RUSTON ââ'¬" A trifecta of Louisiana Tech players earned a spot on the Louisiana Sports Writers Association All-State team released by the LSWA on Saturday.

Senior forward Alexus Malone was named first team, junior guard Kierra Anthony was named third team and junior guard Taylor Stahly was named honorable mention in a vote of the state's sports information directors and media members.

For the first time in more than two decades, a player outside of LSU or Louisiana Tech garnered the Louisiana Sports Writers Association Women's Basketball State Player of the Year Award as Nicholls State junior guard Cassidy Barrios earned this year's honor in a vote of state sports information directors and media members.

Barrios becomes the first non-LA Tech/LSU player since Northwestern State's Joskeen Garner shared the award with LA Tech's Pam Thomas in 1993-94 and the first outright winner not wearing a Tigers or Lady Techster jersey since ULM's Lisa Ingram won it in 1985-86.

Barrios wasn't the only member of the Nicholls State women's basketball program to earn a specialty award as Colonels head coach Dobee Plaisance took home the Coach of the Year award in close race with Grambling State's Freddie Murray and LSU-Shreveport's Matt Cross. It marks the second LSWA Coach of the Year honor for Plaisance who also won the award in 2014-15.

ULM's Arsula Clark was voted the Freshman of the Year while LSU-Shreveport's Christina Devers was named the Newcomer of the Year in the state.

Malone (14.6 ppg, 9.0 rpg) and Barrios (17.4 ppg, 9.3 rpg) were joined on the all-state first team by UNO's Randi Brown (22.0 ppg, 4.3 rpg), Tulane's Kolby Morgan (19.5 ppg, 5.4 rpg) and Grambling State's Shakyla Hill (16.8 ppg, 7.5 rpg). Brown and Morgan are repeat first team recipients from a year ago.

The second team is comprised of LSU's Raigyne Louis (16.2 ppg, 5.8 rpg), LSU-Shreveport's Christina Devers (21.3 ppg, 4.6 rpg), LSU's Chloe Jackson (17.9 ppg, 4.8 rpg), LSU-Alexandria's Katie Lemieux (18.0 ppg, 6.5 rpg) and Southern's Brianna Green (17.6 ppg, 6.6 rpg).

The third team consists of Southeastern Louisiana's Taylin Underwood (18.3 ppg, 5.3 rpg), Anthony (14.0 ppg, 3.7 rpg), ULM's Gabriella Cortez (15.7 ppg, 5.3 rpg), Louisiana College's Brooke Jones (16.3 ppg, 7.0 rpg) and ULM's Arsula Clark (10.4 ppg, 5.9 rpg).

Four student-athletes from across the state earned honorable mention honors in Stahly, Nicholls State's Tykeria Williams, LSU's Ayana Mitchell and UL-Lafayette's Simone Fields.