As senior Shanara Hollinquest wraps up her University of Tennessee at Chattanooga basketball career, the two coaches who wanted her most coming out of high school are far from surprised at all she’s accomplished.
The Sylacauga, Ala., native was recruited heavily by both Lady Mocs coach Wes Moore and Samford’s Mike Morris. The 6-foot forward picked UTC and has gone on to become one of the best players in the school’s impressive women’s basketball history.
“She’s a great kid, works very hard, and all the success she’s had she’s definitely deserved,” Morris said.
Hollinquest and the Lady Mocs will wrap up their regular season Saturday night at McKenzie Arena against Southern Conference challenger Samford.
The Lady Mocs (20-8, 15-4) have earned at least a share of their 11th SoCon regular-season championship in a row, but the Bulldogs (20-8, 14-5) can share the title with a win.
Hollinquest is a big reason UTC has kept its championship streak alive the last two seasons. She was the SoCon player of the year last season and leads the league in scoring (16.8 ppg) and rebounding (9.0) this season.
“When I first started out, I wanted to be that go-to player, so I guess that did work out,” Hollinquest said. “For the most part, I’ve just played and hoped for the best.”
If Hollinquest is voted player of the year again, and she appears to be the favorite with 15 double-doubles this season, she would join Alex Anderson, Katasha Brown and Damita Bullock as Lady Mocs who won the award twice.
“I knew when we were recruiting her that she would be a great player for us,” Moore said. “To project that she was going to be player of the year and accomplish all that she’s accomplished, I probably would not have put that on anybody coming in.
“Obviously she’s carried a heavy load the last couple of years in particular, and has a lot on her shoulders.”
Hollinquest spent her first two seasons playing behind and beside Anderson, the SoCon’s dominant post player in 2006-07 and 2007-08. Since then, she’s been the force down low that the league’s coaches have tried to contain.
That attempt has led to a lot of double- and triple-teams, which have led to a lot of trips to the free-throw line. Earlier this season she became UTC’s all-time leader in made free throws, passing Regina Kirk’s 22-year-old record of 418.
“She’s been beat on a lot, so she’s had to be tough physically and mentally,” Moore said.
Hollinquest has shot 213 free throws this season, 67 more than anyone else in the SoCon. In her career she’s 471-for-695 from the line. Her 1,607 career points are sixth all-time at UTC, and she’s sixth all-time in rebounds with 848.
Overall, Hollinquest said she’s “satisfied” with her career on an individual level, but there still are some team goals that haven’t been reached yet.
“We still need to get to that next level and try to make some noise in the big (NCAA) tournament,” she said. “If we can do that this year, then I think my career will be complete.”