Ayla Habbal & Elizandra Costa crowned WEABL MVPs as award winners revealed

The 2024/25 WEABL regular season is in the books, providing the chance to recognise some of the year’s top performances as the league’s end-of-season awards were announced.

In the South, City of London Academy’s Ayla Habbal became the programme’s first MVP winner since 2021/22, playing a pivotal role in CoLA’s 9-1 campaign that narrowly missed out on a conference title due to the head-to-head tiebreaker with Copleston. Habbal led the WEABL with 6.3 assists per game to go along with 13.7 points and 3.2 steals, earning comparisons to former CoLA standout Isi Ozzy-Momodu, who won the same honour three seasons ago.

Manchester’s Elizandra Costa secured the North Conference MVP award by the narrowest of margins, edging teammate Irene Oboavwoduo by a single point in the voting. Costa led the North in scoring with 20.0 points per game, while also collecting 4.2 steals per outing as she helped guide the Mystics to a perfect 8-0 record. Stepping up from All-First Team honours a year ago, Costa’s continued development and two-way impact didn’t go unnoticed.

Mystics’ Head Coach Peter Paraskeva picked up Coach of the Year honours in the North following his side’s dominant regular season. Taking the reins from previous award-winner Rob Fairley, Paraskeva oversaw a deep and balanced Manchester team that finished undefeated, with MVP Costa, U17 Player of the Year Oboavwoduo, and MIP winner Carina Costa all playing key roles.

In the South, CoLA’s Jackson Gibbons added to his growing collection of WEABL accolades by winning Coach of the Year for the seventh time. With his team suffering just a single defeat all season, Gibbons was widely praised for his continued ability to develop talent, with four of his players making the All-Conference teams and Habbal earning MVP recognition.

There was another Manchester highlight in the North as Alexandra Hernandez claimed her second straight Defensive Player of the Year award. Hernandez helped anchor the best defence in the conference, which allowed just 52.3 points per game, and averaged 4.2 steals per contest.

Louisa Gibbins was named Defensive Player of the Year in the South, as she led a Copleston team that conceded just 45.4 points per game – the stingiest mark in the WEABL. Gibbins pulled down more defensive rebounds (73) than anyone else in the league and added 1.3 blocks per game, the fifth-best mark across the competition.

The Most Improved Player awards went to Manchester’s Carina Costa and JMA’s Millie Day. Costa averaged 12.6 points and 5.0 steals per game while also earning a place on the All-Second Team. Day was a standout performer despite JMA’s struggles, averaging 18.7 points and 6.7 rebounds per contest and leading her team in multiple categories including efficiency, minutes, points, and three-point percentage.

U17 Player of the Year awards were handed to Manchester’s Irene Oboavwoduo and CoLA’s Chloe Vella. Oboavwoduo had a breakout debut campaign, averaging 17.4 points, 10.1 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 4.1 steals per game to become one of the most impactful players in the league. Vella impressed in her first season before injury cut her campaign short in January, posting 9.0 points and 7.7 rebounds per game in seven outings.

Costa was joined in the North Conference All-First Team by Mystics teammate Irene Oboavwoduo, who was the most efficient player in the conference. Nottingham’s Tiarna Chambers-Desmond (15.9PPG, 8.2RPG, 1.8BPG), Sheffield’s Marissa Evans (15.8PPG, 6.1RPG), and Charnwood’s Emily Taylor (18.1PPG, 3.4APG) rounded out the North’s top five.

In the South, MVP Habbal led the way, joined by CoLA teammate Adaora Dioramma (11.1PPG, 8.5RPG) and Chloe Vella (9.0PPG, 7.7RPG), who was selected despite her shortened season. Barking’s Megan Verbeeten earned the scoring title with 20.1 points per game and added 1.9 blocks per game, while Copleston’s Louisa Gibbins rounded out the five after averaging 12.0 points, 10.3 rebounds and 3.2 steals per contest in her final season.

Manchester’s Carina Costa earned a place in the All-Second Team for the North, alongside Charnwood duo Charley Woodman (11.6PPG, 3.8APG) and Louise Fisher (13.0PPG, 9.1RPG, 1.1BPG). Nottingham’s Alina Riley (11.8PPG, 3.6APG) and Milton Keynes’ Faith Deakin (19.6PPG) also made the cut, with Deakin shining in her side’s debut season despite their winless record.

In the South, CoLA’s Debra Wilson-Osuide (8.4PPG) was joined by Copleston duo Maisie Keyes (14.7PPG, 4.9APG) and Cerys Leach (17.3PPG, 2.7SPG). Oaklands’ Caitlin Ryan (12.6PPG, 6.6RPG, 3.6SPG) and JMA’s Millie Day (18.7PPG, 6.7RPG) completed the Southern Conference’s second five.

The full list of award winners can be seen below:

Northern Conference

MVP: Elizandra Costa (Manchester)
Coach of the Year: Peter Paraskeva (Manchester)
Defensive Player: Alexandra Hernandez (Manchester)
Most Improved: Carina Costa (Manchester)
U17 Player: Irene Oboavwoduo (Manchester)

All-First Team: Elizandra Costa (Manchester), Irene Oboavwoduo (Manchester), Tiarna Chambers-Desmond (Nottingham), Marissa Evans (Sheffield), Emily Taylor (Charnwood)

All-Second Team: Carina Costa (Manchester), Charley Woodman (Charnwood), Louise Fisher (Charnwood), Alina Riley (Nottingham), Faith Deakin (Milton Keynes 5 Dimensions)

Southern Conference

MVP: Ayla Habbal (CoLA)
Coach of the Year: Jackson Gibbons (CoLA)
Defensive Player: Louisa Gibbins (Copleston)
Most Improved: Millie Day (JMA)
U17 Player: Chloe Vella (CoLA)

All-First Team: Ayla Habbal (CoLA), Adaora Dioramma (CoLA), Chloe Vella (CoLA), Megan Verbeeten (Barking Abbey), Louisa Gibbins (Copleston)

All-Second Team: Debra Wilson-Osuide (CoLA), Maisie Keyes (Copleston), Cerys Leach (Copleston), Caitlin Ryan (Oaklands), Millie Day (JMA)

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