March 9, 2008

ORLANDO, Fla. - Freshman Tynikki Crook recorded double-doubles in all three of Marshall's Conference USA Tournament games and was rewarded for her efforts by being named to the All-Tournament Team.

The All-Tournament team was announced following Sunday's championship game, which saw SMU upset UTEP by a score of 73-57.

Marshall head coach Royce Chadwick was proud of Crook and her efforts during the tournament. "We are very excited for her. Without a doubt, she was one of the top five performers in the tournament," Chadwick said. "She had double-doubles every night and turned it on at the right time."

After notching two double-doubles in the regular season, Crook recorded three in consecutive days. She began the Thundering Herd's tournament run with a ten-point, 14 rebound performance in the 65-58 win over Tulane. Her 14 boards marked a career-high and was also the highest rebound total for a Marshall player this season.

Crook notched 13 points and ten boards in the win over UAB and followed that up with ten points and 11 rebounds in the loss to eventual champion SMU.

This marked the first postseason tournament honor for the program since Keri Simmons was named the Southern Conference Tournament MVP in 1997 when Marshall took home the title.

"This is very exciting for our program," Chadwick added. "This is a great thing for Tynikki and for Marshall University."

Crook was the first freshman named to the All-Tournament team since the realignment of the conference prior to the 2005-06 season.

Joining Crook on the team were Jereica Hughes and Natasha Lacy of UTEP and Sharee Shepherd of SMU. Janielle Dodds, also of SMU, was named the MVP.