WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Purdue head women's basketball coach Sharon Versyp today announced seniors Ashley Morrissette and Bridget Perry and junior Andreona Keys as the Boilermakers' team captains for the 2016-17 season. All three will be team captains for the first time in their careers, marking just the fourth time in Versyp's tenure the team has anointed first-time captains.
"It's an outstanding honor to be selected as a captain by your peers, and our group couldn't have done a better job selecting this year's leaders," said Versyp. "Each of our three captains have complete respect from their teammates and our staff and all bring a little something different to the table in leadership style."
Morrissette is the Boilermakers' leading returning in scoring and assists, averaging 13.0 points per game and dishing out 89 assists. She started 30-of-32 games last season, playing 33 minutes per game, and set new career highs in field goals, 3-pointers, 3-point percentage, rebounds and steals. The Twinsburg, Ohio native tied Purdue's single-game 3-point field goal percentage record last season, hitting 5-of-5 from behind the arc against Incarnate Word, earned honorable mention All-Big Ten honors from the coaches and was named to the Gulf Coast Showcase All-Tournament team. She posted a new career-high 28 points against Wisconsin in the regular season finale, dropping 9-fo-14 from the field and 5-of-8 from 3.
Perry started all 31 games she played in last season, playing 26.8 minutes per game and leading the team in rebounding with 5.8 boards per contest. The two-time Academic All-Big Ten honoree was the recipient of the Boilermakers' Coaches Award at the 2016 postseason banquet and was the 2016 Barn Burner Trophy Game MVP. She had a team-best four double-doubles last season, including her 27-point, 12-rebound effort at Penn State, and her season-opening 14 points and 10 rebounds against Jacksonville State, becoming the 12th player in school history to kick off the season with a double-double.
Keys is the seventh junior under Versyp to be named a team captain, after starting 42 games over the last two seasons, including 31-of-32 in 2015-16. The Atlanta native received the Boilermakers' Dr. Ruth Jones Memorial Award last year and earned her first Academic All-Big Ten honor, while playing the ninth-most minutes of any sophomore in program history. She became the fourth player in Purdue history to shoot 100% from the floor with at least seven field goal attempts, hitting 7-of-7 in the season opener against Jacksonville State, and later put together a career-best 18 points, nine rebounds and three steals at Northwestern. Purdue was 14-3 last season when Keys grabbed at least five rebounds.
The Boilermakers officially start practice Oct. 2, and host Ursuline College for their exhibition opener in Mackey Arena on Nov. 6.