Lincoln – Nebraska’s Jessica Shepard earned National Freshman of the Week honors from the United States Basketball Writer’s Association (USBWA) for the week ending Dec. 20. The award was announced on Tuesday, Dec. 22.

The award continues an early season hardware haul for the 6-4 forward from Fremont, Neb. On Monday, Shepard was named the Big Ten Player of the Week for the first time, while adding her fourth Big Ten Freshman-of-the-Week award.

Earlier on Tuesday, Shepard was announced as a candidate for the HERO of the Week award for women’s basketball from HEROSports.com. Husker fans can vote for Shepard for the national award through Sunday, Dec. 27 at 11 a.m.

Shepard’s award-winning week followed a Nebraska freshman record 35-point performance in a win over Northern Arizona on Dec. 19. Shepard hit 12-of-16 shots from the floor and attempted a school-record 20 free throws in the win over the Lumberjacks. She scored 14 of Nebraska’s 16 points in the first quarter and added 15 big points in the fourth quarter to help the Huskers pull away for a 90-67 win.

Shepard, who added a career-high four steals against Northern Arizona, helped the Huskers close non-conference play with a 9-2 record after notching her fourth double-double of the season with 19 points and 13 rebounds Monday night in a win over Arkansas State.

She closed non-conference play with team-leading averages of 19.5 points and 7.9 rebounds per game, while adding 2.4 assists, 1.2 steals and nearly one block per game.

Shepard and the Huskers open Big Ten Conference play against USA Today No. 25 Iowa at Pinnacle Bank Arena on Thursday, Dec. 31. The Huskers and Hawkeyes are set for a special 1 p.m., tip on New Year’s Eve and tickets are available now at Huskers.com.