Wayne women’s Player of the Year in PBC

Columbus State University women’s basketball player Tatiana Wayne was named the Peach Belt Conference Player of the Year on Thursday as the PBC announced its annual postseason awards.

Teammate Machala Raymonville was named second team all-conference after ranking fourth in scoring in the PBC with an average of 17.9 points a game.

On the men’s side, CSU senior Jacori Payne was voted second team all-conference for the second straight season after averaging 18.4 points a game in his final season in a Cougar uniform.

The Lady Cougars are still alive in the Peach Belt Conference women’s tournament. They defeated Francis Marion 75-60 on Wednesday and will take on Lander University Saturday at 5:30 p.m. in Dahlonega, Ga.

Wayne leads Peach Belt ladies in scoring with a 20.4 mark. The junior scored in double figures every game this season with 11 games of least 20 points and three above 30. She led the conference in free throws and was near the top in field goals, 3-pointers, 3-point percentage, free-throw percentage and steals.

In her lone season as a Cougar, Raymonville made an instant impact. She has been in double digits in 25 of the 27 games in which she played with eight 20-point games and a career high of 34 points against Augusta.

Payne has been a steady performer during his four-year career at CSU. He finished third in the PBC in scoring and scored at least 20 points in 13 games this season. That includes back-back 30-point games against Augusta and Georgia Southwestern.

For his career, the diminutive 5-foot-9 guard from Dublin, Ga., finished with 1,347 points, good for fourth on Columbus State’s all-time scoring list.

The men’s team wrapped up a disappointing season Wednesday night with a narrow loss at top-seeded Clayton State in the quarterfinals of the Peach Belt Tournament.