In the wake of a rocky season, two members of the women’s basketball team earned recognition for their efforts. Bonnie Smith ’04 and Christina Phillips ’04 were named All-Ivy Honorable Mentions.

Smith finished the season on a tear, averaging over 20 points the last two weekends. For her efforts against Penn and Princeton in the penultimate weekend — averaging 24.5 points and leading the Elis over the Quakers — Smith earned the Ivy League Player of the Week award. She also made the Honor Roll during the season’s final week.

“It’s nice, but I think a lot of people on the team could have gotten something,” Smith said. “It doesn’t mean much when you don’t have many wins.”

One of only five Bulldogs to suit up for each game, Smith finished second on the team in scoring overall and was first in scoring in conference games. As the team was saddled with a slew of injuries, Smith became increasingly important and effective as an offensive threat.

“I just fell into that role with the injuries and everything,” Smith said. “My shot happened to be falling, and my teammates did a good job of finding me.”

Phillips was the Bulldogs’ most dominant interior threat. In addition to being the team’s overall leading scorer, Phillips was second in rebounds and blocked shots and also did not miss a game due to injury. In a triple-overtime loss to Princeton Feb. 15, she poured in a career-high 28 points.

Both Phillips and Smith downplayed the award, saying team success would have been a better reward for their efforts.

“Yeah, it’s an honor to be recognized, but I much rather would have had the team at the top of the Ivy League,” Phillips said.

With both players returning next season along with all but one of Yale’s regular contributors — team captain Maria Smear’s ’03 injury-plagued career has come to a close — the Elis are looking to next season to remove some of the sting.