Cassie Gallagher Named Big South Freshman of the Year; Gwen Jenkins to All-Freshman Team, Jeni Levine to All-Academic Team as Women's Basketball Collects Three All-Conference Honorees

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – With the 2024-25 regular season in the rearview mirror and the team looking ahead to the impending Big South Women's Basketball Championship, USC Upstate women's basketball sees three Spartans capture All-Big South honors Tuesday, including the program's first major conference award since 2021-22.

Leading all league freshmen in scoring, ranking 15^th in the conference, redshirt freshman guard Cassie Gallagher added to her impressive haul of career accomplishments as she is the Big South Freshman of the Year. She complements her esteemed accolade with Honorable Mention All-Big South and Big South All-Freshmen Team recognition.

Freshman guard Gwen Jenkins joined Gallagher on the All-Freshmen Team, giving Upstate multiple selections to the team for the first time since the 2021-22 campaign. Rounding out the Spartans' All-Conference selections, junior guard Jeni Levine earned her spot on the Big South All-Academic Team, becoming the program's first two-time selection since Riley Popplewell (2018-19 & 2019-20).

Below are player capsules (ordered by Big South honor) for the Spartans' 2024-25 All-Conference honorees.

Cassie Gallagher | Guard | Redshirt Freshman | Cookeville, Tenn.
Named Big South Freshman of the Year … Named Honorable Mention All-Big South … Named to the Big South's All-Freshman Team … Named Big South Freshman of the Week on six occasions: 11/18/24, 12/2/24, 1/6/25, 1/13/25, 1/27/25, and 2/17/25 … Appeared in all 29 games, making 28 starts … Averaged 9.8 points and 3.1 rebounds over an average of 28.7 minutes per game … Shot 33.3 percent (101-of-303) from the field, 33.5 percent (58-of-173) from beyond the arc, and 66.7 percent (24-of-36) from the free throw line … Corralled 90 total rebounds comprised of 23 offensive boards and 67 defensive boards … Totaled 31 assists, 13 blocks, and 11 steals on the season … Poured in a career-high 25 points behind a 9-of-16 (7-of-12 from three) shooting performance versus Longwood on 3/1/25 … Pulled in a career-high eight rebounds versus UNC Greensboro on 11/9/24 … Recorded 17 double-figure scoring games and one 20-plus point scoring game.

Gwen Jenkins | Guard | Freshman | Columbus, Ohio
Named to the Big South's All-Freshman Team … Named Big South Freshman of the Week on two occasions:2/3/25 and 2/10/25 … Appeared in 28 games, making one start … Averaged 4.0 points and 1.8 rebounds over an average of 16.1 minutes per game … Shot 38.6 percent (39-of-101) from the field, 35.9 percent (14-of-39) from beyond the arc, and 80.8 percent (21-of-26) from the free throw line … Corralled 49 total rebounds comprised of six offensive boards and 43 defensive boards … Totaled 30 rebounds, seven steals, and four blocks on the season … Poured in a career-high 21 points behind a 7-of-13 (4-of-8 from three) shooting performance … Pulled in a career-high five rebounds on two occasion: versus Radford on 2/1/25 and versus Gardner-Webb on 2/15/25 … Passed out a career-high five assists versus Charleston Southern on 1/29/25 … Recorded three double-figure scoring games and one 20-plus point scoring game.

Jeni Levine | Guard | Junior | Vinton, Va.
Named to the Big South All-Academic Team … Appeared in and started all 29 games, … Averaged 9.1 points and 2.9 rebounds over an average of 28.7 minutes per game … Shot 37.4 percent (82-of-219) from the field, 27.7 percent (13-of-47) from beyond the arc, and 77.5 percent (86-of-111) from the free throw line … Corralled 83 total rebounds comprised of 20 offensive boards and 63 defensive boards … Totaled 92 assists, 28 steals, and two blocks on the season … Poured in a career-high 24 points behind a 9-of-14 shooting performance versus UNC Asheville on 2/12/25 … Pulled in a career-high eight rebounds versus High Point on 1/22/25 … Passed out a career-high seven assists on three occasions: versus Morehead State on 11/29/24; versus Bellarmine on 11/30/24; and versus Longwood on 3/1/25 … Recorded 10 double-figure scoring games and two 20-plus-point scoring games.

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Players Mentioned

Cassie Gallagher

Gwen Jenkins

Jeni Levine

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