Eureka Trio Named All-SLIAC, Thompson Named Coach of the Year

EUREKA, Ill. – Eureka College women's basketball players Hayley Reneau (Washington, Ill./Washington H.S./Illinois Central), Michaela Balducci (Eureka, Ill./Eureka H.S.) and Kerrigan Dura (Edwards, Ill./Brimfield H.S.) were named to the All-St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Team and third-year head coach Steve Thompson was selected SLIAC Coach of the Year, according to an announcement by SLIAC Commissioner Angie Morenz at Thursday's league tournament at Christine Bonati Bollwinkle Arena.

Reneau was chosen for the All-SLIAC First Team. Balducci earned Second Team honors and Dura was named to the Third Team. Additionally, Balducci was tabbed for the SLIAC All-Defensive Team. All three players are first-time All-SLIAC honorees. Thompson is Eureka College's fifth SLIAC Coach of the Year in 11 seasons as a member of the league and the first in women's basketball since Taren Martin earned the honor in 2012.

Reneau started all 25 games in the Eureka backcourt after transferring from NJCAA Illinois Central. She averaged 13.8 points per game overall and 14.4 points in 16 SLIAC appearances. Her 58 3-pointers were second-most in the league this season and rank fifth on Eureka's single-season list for most triples. She also ranked among the SLIAC's top 10 with a .387 3-point field percentage (fourth), 92 defensive rebounds (eighth), 30.5 minutes per game (ninth) and 62 assists (ninth). Defensively, Reneau led the nine-team league with 34 blocked shots and ranked second with 69 steals.

Balducci, one of two four-year Red Devils on the roster, finished the regular season with averages of 11.8 points and a team-best 7.6 rebounds. On Feb. 1, she became the 15th player in Eureka women's basketball history to collect 500 career rebounds and her 188 rebounds in 2016-17 ranked second in the SLIAC. Balducci logged 33 steals in 2016-17 and her 155 career steals rank ninth on Eureka's career list since 1993.

Dura emerged as the anchor in the Eureka backcourt, averaging 9.8 points per contest and distributing 123 assists, second-most in the SLIAC in 2016-17 and third-most in a season in Eureka women's basketball history. The third-year guard ranked among the league leaders with 46 steals (ninth) and 45 offensive rebounds (ninth). She also cracked the Red Devils' all-time top-10 in 3-pointers made and has 60 career triples to rank 10th on the program list.

Thompson guided the Red Devils to their first SLIAC team title in any sport after being picked sixth in a preseason coaches' poll. Thompson led EC to 18 wins for just the ninth time in the 42-season history of the program. The 14-2 SLIAC mark represented Eureka's highest win total and best winning percentage in 11 seasons as a member of the league.

Additionally, Eureka freshman guard Ashley Harfst (Saunemin, Ill./Pontiac H.S.) was the Red Devils' representative on the SLIAC All-Sportsmanship Team. One player from each SLIAC school is chosen for the All-Sportsmanship Team.

Fontbonne senior Emmie Haring and Westminster senior Andrea Zalis shared the SLIAC Player of the Year award. Raven Venegas of Fontbonne was picked as SLIAC Newcomer of the Year and Greenville won the award for Team Sportsmanship.