http://www.ysusports.com/sports/wbkb/2011-12/releases/nli-signees-1118Youngstown -- Four future Penguins have signed a National Letter of Intent to play Division I women's basketball at Youngstown State University, YSU head coach Bob Boldon announced.
The class includes incoming freshmen Amanda Barger (Gurnee, Ill.), Brooke Gardner (Chesterton, Ind.) and Kelsea Newman (Perrysburg, Ohio) and junior college transfer Karen Flagg (Chester, Pa.)
"My staff did an excellent job of recruiting and getting to know these kids and their families," Boldon said. "They're four young ladies that we're really excited about adding to our program. We got four kids who can shoot and are pretty versatile. They also give a little more size on our team. We switch a lot on defense, and it was important for us to get bigger at our guard spots and small forward so we can be more versatile defensively."
Barger, a 5-foot-10 guard, averaged nine points, four rebounds, three steals and four assists her junior year as she earned honorable mention all-conference accolades for Warren High. She upped that to 12 points and six rebounds per game during the AAU season at Midwest Elite Basketball.
"Amanda is a versatile player who has gotten better every year of high school," Boldon said." She's shooting the ball very well and is still improving on it."
Gardner, a 2011 graduate of Chesterton High near Valparaiso, originally committed to UIC over Indiana State. When UIC went through a coaching change, Gardner decided to attended La Lumiere School in Indiana, where she is currently achieving Magna Cum Laude honors. As a senior at Chesterton, the 5-foot-9 guard averaged 18 points, six assists, five steals and nine rebounds. The Trojans won the 2011 Duneland Conference Sectional Championship and advanced to the regional final her senior year. She recorded a school record 147 assists and was an honorable-mention all-state pick. Additionally, she was named to the Indiana All-Star Classic Team as well as the Indiana East-West All-Star Team, and she was rated as one of the top players in Indiana by various outlets.
"Brooke plays more than one position and shoots it well, and that will definitely help," Boldon said. "She's playing at a prep school this year, and we're excited to see what that extra year of maturity and growth does for her."
Newman, a 5-foot-11 forward, has already set Perrysburg's record for 3-pointers in a season (45) and a career (119). Last season as a junior, she led the Yellow Jackets with 13.6 points and 6.1 rebounds as she earned honorable mention All-Ohio, first-team All-Northern Lakes League and All-Wood County accolades. Through her first three seasons, she scored 733 points, and she helped Perrysburg to back-to-back regional final berths as a freshman and sophomore. Newman is a member of the National Honor Society and holds a 3.8 GPA.
"Kelsea is probably the best shooter of the bunch," Boldon said. "She's the lone Ohio kid of the four, and she's someone we really feel can stretch the defense for us."
Flagg is a 6-foot sophomore forward at Daytona State College in Florida who is averaging 16 points and 9.5 rebounds early in the Falcons' season. Last season, she played in 22 games and averaged 7.6 points and 5.8 rebounds while shooting 41 percent from the field. As a senior at Chester High in Southeast Pennsylvania, she averaged 16.3 points, 9.9 rebounds, 3.3 blocks, 3.0 steals and 3.0 assists. She averaged 11.7 points and 7.6 rebounds as a junior.
"Karen brings a great level of athleticism and versatility," Boldon said. "She plays the one through four positions in a very competitive junior college league. She'll bring some much-needed athleticism to our team."
