WILLIAMS LEADS STRONG BLUE DRAGON CONTINGENT ON ALL-KJCCC/REGION TEAMS

(L to R), Mele Kailahi, head coach John Ontjes, Mya Williams, Tor'e Alford and Kalyn Ervin all earned individual awards as part of the 2022 all-KJCCC/Region VI Basketball teams.

March 8, 2022

CLICK FOR 2022 ALL-KJCCC/ALL-REGION VI WOMEN'S BASKETBALL TEAMS

Hutchinson CC Sports Information

Led by freshman Mya Williams, the Hutchinson Community College women's basketball team had several members earn spots and win individual awards on the 2022 Division I All-Jayhawk Conference/All-Region VI teams released on Monday.

Williams was named the KJCCC's co-Player of the Year, as well as the league's Freshman of the Year and a first-team all-league/all-region selection.

Head coach John Ontjes was named the league's 2022 Coach of the year. Sophomore Mele Kailahi was named the co-Newcomer of the year and a third-team all-league/region selection. Sophomore Tor'e Alford was a second-team player and sophomore Kalyn Ervin was named the to the KJCCC's All-Defensive Team.

MYA WILLIAMS – Player of the Year; Freshman of the Year; 1st-Team Selection
Williams, a 5-foot-8 freshman guard from Waxahachie, Texas, is the first Blue Dragon women's basketball Player of the Year since Abby Ogle in 2020. She is the first Blue Dragon to earn league Freshman of the Year honors since Jada Mickens in 2018.

Williams is Hutchinson's seventh league Player of the Year and sixth Freshman of the Year.

Williams was the leading scorer in the Jayhawk Conference this season at 18.8 points per game. Her 622 points this season are a Blue Dragon freshman record and ranks third on the Blue Dragon single-season scoring list.

Williams reached double figures in 31 of 33 games, including 12 games of 20 or more points. Williams had a career-high of 37 points against Colby on February 12. That mark tied for the fifth most in team single-game history. Williams was 12 of 16 shooting overall, going 7 of 8 from 3-point range against the Trojans.

Williams had seven games of four or more 3-pointers – she hit 81 points and shot 38.7 percent from 3-point range. Twice Williams reached seven 3-pointers in a game against Howard and Colby. Her 81 3-pointers this season are currently ninth most in single season history and are fourth most on the Blue Dragon freshman list.

For the season, Williams is shooting 42.4 percent from the floor and 85.2 percent from the free-throw line. Her 139 made free throws lead the KJCCC and rank second on the Blue Dragon freshman list and sixth on the single-season list.

Three times this season, Williams was named the Jayhawk Conference Player of the Week. She earned NJCAA National Player of the Week honors after her 37-point performance against Colby.

Williams shares the Player of the Year honor with Maisa Marcel of Independence.

JOHN ONTJES – Coach of the Year
This is Ontjes' eighth KJCCC Coach of the Year award.

This season, the 15th-year head coach guided the 2021-22 Blue Dragons to a co-Jayhawk Conference championship with Independence and the Region VI Tournament championship. The Blue Dragons have now won nine conference titles and seven Region VI Titles under Ontjes.

The Blue Dragons are 28-5 this season, the 28 wins tie for the ninth most in team history.

With the regional title, the Blue Dragon coach will guide the Blue Dragons into the NJCAA national tournament for the first time since 2019 and for the ninth time in his tenure with the Blue Dragons.

Along the way this season, Ontjes reached a pair of milestones in his Blue Dragon career. Ontjes reached 400 coaching wins after a 67-43 win over Howard College on November 13. Also this season, Ontjes moved up two spots Craig Brookover and Jim Littell into second place on the all-time Jayhawk Conference and Region VI coaching wins' list. Ontjes is now 422-87 with the Blue Dragons.

MELE KAILAHI – Co-Newcomer of the Year; 3rd-Team Selection
One of the players forced to play out of position this season, Kailahi had a superb season doing a little bit of everything.

Kailahi, a 5-9 third-year sophomore from East Palo Alto, California, came to Hutchinson after two years at McLennan Community College in Texas.

Kailahi averaged 11.5 points and a team-high 8.5 rebounds per game this season. She shot 48.3 percent overall and was a 3-point threat with 33 3-pointers, shooting 39.3 percent from behind the arc. She shoots 85.2 percent from the free-throw line, which is the 10th-best season free-throw mark in Blue Dragon single-season history.

Kailahi had 13 games scoring in double figures with a career-high 26 points against Cloud County on November 20. Kailahi tied a single-game record for free throws hitting 16 of 17 shots from the foul line.

Kailahi posted eight double-doubles this season. She had six games of 12 or more rebounds, including a career-high 16 rebounds against Seward county on January 8.

Twice this season, Kailahi was named the KJCCC Player of the Week. Kailahi shares the Newcomer of the Year award with Barton's Jenny Nkem Womsi.

TOR'E ALFORD – 2nd-Team Selection
Alford, a third-year sophomore from Derby, has the rare distinction of being a three-time all-conference player. Last season, Alford was a first-team all-KJCCC selection. She was honorable mention in her true freshman season of 2020.

Now in the top 10 of three different career categories, Alford averaged 13.1 points per game this season while shooting 42.4 percent overall and 37.0 percent from 3-point range. Along with Kailahi and Williams, Alford is also shooting better than 80 percent from the free-throw line at 85.2 percent.

Alford tied a career high with 26 points in a Region VI Tournament semifinal victory over Seward County last Friday. She added a career-high 14 rebounds. Alford had a season-high 10 assists against Barton on January 26.

Alford is sixth in career 3-pointers (159), sixth in career assists (329) and sixth in career scoring (996).

KAYLYN ERVIN – KJCCC All-Defensive Team
From Day 1 this season, Ervin has provided the Blue Dragons a steady defensive presence on the floor.

Ervin, a 5-foot-7 sophomore from Indianapolis, had three big steals in in the Region VI Tournament Championship Game against Barton. More than that, Ervin had an ability to limit the opposing player she was defending in earning a spot on the league's All-Defensive Team.

This season, Ervin averaged 10.1 points per game and hit 52 3-pointers for the season. She gave up some offensive opportunities to make sure the defensive end of the floor was taken care of. The Blue Dragons were once again among the league leaders in defensive scoring average at 58.2 points per game.

Joining Ervin on the All-Defensive Team are Garden City's Britney Mapang, Independence's Delani Harris, Seward County's Sierra Lynch and Colby's Akinsola Oluwabukola.