SYRACUSE, N.Y. – Senior guard Katie Villarini (Hamburg, NY/Hamburg) was named the SUNYAC Player of the Year and first-team honoree, while sophomore guard/forward Tashawni Cornfield (Gowanda, N.Y./Putham Academy (Conn.)) was named the league's Co-Defensive Player of the Year, as the conference announced its 2022 Women's Basketball Individual Awards and All-Conference teams on Tuesday.
 
Villarini caps off an impressive Bengal career with her first Player of the Year honor. She becomes the third player in program history to earn Player of the Year honors, following Arlene Eagan (1989-91) and Mary DelSignore (1992).
 
Villarini set records in her senior season, averaging 22.4 points per game and making 161 free throws, both program bests. Her 559 points this season were second all-time behind Liv LeBaron's 587 points in the 2019-20 season. She led the league in scoring, assists (4.8 per game), free throw percentage (85.2 percent), assist to turnover ratio (1.98), defensive rebounds (6.6 per game), and minutes played (38.8 per game). She finished fourth in rebounding average (7.5 per game) and fifth in three-pointers made per game (1.8). Nationally, Villarini is fifth among all Division III players in scoring, third in free throws made, fourth in minutes played, 24th in free throw percentage, and 30th in assists.
 
Villarini tallied eight double-doubles this season, and nearly notched a triple double in Buffalo State's victory over Brockport on Dec. 10, an 18-point, 10-assist, nine-rebound performance. She has tallied 30 or more points an impressive six times, including two 36-point performances at Oneonta (Jan. 14) and at Fredonia (Jan. 28), both career-highs. She was named SUNYAC Athlete of the Week twice and was also named to D3Hoops.com's weekly honor roll on two occasions.
 
Villarini finishes her career second on the all-time scoring list with 1,491 points, second all-time behind only Eagan's 1,699. She also finishes second all-time with 175 3-pointers made, and 13th with 576 rebounds. She is the all-time leader in free throws made (360), shattering a 27-year-old record previously held by Jessie Wellings (91-95), who tallied 289.
 
Cornfield becomes the first Bengal in program history to earn Defensive Player of the Year honors after one of the better first seasons in program history. She shares the honor with Geneseo's Taylor Hansen. Transferring over to Buffalo State after spending a season at the University of South Carolina-Aiken in 2020-21, Cornfield made an immediate impact, leading the SUNYAC in steals (3.0), adding 12.9 points, 7.1 rebounds, and 1.5 assists per game.

Cornfield was a focal point in Buffalo State's pressure defense, as the team earned 9.0 steals per game and forced 18.1 turnovers per game. She earned three or more steals an impressive 14 times, including a stretch of five games in which she stole three or more passes, and a week in which she averaged an impressive seven steals per game, which included an eight-steal performance against Oswego State (Feb. 8).

The sophomore notched six double-doubles this season, which included a 20-point, 15-rebound effort against No. 24 St. John Fisher (Dec. 11) and a 24-point, 13-rebound, six-steal effort against Fredonia (Feb. 12). She was named as the league's Athlete of the Week on Feb. 14, and was named a recipient of the Cecelie Owens Tribute Award this past Sunday from The Sports Commission, as the organization held its second annual BHM Sports 30 Under 30 Awards. The honor is named after Owens, a Buffalo State women's basketball alumna and record holder who played from 1980-84.

Buffalo State finished the season with a 14-11 overall record and a 11-7 mark in SUNYAC contests, earning a second consecutive appearance in the SUNYAC Tournament. The Bengals earned double-digit victories for the 11th time in 12 seasons.