JBU's Cameron named WBCA All-American

For just the second time in program history, John Brown junior Baily Cameron has been selected to the Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) All-America first team, the organization announced Tuesday morning.

The Siloam Springs native joins 2014 JBU graduate Sierra Shipley as the only two players in program history to earn the distinction. Cameron achieves the accolade still with one season remaining as a Golden Eagle.

In 2017-18, Cameron emerged as the program's 18th 1,000-point scorer and was named to the Sooner Athletic first team for the third time in her career, garnering the second-most votes in the conference. SAC Player of the Year, Oklahoma City's Daniela Galindo, was named the WBCA Player of the Year.

"I couldn't be more proud of Baily," head coach Jeff Soderquist said. "She had one of the best years in program history. I would like to thank the WBCA and the committee for honoring the great year Baily put together."

Cameron paced the Golden Eagles in nearly every category, most notably in shooting (57.1 percent from field), points per game (18.8), field goals (221), free throw shooting (82.9), rebounds (209), rebounds per game (7.2) and blocks (34).

The fifth-best shooter in the nation occupied a few new spots in the program record books, and now sits sixth all-time in scoring (1,505), passing Shipley this season, and first in shooting percentage (54.4). Her single-season totals also place her at second all-time in field goals, points per game and third in shooting percentage.

Starting every game, Cameron, the SAC's second-leading scorer, finished in double-figures in every game except two, and crossed the 20-point mark 12 times and the 30-point mark twice.

Joining Shipley as the program's only first-team honorees, Cameron now accompanies program greats that have made the list, including Ashley Taylor (2009), Kendra McCormick (2006) and Martha Hancock (2001), which were all named to the WBCA Honorable Mention list.

"The 10 members of the 2018 WBCA NAIA Coaches' All-America Team are well-deserving of this recognition, and the WBCA congratulates them for their accomplishments this season," said Danielle Donehew, executive director of the WBCA. "These young women have worked to elevate themselves and their teams to an elite level and through their exceptional talents on the basketball court, they have lifted the women's game."

As part of earning the honors, Cameron's jersey will hang in the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame's Ring of Honor in the North Rotunda of the building in Knoxville, Tenn., for the 2018-19 season. A tradition since the Hall opened in 1999, the Ring of Honor houses over 100 jerseys from the high school and collegiate levels who have achieved All-America accolades in the previous season.

Sports on 03/18/2018