The duo were key components of the Bulls’ run to their seventh NCAA Tournament in program history.
TAMPA (April 2, 2021) –The University of South Florida women’s basketball standouts Bethy Mununga and Shae Leverett have announced their intentions to return for the 2021-22 campaign, the duo announced on Friday. Mununga and Leverett were each a key factor in the Bulls’ run to their first American Athletic Conference regular-season and tournament championships, and their seventh trip to the NCAA Tournament, advancing to the second round.
Mununga and Leverett will return and take advantage of the NCAA’s COVID-19 Season of Competition Waiver that was granted to all winter sports student-athletes, allowing for an additional year of eligibility.
“Hey Bulls Family, we have unfinished business and I am excited about doing my part,” said Mununga. “We will see you next season.”
“I am so excited and thankful to be returning for another year as a Bull,” said Leverett. “Thank you for your continued support Bulls Nation.”
Mununga, a senior forward from Zellik, Belgium, proved to be one of the top power forwards in the nation this past year, averaging 9.7 points and 12.9 rebounds per game while being named an American Athletic Conference All-Conference First Team selection and voted to the AAC All-Tournament Team. Her rebounding average is first in the AAC and third in the nation, while her total rebounds (297) are tops in The American and 10th in Division I. She also pulled down 4.4 offensive rebounds per contest, which is tops in The American and 11th in the nation.
Mununga has been a double-double machine, recording 11 of her 20-career double-doubles this season. The 11 this year rank first in the American and 35th in Division I. Of the 11 double-double performances, two of them were 20-rebound games, including a 10-point, 20-rebound performance at Temple and a career night with 23 points and 21 rebounds against East Carolina. Mununga has scored in double figures 12 times this season and has grabbed double-digit rebounds 18 times.
Leverett, a forward from Rincon, Ga. who is currently a postgraduate student, averaged 4.4 points and 6.8 rebounds per outing – good enough for second on the team – while playing in all 23 contests with 22 starts. She netted a season-high 12 points against Stetson on Dec. 13 and grabbed a season-best 11 rebounds against UCF on March 2 in the American Athletic Conference regular-season title-clinching game in the Yuengling Center.
A force on the boards during her career in the Green and Gold, Leverett has hauled down 677 career rebounds which are 12th all-time at USF. She is on pace to grab her 700th career rebound in 2021-22 which will make her just the 12th player in program history to accomplish the feat.
“Anytime that you can bring two student-athletes like Bethy and Shae back to your program, how can you not be excited,” said USF head coach Jose Fernandez. “These two young ladies are exceptional on the court, but more importantly they are exceptional in the classroom and even better people. Both would have had the opportunity to go and play professionally, but they weren’t satisfied with the way the season ended, so they felt it was important to come back next season.”
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USF has recorded its best season in program history during the 2020-21 campaign, all while navigating the unpredictable COVID-19 landscape. In doing so, the Bulls won their first-ever conference regular-season and tournament titles, and posted their highest ranking in the Associated Press Top25 poll, reaching as high as No. 12.
USF has made 16 postseason tournament appearances and had seven NCAA Tournament berths in head coach Jose Fernandez’s 21 seasons. The all-time winningest coach in program history, Fernandez has guided USF to nine 20-win seasons, two WNIT final four appearances, the 2009 WNIT championship, and won more than 380 games. For his efforts on the sideline during the 2020-21 season, Fernandez was named a finalist for the WBCA and semifinalist for the Naismith National Coach of the Year Awards. He was also tabbed the 2021 American Athletic Conference Coach of the Year.
Also, during the 2020-21 campaign, the Bulls had five players recognized by The American for impressive seasons, including Elisa Pinzan (Most Improved Player, All-Conference Second Team), Maria Alvarez (Co-Sixth Player of the Year), Bethy Mununga (All-Conference First Team), Elena Tsineke (All-Conference First Team), and Sydni Harvey (All-Conference Third Team).
In addition, Harvey was named the American Athletic Conference Tournament Most Outstanding Player and to the All-Tournament Team, while Mununga and Tsineke were also All-Tournament selections.
– #GoBulls –
