DP Sports Player of the Week: Kayla Padilla

The future is bright for Penn women’s basketball. 

After leading the Quakers in scoring in the team's three wins this week, freshman guard Kayla Padilla proved that in just her first season for the Red and Blue, she is more than capable of running the offense for Penn, earning her DP Sports Player of the Week. 

Padilla’s big week started on Monday against Hartford, when she scored 20 points against the Hawks. The freshman followed that up two nights later against Big 5 rival La Salle, when she once again led the Quakers with 24 points. Finally, Padilla paced the Red and Blue in its game against Stetson on Saturday, pouring in 24 points in just 23 minutes in the team's 81-41 victory. Padilla was especially lethal from beyond the arc, making 11 threes across the three games. She shot at a 61% clip from three and 55% from the field. 

Padilla’s strong start to the year on offense has not just been good by freshman standards but has been one of the best in program history. Her 19.8 points per game in the early going put her on pace to average the most in a season since Jewel Clark averaged that number in 2003-2004. Padilla has already eclipsed 20 points five times in her first eight collegiate games and has reached double figures in every contest this season. 

Padilla was also a key contributor for the Quakers on the defensive end, picking her opponents pockets for 10 steals across the three games. The Red and Blue as a team held their three opponents to an average of just over 45 points per game. 

The freshman’s strong start to the season has been one of the key reasons why the Red and Blue have opened the season with one of their best starts in program history, as the Quakers sit at 7-1 with just three games to go before Ivy League play begins.