VCU?S HOLLINGSWORTH SELECTED NINTH OVERALL IN 2009 WNBA DRAFT
SECAUCUS, N.J. (April 9, 2009) ? Virginia Commonwealth University senior center Quanitra Hollingsworth was selected by the Minnesota Lynx with the ninth overall pick in the first round of Thursday’s WNBA Draft.
Hollingsworth is the first VCU player to be selected in the first round of the draft. She is the second Ram to be drafted in the WNBA, following Krystal Vaughn who was selected in 2008 by the Washington Mystics in the third round. As the ninth pick, it is the highest-ever selection in any professional draft by any VCU athlete.
The senior center led VCU to it’s first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance this season after posting a 26-6 mark in the regular season, which tied a school-record for wins. Hollingsworth and the Rams dropped a heartbreaker to Big East power, Rutgers, in the first round, 57-51.
She finished her career with a school record 55 double-doubles, a mark that also ranks in the top-25 in NCAA history. Her 18 double-doubles during the 2008-09 season tie a school record set by Niamh Darcy in 1994-95.
She goes down as the only women’s basketball player in VCU history to accumulate over 1,000 points (1,588) and 1,000 rebounds (1,103). Her offensive output was at a high in 2008-09, finishing with 14.8 points per game, while grabbing 9.4 rebounds per contest.
Hollingsworth's selection marks the second straight season in which a CAA player was picked in the first round of the WNBA Draft and the third straight year for a CAA student-athlete to be selected in the draft.
2009 WNBA Draft Board