BY ALY KOHANOWSKI | Ball State Soccer | Ball State Sports Link
Renee Bennett, a Muskego, Wisconsin native and former 6-foot-5 center standout for the Ball State Cardinals has signed a training camp contract with New York Liberty of the Women’s National Basketball Association.
Bennet, an All Mid-American Conference First Team selection, finished her career at Ball State senior season averaging 17.6 points per game 8.0 rebounds per game and 1,234 overall career points.
“I am extremely grateful to have this opportunity to further my basketball career,” Bennett said. “I am thankful to my coaches and teammates at Ball State for helping me to get to this point.
“The New York Liberty coaches have been wonderful in helping me prepare to play at the professional level. It has been a long journey for me, and I never thought four years ago I would be in this position to further my basketball career. I am going to continue to give this sport my best every day, and hopefully I can continue moving forward in my professional career.”
She played in 128 games over her Ball State career and started in 80 of them. She became the 26th member of Ball State’s 1,000-point club at Bowling Green this season and currently sits in 12th place on the program’s all-time scoring list with 1,246 career points. Bennett ranks second all-time in blocks (104) and 12th in rebounds (662) in school history.
The New York Liberty hold a talented roster with Tina Charles‘ name among the top of the group.
In 2016, Charles had a career-best season, becoming the third player in WNBA history to lead the league in both points and rebounds.
Charles averaged 21.5 ppg and 9.9 rpg landing her second in WNBA MVP voting. Charles then went on to help USA women’s basketball bring home a gold medal against Spain at the 2016 Summer Olympics.
Head coach Bill Laimbeer and the Liberty landed themselves a spot in the 2016 WNBA playoffs but fell to the Phoenix Mercury in the second round finishing the season 21-13 overall.
There are plenty of both new and returning faces on the court for the Liberty that are expected to rise into the spotlight.
The camp takes place at the MSG Training Center in Tarrytown, N.Y., which is the same practice facility where the NBA Knicks and NHL Rangers. The first preseason games for the Liberty will be played at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncassville, Conn., May 2-3.
