Complete Blog Post by LadySwish
NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- Christopher Newport University all-time great Chelsie Schweers was named to the LadySwish Women's Basketball All-Decade Team over the weekend, as the only Division III player recognized among nine Division I counterparts. Schweers, who played only two years during the decade, graduated as the program's all-time leading scorer with 2,869 points which is the most by any female in the history of Virginia women's basketball.
LadySwish, a blog dedicated to Division I basketball in the Commonwealth of Virginia, has been in existence since October 2009 when founded by Vicki Friedman and Paul White. This is the first All-Decade Team released by the media entity.
Over the last ten seasons, the Captains posted the highest overall winning percentage in Commonwealth history for a decade by winning 84.2% of their games with a record of 255-48. During that stretch, Christopher Newport has reached the NCAA Tournament eight times with a pair of runs to the NCAA Division III Final Four. Schweers was one of the first catalysts for the Captains' success, helping lead the Captains to the 2011 Final Four for the first basketball national semifinals appearance in Christopher Newport history.
LadySwish summarized the legendary Christopher Newport star:
"One of the best players to wear a Christopher Newport uniform, Schweers, from Chesapeake's Hickory High School, graduated as the program's leading scorer with 2,869 points — the most by any female in the Commonwealth ever. She earned All-America honors following every season of her collegiate career, and was named the NCAA Division III National Player of the Year following her senior season. With 415 made three-pointers, the 5-7 guard hit more than any Division III player in history, and ranks second in the NCAA across all three divisions. The former LadySwish blogger continues to play overseas in Australia."
Schweers' storied career was played from 2007-11 as the left-handed guard put together one of the greatest careers in the history of Division III women's basketball. The Chesapeake, Va. native put together a statistically staggering resume throughout her four-year tenure. Her name litters the NCAA record book, including the most three-point in a single season (133), fourth and 17th most points in a single season (870 & 759), and eighth all-time in career three-point shooting percentage (.461). Most impressively of all, Schweers finished second all-time in career points at NCAA Division III, with 2,869 points.
She burst onto the scene as a rookie, scoring what was, at the time, the fourth most points by a freshman in Division III history, with 604 in the 2007-08 season. Behind the stout first year, Schweers became just the second CNU freshman to collect All-American honors, and was the first player in USA South history to earn both Rookie and Player of the Year honors. She would go on to earn South Region Rookie of the Year, as well as Virginia State Player and Rookie of the Year laurels, while also collecting first team All-Conference honors.
Over the next three years, Schweers would never slow down, earning first team All-Conference honors all four years. Accolades poured in year-after-year, as she was a four-time VaSID State Player of the Year, three-time Conference Player of the Year, two-time Region Player of the year, and three-time conference tournament MVP. She earned Honorable Mention All-America designation as a freshman and sophomore, and was named both a WBCA and D3hoops.com First Team All-American in each of her last two seasons.
A team leader for one of the most historic runs in program history, Schweers and the Captains won 103 games in her four year career, including three NCAA Tournament appearances. During her junior campaign, the Captains opened the season with a program-record 30-0 start before suffering their only loss of the year in the NCAA Sweet 16. The team would follow that success up with a 30-4 record in her senior year, dancing all the way to the national semifinals.
In the CNU record book, Schweers is the all-time leader in both free-throw shooting percentage and three-point shooting percentage, while ranking fifth all-time in overall field goal percentage. She ranks sixth in career steals, seventh in assists, and notched four of the top eight best single season scoring averages in program history. She registered nine games with 35 points or more, including a career-high 40-point effort at Meredith on January 30, 2011. For her career, she averaged 25.6 points, 5.0 rebounds, 2.3 steals, and 2.8 assists per game.
Following graduation, she became the first CNU women's player to play professionally overseas, earning multiple honors for her play in Greece, Iceland and Australia. She has earned a number of professional honors, including Most Valuable Player for the Ipswich Force of the Queensland Basketball League in Australia. She recently signed a contract to play her eighth professional season in Australia starting later this spring.
Schweers was inducted into the CNU Athletics Hall of Fame in 2017.
