Gemma & White to Serve as Bentley Women’s Basketball Captains
WALTHAM, Mass. – Junior forward Jen Gemma (Milton/Fontbonne Academy) and senior guard Jane White (Amherst, N.H./Souhegan HS) will serve as captains of the 2015-16 Bentley University women's basketball team.
Gemma, the first Barbara Stevens-coached Bentley player to average a double-double, has been cited by both Hero Sports, a website coving college athletics, and Women's Division II Bulletin, as a preseason Division II All-America in recent weeks. Hero Sports listed her on their second team while WDIIB chose a single 16-player squad with two from each region.
The six-foot Gemma is coming off a dominating sophomore season, one that saw her earn first-team All-Northeast-10 honors while leading the conference in scoring (19.5 ppg) and ranking third in rebounds (10.2). She had four 30-point games and broke the school's single season record for scoring average, a mark that had stood for 33 years.
"Jen's leadership is on display at every workout, every practice, and every game with her incredible work ethic and focused approach to everything she does," praised Stevens, the fifth winningest coach in NCAA women's basketball history with 928 victories. "She embodies the term 'leader by example'".
White becomes the eighth two-year captain that Bentley has had in the last 20 years. She appeared in 25 games last year, 14 as a starter, and averaged 3.6 points and 2.1 assists.
"Jane has matured into a strong, positive leader who has earned the respect of her teammates and coaches alike," said Stevens. "She is using her knowledge and experience to help our younger players adjust to our team's culture and system of play."
Gemma and White are two of four remaining players from Bentley's 2014 NCAA Division II national championship team, a distinction they share with juniors Brittany Gregory (Fishkill, N.Y./John Jay HS) and Melina Kollia (Athens, Greece).
Bentley opens this weekend with games at Holy Family University Saturday and Philadelphia University Sunday. The first home game is Nov. 21 against Franklin Pierce University.