Chelsie Schweers - Ipswich Force
After bagging 35 points and 11 assists to help push her team over the line and into another win, Ipswich’s Chelsie Schweers is the Player of the Week for Round 9. Schweers shot her 35 points at 53.6% in the field and 33.3% at the arc, in addition to taking 11 assists, one block, four steals and three rebounds in the 91-78 win over South West Metro Pirates on Saturday at Hibiscus Sports Complex. It was the second week in a row the Force faced off against their pool mates, with the Pirates eager to notch up another win to stabilise their position in the pool, and they put the Force to the test throughout the match. Schweers featured early in the match, hitting a three-pointer in the opening minutes to kick off a total of 10 points for the quarter, as well as contributing to her team-mates’ success on the board with four assists. The Pirates had an answer for everything and following a to-and-fro for the lead the home side led by five points at the end of the first term. A further seven points from Schweers in the second quarter and more support to her team-mates saw Ipswich get out in front and hold on to a one-point lead by halftime, 44-43. The third quarter again saw a battle for the lead with the Pirates getting the upper hand by the end of the period, 66-64, with Schweers still keeping up the pressure with a contribution of nine points. Ipswich came out swinging in the fourth quarter, with another nine points from Schweers helping the Force to take back the advantage and hold on to it, building a steady lead to eventually win by 13 points. Schweers currently sits second in the league on points percentages with an average of 28.7 points per game, and a total of 258 points for the season, as well as 5.3 assists on average per game. 

It’s the import from Norfolk, Virginia’s second season in the QBL, moving to the Force this year following a standout performance for the Toowoomba Mountaineers in 2013, where she was named Player of the Week twice, in Round 9 and Round 15. She averaged 28.2 points per game that season, with her inclusion in the Mountaineers line-up helping the team to make their first finals appearance in eight years. The 25 year old had an impressive college career at Christopher Newport University, where she was named NCAA Division III National Player of the Year in her senior year, leading in scoring across all divisions with an average of more than 25 points per game. She was ranked second in Division III’s history with 2,869 college career points, in addition to leading the division in three-pointers with more than 400 scored. Following college she was contracted to play with Greek team Panathinaikos, where she averaged 13 points per game at 55.6% in the field, before making the move to Australia.

Other impressive performers across the league this week include Gladstone Power’s Jess Bibby, for hitting a huge 53 points in Gladstone’s convincing 118-55 win over Toowoomba. Rockhampton’s Iasia Hemmingway hit a solid 30 points and took 12 rebounds in the Cyclones’ win over Northside, while team-mate Chandrea Jones also impressed with a combined 49 points and 29 rebounds in the team’s two victories.