Gardner-Webb Women’s Basketball Team Lands Several Big South Postseason Honors Including Player of the Year for Ashley Hawkins

Other Honors Go to Elle Blatchford, Kendall Scott and Elze Motekaityte

BOILING SPRINGS, N.C.—The Gardner-Webb University women’s basketball team has landed several postseason awards per release from the league office, with senior guard Ashley Hawkins being named the 2024-25 Big South Player of The Year.

Hawkins posted a brilliant 2024-25 season for the Runnin’ Bulldogs, leading the team and Big South Conference in scoring, assists and minutes played en route to the Big South Player of The Year award and First Team All-Big South. The Long Beach, Calif., native averaged 19.0 points per game, 4.8 assists per game, and played 35.9 minutes per contest, starting every game for GWU.

Hawkins best came on Dec. 20 against Queens, where she scored a Gardner-Webb record and season-high across women’s college basketball, with 47 points. Hawkins also surpassed the 1,000-point mark in both her D1 career and Gardner-Webb career in back-to-back games to finish the regular season. The senior guard was previously First Team All-Big South in 2023-24 and the 2024-25 Big South Pre-Season Player of The Year.

Sophomore guard Elle Blatchford also lands a postseason award for Gardner-Webb, with the Canton, Ga., native taking home All-Big South Honorable Mention after improving in nearly every statistical category. Arriving from Southern Miss, Blatchford scored 12.0 points per game and finished second in the league in both made three pointers with 51- and three-point percentage at 37.8% from long range. Blatchford also finished atop the conference in made threes per game with 2.22 on average, helping pace the GWU attack as the team’s second leading scorer.

Freshman guard Kendall Scott also receives postseason recognition, landing on the All-Big South Freshman team. Scott emerged as one of the best freshmen in the Big South late in the season, winning back-to-back league freshman of the week awards in late February and finishing with five double-figure games in a row, including 15 at Upstate, 18 against Longwood, 18 against High Point, 12 at Radford and a career/season high 25 against Presbyterian. Scott finished the 2024-25 regular season by scoring 6.9 points per game on 40% from the floor and 83.3% at the free throw line, one of the best marks in the league.

Graduate forward Elze Motekaityte becomes the fourth Gardner-Webb player on the postseason awards list, as both a member of the Big South All-Academic team and the winner of the Big South Scholar Athlete of The Year award. Arriving from Virginia Commonwealth University after completing her bachelor’s in management with a 3.9 GPA, Motekaityte also held down a 4.0 GPA while completing her MBA. She did so while scoring 9.5 points and grabbing 7.8 rebounds per game on the court.

Gardner-Webb is back in action for postseason play on Thursday, March 6. The No. 6 seed Runnin’ Bulldogs take on No. 3 seed Radford at 8:30 p.m. in Johnson City, Tenn.

Fans can follow the tournament action on ESPN+ for early-round games, with Sunday’s championship showdowns airing on ESPN2. The tournament champions will earn an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.

For tickets and additional tournament details, visit BigSouthSports.com/Tickets.

Source: GWUsports.com.

Gardner-Webb University is North Carolina’s recognized leader in private, Christian higher education. A Carnegie-Classified Doctoral/Professional University, GWU is home to nine colleges and schools, more than 80 undergraduate and graduate majors, and a world-class faculty. Located on a beautiful 225-acre campus in Boiling Springs, N.C., Gardner-Webb prepares graduates to impact their chosen professions, equips them with the skills to advance the frontiers of knowledge, and inspires them to make a positive and lasting difference in the lives of others. Ignite your future at Gardner-Webb.edu.