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Westbeld earns spot on Katrina McClain Award Watch List

After posting one of the more impressive NCAA Tournament performances in recent Irish history, forward Maddy Westbeld enters her junior year in the national spotlight once again. On Thursday, Westbeld was one of 20 collegiate women’s basketball players named to the 2023 Katrina McClain Award Watch List. In its sixth year, the honor ultimately recognizes the nation’s top power forward. 

“Katrina McClain was a standout power forward throughout her career,” said John L. Doleva, President and CEO of the Basketball Hall of Fame. “We’re proud to recognize these tremendous student-athletes that have proven themselves as the best at their position. As we launch our fan voting component tomorrow, we encourage fans to cast their votes alongside Katrina and our distinguished selection committee.”

Westbeld is one of three ACC players named to the list, joining Louisville’s Olivia Cochran and Virginia’s Sam Brunelle, who completed her undergraduate career at Notre Dame. 

During her sophomore season, Westbeld averaged 11.8 points, 6.3 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game for the Irish. She shot 48.2 percent from the floor, second on the team behind third-round WNBA draftee Maya Dodson. The 6-3 forward posted three games with 20+ points.

In her aforementioned standout postseason last year, Westbeld shot in excess of 60 percent (.606). That mark ranked fourth amongst all players who participated in more than one NCAA Tournament game. She led the team with 19 points in a first-round win over UMass and added 13 points in each game against Oklahoma (Round of 32) and NC State (Sweet 16). Against the Wolfpack, Westbeld stepped in to play the five when Dodson was in foul trouble. She defended All-American Elissa Cunane, and Westbeld tied her personal career high of three steals. 

Westbeld was a member of the All-ACC First Team in 2021 and hopes to become just the sixth Notre Dame women’s basketball player to earn the honor twice. Additionally, Westbeld was the 2021 ACC Rookie of the Year.

2023 Katrina McClain Award Candidates*

Esmery Martinez Arizona           Addie Budnik Richmond

Cate Reese Arizona                    Sania Feagin South Carolina

Erynn Barnum Arkansas             Victoria Saxton South Carolina

DreUna Edwards Baylor              Cameron Brink Stanford

Lauren Gustin BYU                       Jasmine Franklin Tennessee

Emma Ronsiek Creighton            Aaliyah Moore Texas

Aneesah Morrow DePaul             Aaliyah Edwards UConn

Olivia Cochran Louisville              Alissa Pili Utah

Angel Reese LSU                         Maddy Siegrist Villanova

Maddy Westbeld Notre Dame       Sam Brunelle Virginia

*Players can play their way onto and off the list at any point in the 2022-23 season

About Katrina McClain-Pittman:

Katrina McClain-Pittman was a prolific rebounder and terrific scorer in a career that spanned three Olympic Games and three continents. Before she earned her stripes for USA Basketball, McClain-Pittman starred at the University of Georgia where she was a two-time Kodak All-American and the WBCA National Player of the Year her senior season. She left Georgia as the school’s second all-time leading scorer and rebounder, averaging a double-double her final two seasons in Athens. The Lady Bulldogs reached the 1985 NCAA Final Four and national championship game with McClain-Pittman controlling the paint and Teresa Edwards running the offense. The two-time USA Basketball Female Athlete of the Year finished her international career with two Olympic gold medals and one bronze, three FIBA World Championships medals, and five medals at the Goodwill Games, Pan Am Games, and World University Games. In all, McClain-Pittman appeared on eleven USA Basketball rosters becoming one of the most decorated athletes in USA Basketball history. She has been inducted into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame, the South Carolina Athletic Hall of Fame, the Georgia State Hall of Fame, and the National High School Hall of Fame, Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

About the WBCA:

Founded in 1981, the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association is the professional association for coaches of women’s and girls’ basketball at all levels of competition. The WBCA offers educational resources that coaches need to help make themselves better leaders, teachers and mentors to their players; provides opportunities for coaches to connect with peers in the profession; serves as the unifying voice of a diverse community of coaches to those organizations that control the game; and celebrates those coaches, players and other individuals who excel each year and contribute to the advancement of the sport. For more information, visit us online: WBCA.org, follow @wbca1981 or call 1-770-279-8027.