Johannah Leedham Named WDIIB Preseason National Player of the Year

Women’s Basketball also ranked No. 2 in preseason top-25 poll

RINDGE, N.H. (October 7, 2009) – Honors for the 2009-10 season began on Wednesday for Franklin Pierce University women’s basketball standout Johannah Leedham (Ellesmere Port, England), as the senior was named the Women’s Division II Bulletin Preseason National Player of the Year. It marked the second-straight season Leedham garnered the award from the news agency. The Ravens, as a team, were also honored by the agency as they were ranked No. 2 in the preseason top-25 poll.

Leedham earned first-team All-America honors last season after she posted averages of 23.5 points and 6.1 rebounds per game, and help lead Franklin Pierce to a berth in the NCAA Division II National Championship Game. The Ravens won both the regular season and tournament championships in the Northeast-10 Conference, and advanced to the national Elite Eight after winning the NCAA East Regional title.

Those performances by Leedham last season came on the heels of her winning the Division II National Player-of-the-Year award as a sophomore during the previous year in 2007-08. That season, she helped guide the Ravens to the NCAA East Regional title and a berth in the Elite Eight.

“Johannah is one of the top players at the Division II level and as she heads into her senior year we felt she is most deserving of this honor,” said WDIIB editor Gary Rubin. “While the talent level in Division II basketball continues to rise, Johannah’s performance on the court speaks for itself.”

Leedham heads the publication’s Super 16 All-Americans that feature two players from each of the eight regions.

Franklin Pierce’s No. 2 preseason ranking was the highest for any team in the NE-10. It also marks the second-straight season the Ravens will enter a new campaign ranked among the top-five teams in a preseason poll. Franklin Pierce entered last season No. 4 in several preseason polls.

Two teams that appear on the Ravens 2009-10 schedule also appear in the poll released by WDIIB, including Stonehill, which was ranked No. 6, and Bentley, which received honorable-mention votes.

For more information on Franklin Pierce women’s basketball, please visit the team’s page at athletics.franklinpierce.edu(.)