leise emma winter top 10

Women's Basketball Bob Shreve, Assistant Director of Athletics Media Relations

Leise, Wright Named to PSAC Winter Top 10

LOCK HAVEN, Pa. – The Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) announced the Winter Top 10 on Tuesday, with a pair Gannon student-athletes selected. The Top 10 is voted on by the conference's sports information/communications directors and showcases the top student-athletes both on the field and in the classroom.

Joel Leise (Transfer, Pa./Reynolds), a standout on the wrestling team, was one of five student-athletes selected to the Men's Winter Top 10, while Emma Wright (Fairview, Pa./Talawanda) of the women's basketball team was named to the Women's Top 10.  

Leise and Wright become the 26th and 27th student-athletes in Gannon history to earn PSAC Top 10 honors. Gannon has had at least one PSAC Top 10 honoree in each academic year since 2008-09 after Lauren Sampson (volleyball) was named to the 2021-22 Fall Top 10.

Leise was joined on the PSAC Winter Top 10 by: Jalen Cloud (Cal) (East Stroudsburg),  Kyle Daggett (Shepherd), John Paul Kromka (Pitt-Johnstown), and James Sullivan (Millersville). On the women's side, in addition to Wright, others named included Divonne Franklin (Cal), Paige Mikesell (IUP), Rachel Johnson (IUP), and Ann Carozza (West Chester).   

Leise is a redshirt junior and has a 3.79 GPA while completing work on his undergraduate degree in Mechanical Engineering, and he has a 4.00 GPA since starting work on his master's degree.

The Transfer, Pa. native helped Gannon finish with an 8-3 record in duals, finishing as the PSAC regular season co-champion, then went to place second at NCAA Division II Super Region 1 Championships. Leise earned All-American honors after finishing seventh at 197 lbs. at the NCAA Division II National Championships. He rallied following a first-round loss in sudden victory to earn All-American recognition, winning by fall at 2:36 over West Liberty's Logan Kemp in the seventh-place match.

Leise was a first team All-PSAC selection after ending the year with a 17-3 record with a team-high 12 falls. The latter figure ranking second in Division II in falls. He was 9-0 in duals, then followed with a second place placed second at the Super Region 1 Championships. He also earned NWCA Scholar All-America honors for the fourth time. He was named the PSAC Wrestling Athlete of the Week for the week ending February 6.

Leise is a three-time national qualifier with a 53-24 career record and also a four-time NWCA Scholar All-America. He earned his second trip to the NCAA National Championships in 2020-21 as an at-large selection after finishing second at the Super Region 1 Championships. He was a CoSIDA At-Large District 2 Academic All-American a year ago. In 2019-20, he finished tied for third on the team in wins with a 20-10 record, and was second in falls (10). He took third place at the Super Region 1 Championships in 2020 and qualified for Nationals for the first time. He was a 2019-20 third team All-PSAC honoree.

Wright has also earned her undergraduate degree and is working on her master's degree. She earned her undergraduate degree in Psychology and is now working on her master's degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling, showing a 4.00 GPA both as an undergraduate and graduate student.

Wright is a member of the women's basketball team that is coached by her father Cleve Wright. She played a key role as the Golden Knights finished with a 24-7 record, won their second straight PSAC Championship and earned a berth in the NCAA Division II Tournament.

The 5'11" guard was named the PSAC Women's Basketball Champion Scholar and was the MVP of the PSAC Tournament. She had 15 points and eight rebounds in the semifinal upset of PSAC East top seed Kutztown, then followed with 19 points (5-of-9 FGs, 3-of-5 3's, 6-of-7 FTs) and four rebounds as Gannon defeated PSAC West regular season champion Cal in the championship game. She scored a career-high 25 points (8-of-15 FGs, 3-of-4 3's, 6-of-7 FTs) in the double overtime loss to Shepherd in NCAA Atlantic Regional.

Wright finished as the team's second-leading scorer at 11.2 ppg. and was third in rebounds at 4.8 rpg. She was also third on the team in assists (71) and second in blocked shots (23). She led team with 48 3-pointers in 133 attempts, along with shooting 43.4 percent from the floor and 81.8 percent from the line. She scored in double figures 19 times. Wright is also renowned for her outstanding defensive skills.

Wright played three seasons at Grand Valley State before transferring to Gannon for 2020-21 season. In 2020-21 she started all 14 games in her first season as a Golden Knight, averaging a team-high 32 minutes per game. She tied for second on the team in scoring with 149 points, averaging 10.6 ppg. and 4.9 rpg., ranking third in rebounds. Wright led the team with 24 3-pointers in 60 attempts and was second on the team in assists (30) and steals (22).

She will be a two-time PSAC Scholar-Athlete and previously was a two-time GLIAC All-Academic Team honoree.

The PSAC Top 10 Awards are designed to recognize student-athletes who excel in both the classroom and in athletic competition. Initiated in the 1997-98 academic year, the Top 10 is given to five males and five females in each athletic season: fall, winter and spring.

To be a candidate for the PSAC Top 10 awards, a student-athlete must have achieved a minimum of a 3.50 cumulative grade point average and must be a starter or key reserve with legitimate athletic credentials for their respective team. The winter sports eligible for consideration for the Winter Top 10 awards are men's and women's basketball, wrestling, men's and women's indoor track & field, and men's and women's swimming. At the conclusion of the academic year, all Top 10 Award winners from each season are eligible for the PSAC Pete Nevins Scholar-Athlete of the Year Awards, given to one male and one female candidate.
 
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Players Mentioned

Joel Leise

Joel Leise

Redshirt Junior
184
Emma Wright

#13 Emma Wright

G
5' 10"
Redshirt Junior

Players Mentioned

Joel Leise

Joel Leise

Redshirt Junior
184
Emma Wright

#13 Emma Wright

5' 10"
Redshirt Junior
G