BEAUMONT, Texas – Lamar University women's basketball coach Robin Harmony knew that this year's freshman class was something special. The rest of the Southland Conference knows it as well as evidenced by the hardware collected by a pair of LU's fantastic frosh.
 
Guard Chastadie Barrs was named the Southland Conference Defensive Player of the Year, the conference announced Tuesday, while forward Kiara Desamours was named the Freshman of the Year. Both Barrs and Desamours earned honorable-mention all-conference accolades as well.
 
"To have two freshmen win major awards speaks well for our future," Harmony said. "Chastadie and Kiara have continued to get better. There are have been several times where we've had four freshmen and a sophomore on the floor this season. They have gotten valuable experience this year."
 
Barrs became the first freshman in Southland Conference history, men's or women's, to be named the Defensive Player of the Year.
 
"For a freshman to be named the Defensive Player of the Year is incredible," Harmony said. "It takes a lot of heart and determination to play defense game in and game out. She plays hard every night."
 
Barrs, who is second in the nation in steals with an average of 4.03 steals per game, leads the Southland Conference in minutes played with 999. She is often matched against the opponent's top scorer. Barrs is also a force on offense, averaging 10.0 points per game and a team-leading 3.86 assists per game. She is the first LU player in program history to be named Defensive Player of the Year.
 
Desamours, who was named the conference's preseason Freshman of the Year by CollegeSportsMadness.com, leads all Southland Conference freshmen in scoring (10.9) and rebounding (7.0). She stepped it up in conference play, averaging 13.3 points and 7.6 rebounds per outing, both of which are tops among conference freshmen.
 
"There were a lot of expectations on Kiara when she came in, and she lived up to those expectations," Harmony said. "Her ceiling is incredibly high. If she continues to work on her game and improve, she can accomplish great things."
 
Desamours is the fifth LU women's basketball player to be named conference freshman of the year. Brittney Williams (2007) and Tamara Abalde (2008) also received the award from the Southland Conference, while Lisa McMahon (1995) and Jwanda Roberson (1998) were honored when LU was a member of the Sun Belt Conference.
 
Barrs and Desamours along with freshmen DeJa Roberts and Khali-Pippins Tryon combined to form a recruiting class that was ranked in the top 100 in the nation by All-Star Girls Report. With just one senior on the LU roster, the four freshmen played a big role in helping the Cardinals earn a berth in the Southland Conference Tournament that gets under way Thursday.
 
"The experience they have gotten this year is going to pay off in the long run," Harmony said. "We have another highly rated recruiting class coming in next season. I think our future is incredibly bright. Our freshmen this year give us something to build on for the future."
 
The Cardinals (11-18 overall, 7-11 Southland) are the eighth seed in the conference tournament. LU faces fifth-seeded Houston Baptist at 11 a.m. Thursday in a first-round game at the Leonard E. Merrell Center in Katy, Texas.
 
Barrs and Desamours will receive their awards prior to the opening tip of Thursday's game.
 
"They have come up big for us all season," Harmony said. "We're counting on them to come up big again in the tournament."