GNAC Women's Basketball

2010-11 Recruits

Alaska Fairbanks

Nanooks Sign Players from Juneau, Ketchikan (11/18/09)

Emily Johnson of Juneau and Ciara Patton of Ketchikan have signed letter-of-intents to play for the University of Alaska Fairbanks.

A 5-7 point guard, Johnson was a versatile player at Juneau Douglas where she was a part of the Bear's back-to-back Region V championship teams. Johnson brings versatility and tenacious defense, which should fit the Nanooks mold.

“Emily is a versatile and fundamentally sound player who will immediately help us.” stated UAF coach Dave Thompson, “Emily has the ability to defend all positions extremely well and her competitiveness will be an asset for our program.”

Patton, a 5-8 guard, will join the Nanooks after four successful years at Kechikan High School. Patton led the Lady Knights to a fifth place finish in the 2009 state playoffs averaging 10.7 points per game, while shooting 62.5 percent from the field and 60 percent from behind the three-point line.

Central Washington

Central Signs Three Six-Footers (11/18/09)

Central Washington has signed three six-footers to national letters of intent including 6-foot-1 Amber Moser from Sheridan High School in Oregon, 6-foot-3 Annie Martinez from East Valley High School in Yakima and 6-foot-4 Marissa Pratt from Redmond High School.

"Adding these three players will help develop our inside game for the future," said CWU head coach Jeff Whitney . "We have been lacking an inside game, so to have the addition of players of this size bodes well in increasing our offensive and defensive potential for the future. We have not had the ability to have this type of size (during my tenure)."

Moser will be a four-year letterwinner in basketball at Sheridan High School in northwest Oregon and was a second-team all-state (Class 3A) selection for the Spartans as a junior. A three-sport standout (also starring in volleyball and track and field), she averaged 15.2 points and 6.6 rebounds per game in 2008-09.

"Amber is a very athletic forward that has the ability to play inside-out," Whitney said. "Her skill set is such to where she can jump, run the floor well, and is the type of player who will come in and play immediately for us.

"We were fortunate to get her (she was recruited by some Division I and top GNAC schools), and I think that (the coaching staff) did a great job getting her to commit to Central. Amber is a good kid with a great and very involved family."

Martinez has also been a three-sport standout during her prep career at East Valley of Yakima, where she has competed in basketball, volleyball, and track as well. She has twice been a first-team all-Central Washington Athletic Conference selection in volleyball but will turn her attention at the college level exclusively to basketball.

"Annie is a very coachable and enthusiastic player," Whitney said. "At 6-3, she has a very good frame to build upon. She has good court vision as a post player, has a nice mid-range shot, and is a great find for us."

Pratt will finish her prep career this winter as a three-year letter winner in basketball at Redmond High School. As a junior for the Mustangs, she averaged 6.9 points and 5.8 rebounds per game after posting similar numbers (6.3 points, 5.6 rebounds per game) as a sophomore. At 6-foot-4, she is the tallest women's basketball player to sign a National Letter of Intent with the Wildcat program in the school's history.

"Marissa's height is something that this program has needed," Whitney explained, "and you can't coach height. We look forward to bringing her in and developing her into a good college basketball player."

Montana State Billings

Two Montana Prep Standouts Sign with Yellowjackets (11/19/09)

Bobbi Knudsen and Corie Smith have signed to play basketball for Montana State Billings starting in the 2010-11 season.

“Both Bobbier and Corie have had extremely successful high school careers and they both play extremely hard," MSUB coach Kevin Woodin said. "I believe their athleticism and abilities will improve our team and I look for them to make a positive impact on our program both on and off the court.”

Knudsen, a 5-8 guard from Malta High School, is a three year letter winner in basketball and has also earned letters for cross country and track. For her career, she has averaged 11 points and 5.5 rebounds per game and has shot 59 percent from the floor.

Last season, Knudsen was named to the all-conference and all-state teams in helping Malta to district and divisional championships, leading to a runner-up finish at the state tournament. In all, she has helped MHS to three consecutive district and divisional titles with one state championship in 2007.

In the classroom, Knudsen is a member of the National Honor Society, student council and Youth Group FCCLA.

Smith, a 5-11 forward, has had a successful basketball and track career at Belgrade High School in Belgrade, Mont. Last season, Smith led the Central ‘A' Conference in 12 rebounds per game and was in the Top 10 in field goal percentage (45.6 percent), steals (35) and scoring (9.89 ppg).

In 2007-08, she was named honorable mention all-conference and then last season, earned second team all-conference while being named to the first team Central ‘A' all-divisional tournament team. Smith also helped lead Belgrade to a divisional championship in 2009.

Off the court, Smith is a member of the National Honors Society and has earned both basketball and track academic all-state honors twice.

Northwest Nazarene

Crusaders Sign Player From Keizer (11/29/09)

Megan Hingston has signed a National Letter-of-Intent to attend Northwest Nazarene Univeristy and play basketball for the Crusaders next year.

Hingston, a 5-9 senior guard at McNary High School in Keizer, Ore., was named the 6A Central Valley League Player-of-the-Year during her junior season, averaging 17.5 points, 9.8 rebounds, and 3.2 assists per game. She was also named to the Oregon 6A all-state second-team in 2008-09.

"We have no doubt that Megan has the potential to immediately impact our program," NNU coach Kelli Lindley said. "Megan is exactly the type of athlete that we needed. She is strong, jumps well, and plays very hard and physical."

In addition to her on-court talents, Hingston has excelled in the classroom, carrying a 3.96 grade point average at McNary High.

Seattle Pacific

Three Players Sign With Falcons (11/25/09)

A versatile player with a winning background; a solid, young rebounder with plenty of potential; and a sharp-shooting guard who also can pass are ready to take the next step in their basketball careers with Seattle Pacific University.

Aubree Callen, Riley Butler and Betsy Kingma all have signed national letters of intent to join the Falcons beginning in 2010-11.

Callen is a 5-foot-9 guard from Jerome High School in Jerome, Idaho. As a junior last season, she averaged 15 points, eight rebounds and six assists per game in helping the Tigers take third place in the Class 4A state tournament. She is a two-time All-Idaho first-team selection.

“She is a great competitor and a strong all-around player,” SPU head coach Julie van Beek said. “She knows how to win and will find a way to get the job done in a tight situation. She’s a very smart player who is tenacious on defense.”

Butler is a 6-2 center from Kentlake High in Covington, southeast of Seattle. She averaged six points and eight rebounds for the Falcons last season.

“She has only been playing for a couple of years, so she has a huge upside,” van Beek said. “One of things I really like about Riley is she isn’t afraid of hard work and she really wants to learn. She’s a very good rebounder and has good hands. And she does a good job of finishing around the basket.”

Kingma, a 5-11 shooting guard, was an All-Kingco Conference first-teamer for Newport High School in the Seattle suburb of Bellevue. She averaged 16.9 points, 4.8 rebounds, 1.8 steals, 1.6 blocks and 1.3 assists per game, helping the Knights to 17-10 and earn a trip to the Class 4A state tournament.

“Betsy is a gym rat. She has the ability to put up a lot of points,” van Beek said. “We’ll count on her for 3-point shooting. She’s smart and can make her teammates better with her passing ability. She has a long body and is able to use her length well on defense. And she’s a great competitor.”

Western Washington

Vikings Sign Guard From Everett (11/20/09)

Erin Feeney, a senior guard at Jackson High School in Everett, has signed a national letter of intent to play basketball for Western Washington University.

The 5-foot-8 guard, who is the team captain as a senior, was a first-team all-Western Conference South Division choice as a junior. That season she helped the Timberwolves to a third straight Class 4A state tournament appearance and third consecutive Wesco South Division title, averaging a team-leading 20.8 points.

Feeney, who was a Seattle Star Times pick as a junior, hit five 3-pointers in a game as a sophomore against Edmonds-Woodway.While playing sports at Jackson , Feeney attends Chrysalis High School in Woodinville.

2010-11 Recruits

Previous Women's Basketball Recruits