Keyona Bryant, a 6-foot center at St. Augustine College, was named CIAA Women’s Rookie of the Year, the conference announced today.

J.C. Chaney, a 6-foot, 8-inch forward/center at Virginia State, picked up the men’s Rookie of the Year honors.

Both will be recognized when the CIAA tournament hits the Qcity later this month.

Bryant, an 8-time CIAA Rookie of the Week, has been “nothing short of phenomenal this season,” conference officials said in announcing her selection. She leads the Lady Falcons with 17.8 points per game and is second on the team in rebounding at 7.3 boards per game. Bryant was the conference’s second-leading scorer and registered four double-doubles this season.

This marks the second straight year a St. Augustine player has won the women’s award.

Chaney, meanwhile, score 20 or more points in five games as a starter for the Virginia State Trojans this season. His scoring and rebounding averages were third best for the school, and he led his team in field goal percentage (.552), which ranked 5th overall in the CIAA.

The recipients were voted on by the CIAA Sports Information Directors’ Association, which also named the 2009 men’s and women’s All-Rookie Teams. They are:

Women’s Team
Keyona Bryant, St. Augustine
Montiya Harrison, Livingstone
Kearah Jefferys, Elizabeth City State
Deja Middleton, Fayetteville State
Juliette Turner, Bowie State

Men’s Team
J.C. Chaney, Virginia State
Greg Henry, Livingstone
Harvey Mills, Virginia State
Ibn-Saed Rasoull, Saint Paul’s
Kedrick Williams, Saint Paul’s   

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