PHOENIX, AZ – When the head women's basketball coaches of the Pacific West Conference selected Grand Canyon junior guard Samantha Murphy (Phoenix, AZ/Xavier Prep) the Preseason Player of the Year, they must have had an inkling they might be voting for her again in March. Murphy was selected the 2009-10 PacWest Conference Player of the Year and an All-PacWest First Team choice for the third consecutive season after finishing the year as the conference's leading scorer. She totaled 71 points in the voting process, beating out runner-up Laura Zasly (Foster City, CA/Aragon) - Notre Dame de Namur's junior forward who splashed onto the scene this year - by four points.

This year's team features players from six different states - Arizona, California, Hawai'i, Idaho, Nevada and Washington – and one foreign country in Australia. Dixie State, Grand Canyon and Hawai'i Pacific led the conference by placing four players each on the team, while Dominican (CA) and Academy of Art each earned All-PacWest selections in their first season of competition in the conference. NDNU boasted twin sisters on the All-PacWest First Team.

With student-athletes representing most of the Western United States, Hawai'i and Alaska, and several foreign countries on PacWest women's basketball rosters, the odds of more than one athlete from the same high school earning all-conference accolades is slim. But in 2009-10, three high schools in three separate states earned that distinction.

Konawaena High School in Hawai'i claimed three All-PacWest selections, while Centennial High School in Las Vegas and Aragon High School in California earned two apiece. Murphy received five first-place votes while Zasly picked up two.

Hawai'i Pacific senior forward Genesis Lewis (Paramount, CA/Paramount) and HPU sophomore forward Mana Hopkins (Kona, HI/Konawaena) each received one first-place nod. All four players, along with HPU junior forward Jazzmin Awa-Williams (Kona, HI/Konawaena), Dixie State freshman forward Deanna Daniels (North Las Vegas, NV/Centennial) and NDNU junior guard Katie Zasly (Foster City, CA/Aragon), were chosen for the All-PacWest First Team. Murphy was one of four All-PacWest selections for Grand Canyon. She completed her junior year by averaging 19.0 points per game – 3.9 points higher than the next closest player. She also averaged 4.4 rebounds per game to rank 20th in the league, while her ability to dole out assists at a clip of 3.4 per game left her sixth in the PacWest in helping others. Laura Zasly may have just missed out on the Player of the Year award to Murphy, but the outstanding frontcourt player was named the PacWest Newcomer of the Year. She totaled 16 points and edged out runner up Awa-Williams by one. Each player received three first-place votes, but Zasly wound up with more total points to claim the award.

Dominican (CA) senior guard Alisha Flaatan (Hayward, CA/Moreau Catholic) picked up two first-place votes and finished third in the balloting with nine points, while Grand Canyon junior center Kia Gibson (Nine Mile Falls, WA/Lakeside) earned one first-place nod and finished fourth with seven points. Flaatan and Gibson also were named All-PacWest Second Team. Laura Zasly finished the 2009-10 campaign second in scoring in the conference with a 15.1 points-per-game average. She also was third in rebounding after collecting 7.1 boards per game, and 12th in assist average after doling out 2.7 per contest. Zasly's twin sister, Katie, joined her on the All-PacWest First Team by averaging 13.3 points, 6.1 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 2.7 steals per game. She ranked fifth in thefts, ninth in assists, ninth in rebounding and seventh in scoring.

Flaaten made Dominican history when she became the Penguins first All-PacWest selection in the sport of women's basketball. She led the conference in three-pointers made (71) and three-pointers made per game (2.7), ranked third in scoring (15.0 ppg.), 13th in assist average (2.7) and third in free throw shooting (87.3% / 55 for 63).

With three All-PacWest First Team selections, a conference championship, and a trip to the NCAA II National Championship Tournament, it was no surprise that Hawai'i Pacific's Jeff Harada was named the PacWest Coach of the Year. The Sea Warriors finished the season with a 14-2 league record and an overall mark of 18-7. Harada received six first-place votes and finished with 19 total points – five ahead of runner-up Mike Rudder of NDNU. Rudder received two first-place votes, while Angie Kristensen of Dixie State earned one. Kristensen and Grand Canyon's Trent May tied for third place with nine points apiece. Dixie State rookie forward Johnna Brown (Las Vegas, NV/Centennial) was the runaway favorite for the Freshman of the Year honor after she garnered seven first-place votes. She also was named All-PacWest Second Team. In all, Dixie State wound up with three All-PacWest Second Team selections this season, including senior forward Tanya Clark (Beaumont, CA/Beaumont)and senior guard Jessie Ingraham (Tucson, AZ/Canyon del Oro). Clark was a repeat Second Team pick while Ingraham earned Honorable Mention last year. Like Dixie State, Grand Canyon boasted four All-PacWest selections in Murphy, Gibson, senior forward/guard Stacy Haddow (Chino Valley, AZ/Chino Valley) and senior forward Ashley Hardin (Chandler, AZ/Marcos de Niza). Both Hardin and Haddow earned Honorable Mention this season. With three First Team selections and one Second Team choice, Hawai'i Pacific also boasted four all-conference players in 2009-10.

Awa-Williams and Hopkins – a Second Team pick last year – represented Konawaena High School in Hawai'i along with Hawai'i Hilo senior guard Nesha Ann (Hina) Kimitete (Kailua-Kona, HI/Konawaena). Awa-Williams finished eighth in the league in scoring after averaging 12.4 points per game. She also ranked 11th in rebounding by pulling down 5.8 caroms per contest, while her 54.7% (123 for 225) shooting landed her fourth in the league. She also averaged 2.6 assists (14th) per game. Hopkins finished ninth in scoring in the conference, right behind Awa-Williams, after she averaged 11.9 points per game. She shot 43.9% (115 for 262) from the field to rank 11th, and made 57 of 76 free throw attempts (75.0%) to finish 15th. Her 0.6 block average landed her fourth in the PacWest. Lewis rounded out the HPU First Team contingent after producing a stellar season. She averaged 11.7 points and 8.0 rebounds per game, finishing 12th in scoring and second in rebounding in the PacWest this year. She made 48.0% (118 for 246) of her field goal attempts to finish seventh in the league, and ranked third in blocked shots per game with a 0.6 average.

HPU sophomore guard Paris Gravely (Fairfield, CA/Fairfield), who made the Second Team last season, repeated as a Second Team selection this year. She averaged 10.8 points per game, shot 76.6% (59 for 77) from the line, and made 35.7% (30 for 84) of her three-point attempts. She finished the year 17thin the league in scoring, 10th in foul shooting and 10th in three-point percentage. She was ninth in three-pointers made per game (1.3).