Feb. 29, 2008
SANTA CLARA, Calif. - Santa Clara University women's basketball player Elizabeth Doran and men's basketball player Mitch Henke were named to the 2008 West Coast Conference All-Academic teams it was announced Friday by the league. Henke highlights the men's side as he earned his third selection to the WCC All-Academic team, while this is Doran's first honor from the conference. Both players were also named to the 2008 ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District VIII First Team earlier this month.
Doran, a Corvallis, Ore. native, carries a 3.95 cumulative grade-point average as she works towards a bio-engineering degree and her determination and drive in the classroom extends to her team-leading efforts on the court. She has helped the Broncos to an 18-10 overall record and a second place standing the WCC.
The junior guard earned a spot in the Broncos starting five this year and is in the midst of a career season on the Mission Campus. Starting in all 28 of SCU's contests, she has compiled personal bests in three-point field goal percentage (.407), free throw percentage (.886) and blocked shots (17). Her efforts on the court have helped the Broncos to remain as the top three-point shooting team in the West Coast Conference. She averages 9.6 points and 3.2 rebounds per game. Doran ranks sixth in the league in three-point field goal percentage and is fifth overall in 3FGs made. Doran also rounds out the WCC's top 10 blocked shots list.
Henke is a three-year letter-winner for the Broncos and a three-year starter. As a senior this season he has started all 27 games, averaging 9.3 points and 4.4 rebounds per game, helping SCU to a 14-13 record. Coming into his senior year, he had played in 86 games and averaged 6.2 points per game and 3.8 rebounds per game. His best season came in 2005-06 when he scored 9.4 points per game and grabbed 5.6 rebounds a game. He was slowed by an ankle injury last season, but still appeared in 30 games and started 13 to help SCU finish 21-10 and 10-4 in conference play. For his career, he has now played in 113 games for SCU.
Off the court, Henke also excels, as he has earned a 3.76 cumulative grade point average as a finance major. Last year, he earned Academic All-District VIII honors and was a Division I-AAA Scholar-Athlete Honorable Mention. The Minnetonka, Minn. native has also been a member of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC), and he currently serves as the president of the important student-athlete organization. As a part of SAAC, Henke has been an integral part of the group's canned food and winter clothing drives the past three years. His efforts helped Santa Clara student-athletes collect the most donations of any West Coast Conference school the past two years.
The women's basketball team closes out the regular season on Saturday, March 1 against Portland at 2 p.m. at the Leavey Center. The men's team finishes the regular season on the road this weekend. The Broncos square off against the Pilots on Saturday at 7 p.m. in Portland and will then face the Bulldogs of Gonzaga on Monday, March 2 at 8:30 p.m. on ESPN2.
