includes 2008 Olympic gold medalist Kara Lawson as the athlete representative; and Karen Aston (Texas), Tonya Cardoza (Temple) and Wes Moore (North Carolina State) as the NCAA representatives.
Williams, a preseason candidate for the 2019 Katrina McClain Award given to the nation’s top power forward, increased her scoring average for the third straight season and led the Wildcats with 15.5 points per game (496 points) and free throw percentage (.833) in the 2018-19 season. She was the third player in program history to register 475 or more points and 300 or more rebounds in a single season.
Williams, an All-Big 12 First Team selection in 2019, completed her junior season with a career-high 303 rebounds (9.5 rpg). Williams led all players in the Big 12 for rebound percentage at 26.6 percent. Her rebounding total in the 2018-19 season ranked fourth in program history for a single season and was the most since Nicole Ohlde pulled in a junior season record 306 rebounds in the 2002-03 season.
Williams finished Big 12 play by averaging a double-double with 16.2 points and 10.0 rebounds. She is the first Wildcat to average a double-double in league play since Kendra Wecker in the 2004-05 season.
She carded a career-high and Big 12 best 14 double-doubles in the 2018-19 season. Her 14 double-doubles rank tied for third in school history for double-doubles in a single season.
In addition to being named to the All-Big 12 First Team, Williams was the second player in program history to garner Big 12 All-Defensive Team honors, joining former teammate and three-time Big 12 All-Defensive Team selection Breanna Lewis. Williams recorded 37 blocks and a career-high 62 steals in the 2018-19 season. She ranked among the top-15 in the Big 12 in steals per game (fourth; 1.9) and blocks per game (11th; 1.2).
In her career, Williams is the fourth player in program history with 1,000 or more career points, 600 or more career rebounds and 80 or more career blocked shots. Williams ranks among K-State’s career leaders in scoring (31st; 1,122 points), rebounding (16th; 659 rebounds), blocked shots (7th; 90 blocks) and free throw percentage (7th; .812).
Players expected to participate in the U.S. Pan American Games Women’s Basketball Team Trials are: Bella Alarie (Princeton), Janelle Bailey (North Carolina), Brittany Brewer (Texas Tech), Chennedy Carter (Texas A&M), Kaila Charles (Maryland), Te’a Cooper (TBD), Kathleen Doyle (Iowa), Chelsea Dungee (Arkansas), Dana Evans (Louisville), Kiah Gillespie (Florida State), Vivian Gray (Oklahoma State), Tyasha Harris (South Carolina), Ruthy Hebard (Oregon), Becca Hittner (Drake), Joyner Holmes (Texas), Stephanie Jones (Maryland), Aari McDonald (Arizona), Karissa McLaughlin (Purdue), Amber Melgoza (Washington), Ayana Mitchell (Louisiana State), Beatrice Mompremier (Miami), Nancy Mulkey (Rice), Erica Ogwumike (Rice), Michaela Onyenwere (UCLA), Eleah Parker (Pennsylvania), Jaelynn Penn (Indiana), Destiny Pitts (Minnesota), Mikayla Pivec (Oregon State), Lindsey Pulliam (Northwestern), Kristin Scott (Iowa State), Destiny Slocum (Oregon State), Amber Smith (Missouri), Sug Sutton (Texas), Kobi Thornton (Clemson), Kiana Williams (Stanford), Peyton Williams (Kansas State) and Kay Kay Wright (Central Florida).
– kstatesports.com –