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Ashley Earley Drafted by WNBA’s Indiana Fever 4/16/2005 Vanderbilt senior forward Ashley Earley was selected by the Indiana Fever in the third round of the 2005 Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) Draft. The senior co-captain was chosen with the 29th overall selection and joins G Tan White of Mississippi State (second pick) and G Yolanda Paige of West Virginia (16th selection) as choices by the WNBA’s Indiana franchise. Earley is the 11th Commodore to participate as a player in the women’s professional ranks in either the WNBA or the now defunct ABL. Former Vanderbilt player Carolyn Peck served time as the head coach and general manager of the WNBA’s Orlando Miracle. Earley, a Memphis, Tenn., native, was named as a First Team All-SEC selection by both the Associated Press and the SEC Coaches following a season in which she averaged a team-high 18.4 ppg to go along with 9.4 rpg. She was a candidate for the Naismith Player of the Year and Wooden Awards. She also was chosen a WBCA Kodak Region 3 All-American. Earley was the heart of the Vanderbilt team during the 2004-05 season. She led the team and the SEC in field goal percentage connecting on 64 percent of her field goals, which ranked third in the nation. She posted an SEC leading 14 double-doubles including nine double-doubles in league play. Earley averaged 17.4 points and 10.4 rebounds in SEC play. She led the team in steals (67) and ranked third on the team in assists (70). Earley completed her career 15th on the Vanderbilt all-time charts in scoring (1,382 points), 10th in rebounds (811) and fourth in field goal percentage (.578). She played in the second-most amount of games (135) in school history behind Chantelle Anderson. She led Vanderbilt in rebounding back-to-back seasons (2003-04, 2004-05). Earley scored a career-high 26 points against New Orleans back on Dec. 30, 2004. She was named to the All-tournament teams of the Vanderbilt Thanksgiving Tournament, the Hilton Woodland Hills Beach Classic and the 2005 SEC Tournament. She was named to the SEC Honor Roll and also chosen as a member of the SEC’s “Good Works Team. Earley finished her career averaging 10.2 points and 6.0 rebounds in four years and 23.8 minutes per contest. All-Time Commodores in the Pro Ranks *Did not see time in either league as a player Complete draft coverage at www.wnba.com. |
