Women's Basketball | 10/23/2018 1:04:00 PM

FAIRFAX, Va. – After a phenomenal freshman season, Nicole Cardaño-Hillary has been pegged as one of the top players in the conference heading into the 2018-19 season.

Cardaño-Hillary was named to the Atlantic 10 Preseason All-Conference First Team, the league announced on Tuesday. The 2018 A-10 Rookie of the Year also was tabbed to the All-Defensive Team. 

She is the first Mason player to be named to the A-10 Preseason All-Conference First Team since Taylor Brown in 2015.

A 5-foot-7 guard from Madrid, Spain, Cardaño-Hillary led the league in steals (84) and ranked third in scoring (17.8 ppg) during the 2017-18 season. She ranked second among Division I freshmen in scoring and third in steals last year. 

Her 605 points set the Mason freshman single-season scoring record and ranks fourth all-time in program history. She scored in double figures in 33 of 34 games and scored a career-high 26 points against George Washington on Jan. 7. 

In addition to being named A-10 Rookie of the Year – a first for a Patriot since Mason joined the league – last year, she was also tabbed to the A-10 All-Conference Third Team, All-Defensive Team and All-Rookie Team. She also was named the VaSID Rookie of the Year. 

The Patriots were picked to finish eighth in the A-10 preseason coaches poll. Last year, Mason won a school-record 24 games, finished fourth in the A-10 and won a postseason game for the first time in program history. 

The Patriots return three starters and nine letterwinners from 2017-18 but graduated A-10 Player of the Year Natalie Butler and forward Tayler Dodson. Butler led the nation with 33 double-doubles and 16.6 rebounds a game while also leading the A-10 with 19.2 points a game. Dodson led the Patriots with 110 assists and ranked second with 5.5 rebounds a game.