NEW YORK — The Metropolitan Basketball Writers Association (MBWA) released its Division II/III Player of the Week today, Tuesday, Jan. 24, and New Jersey City University women's basketball junior guard Damaris Rodriguez (Secaucus, N.J./Secaucus) was one of two area student-athletes to earn the recognition. This is the fourth time in her career that Rodriguez has been named MBWA Player of the Week.

Rodriguez earned the honor after she continued to lead the hottest team in the New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) last week to another 2-0 record and thanks to her averaging 30.0 points, 6.5 assists, 6.0 rebounds and 3.5 steals over 38.1 minutes per game. NJCU now sits tied atop the conference standings at 8-3 and is riding a six-game winning streak. She started off her week on Wednesday, Jan. 18, by pouring in a game-best 33 points to go with five boards and game-highs in steals (6) and assists (5) as Jersey City topped Montclair State University on the road, 72-52, for the season sweep of the Red Hawks – in the process, Rodriguez scored her 1,000th-career point with 2:19 left in the first, becoming the first player to accomplish that feat entirely at NJCU since 2007.

Not to be outdone, she again led all players in scoring (27) and assists (8) to go with seven rebounds as the Gothic Knights held on for the 65-64 road win at The College of New Jersey in Ewing, N.J., on Saturday, Jan. 21, for the season split with the Lions. Rodriguez currently leads the NJAC in scoring (24.9 ppg), assists (5.7 apg), made field goals (145), three-point percentage (34.9 pct.) and minutes (37.0 mpg), is second in free-throw shooting (90.0 pct.) and three-pointers per game (2.5) and is fourth in shooting percentage (43.3 pct.) and steals (2.4 spg). Among all players in Division III, she is the second-leading scorer in the nation, fourth in made field goals, sixth in free-throw shooting and 10th in assists per game.

Up Next:
Rodriguez and the rest of the Gothic Knights return to action at home at the John J. Moore Athletics and Fitness Center (JMAC) and Coach Charlie Brown Court tomorrow night, Wednesday, Jan. 25, for a 6:00 p.m. NJAC tilt against William Paterson University. NJCU will look to avenge another one of its early-season conference defeats against the Pioneers.