Athlete pg 9 10-6-11
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Athlete honored
WILLIMANTIC — The only post player to start all four games in consecutive NCAA Division III women’s basketball Final Four appearances, Missy Kowolenko Angle, has been selected for induction into the Eastern Connecticut State University E-Club Hall of Fame.
The 5-foot-10 inch Killingly native was the key inside player when the Warriors advanced to the NCAA Final Four in consecutive seasons beginning in 1990-91 for the only time in the program’s 40-year history.
Kowolenko started all 85 games in which she appeared after her first season, missing only one game in her entire four-year career between 1989 and 1993 She graduated as the program’s all-time leader in points (1,429) and games (110) and was also rated first in field goals and free throws made and attempted and was third in steals and rebounds at the conclusion of her career.
Kowolenko holds a B.S. Degree in Marketing and Management and serves as Director of Marketing for United Natural Foods, Inc. in Providence, RI. Kowolenko and husband Ray reside in Brooklyn with son RJ and daughter Ashleigh.
Kowolenko is one of six members of the Hall of Fame Class of 2011. Previously announced for induction were Joe Funaro (1992-95), the first four-time All-New England recipient in the history of the Eastern baseball program who led the Warriors to two regional championships in his four-year career; and Shannon Sligo (1997-00), a two-time men’s lacrosse All-America and only four-time All-New England selection in program history.
Three times in her career, Kowolenko led or shared the team lead in games, field goal percentage, and three throw attempts in a season, and twice led or shared the team lead in rebounds, free throws made, field goals attempted and starts.
As a sophomore in 1990/91, Kowolenko stepped into a starting position vacated by the graduation of first-team All-America and E-Club Hall of Famer Robin Gaby and helped the Warriors win their first Little East Conference regular-season championship, and later, three straight NCAA tournament games to reach the Final Four for the first time in program history.
As a junior, Kowolenko was the only player to start all 31 of the team’s games. She helped the team capture 15 straight games, a share of the LEC regular-season title, its first LEC post-season championship, and three NCAA games in a row to advance to its second straight Final Four. The club’s 25 wins (against six losses) established a season record to that point/
The trio of Kowolenko, guard Wendy Rogers and forward Bernice Laferriere each started all four games at those two Final Four tournaments.
In her career, Kowolenko averaged 13.0 points and 7.0 rebounds — marks which today rank her seventh and 11th all-time, respectively. Her career point total still rates her third all-time and her rebounding total of 767 is currently the seventh-highest total in program history.
Named to the LEC all-conference and LEC tournament all-tournament teams in each of her three starting seasons, Kowolenko capped her four-year career as a senior in 1992/93 when she led the team in virtually every individual statistical category. That year, she was named to two All-New England teams, including first team by the New England Women’s Basketball Association (NEWBA).
Kowolenko established program season records as a senior for points (521), points per game (19.3) steals (107), free throws (126) and free throw attempts (200). Her scoring average that season remains the top mark in the program’s 40-year history, with her point and steal totals from 1992/93 currently ranking second all-time.
With three starters – among them E-Club Hall of Famers aHkkkj,Rogers and Laferriere – gone in 1992/93, Kowolenko played the central role
in leading the team to its 11th consecutive post-season tournament that season. That year, she scored in double figures in 25 of 27 games and recorded 13 double-doubles (four straight in early February) in points and rebounds. Four times, she amassed at least 30 points, with a program-record 36 points complementing 16 rebounds in a 99-81 LEC win at Rhode Island College Feb. 11.