CCU

Women's Basketball Signs Five Student-Athletes to National Letters-of-Intent

       

Women's Basketball Signs Five Student-Athletes to National Letters-of-Intent

CONWAY, S.C. –The Coastal Carolina University women’s basketball program has signed five student-athletes to National Letters-of-Intent, head coach Alan LeForce announced today (Nov. 9). The Lady Chanticleers will welcome Lauren Grochowski (Naperville, Ill./Central), Lacey Lyons (Beverly Hills, Fla./Crystal River), Devin Rivers (Miami, Fla./Felix Varela), Amanda Stull (Rushville, Ind./Rushville Consolidated) and Lori Whitaker (Bloomington, Ind./North) for the 2006-07 academic year.

"Without question, this is the best recruiting class we have assembled in the history of our program," LeForce said. "I know this will put some pressure on them to perform, but as a whole, it has to rank as one of the best classes in the history of the Big South.

"There are two factors that helped us build this class," LeForce continued. "One is the relentless recruiting of (assistant coach) Mark Kost and the other is the excitement about the construction of our new arena."

Grochowski, a 5-11 forward, averaged 14.5 points, 6.1 rebounds and shot 45.3 percent from three-point range her junior year at Naperville Central High School. She was part of the Illinois Class AA State champion team in 2003 and 2004 and was on last year’s sectional championship squad. She was a Fourth Team All-State selection in 2004-05 and was on the Second Team All-Tournament squad in 2004. Grochowski was a First Team All-Conference selection during the 2004-05 season.

Lyons, a 5-11 forward, averaged 24.3 points, 7.9 rebounds and 7.9 assists as a junior. Lyons has 1,908 career points and 878 career rebounds going into her senior season. She was a First Team All-State selection by the Florida Sports Writers Association last year and was a First Team All-Sun Coast honoree by the St. Petersburg Times. Lyons was the Citrus County Chronicle Player of the Year in 2004 and is ranked in the Top 40 prospects in Florida by FloridaHoops.com.

Rivers, a 6-1 center, averaged 10 points, 15.1 rebounds and 4.5 blocks per game last year at Felix Varela High School. She has career totals of 650 points and 975 rebounds through three seasons and has been rated as Florida’s fourth-best post player by Breakdown Magazine. Rivers also has excelled in track and field, earning All-State honors in the high jump.

Stull, a 5-9 guard, averaged 23.9 points, eight rebounds and 4.6 assists as a junior at Rushville Consolidated High School. She was the Hoosier Heritage Conference Player of the Year as a junior and is a three-time First Team All-Conference selection. She is a two-time Most Valuable Player in the sectional tournament and is Indiana’s leading returning scorer in the senior class. Stull was named to the Indiana Junior All-Star team in 2005 and is a 2006 Indiana All-Star Candidate. She currently is ranked as the 20th best overall prospect in Indiana and the 12th-best senior prospect by the Rick Bolus High Potential Recruiting Service. She was a Second Team All-State selection by IndianaBball.com and a third-team honoree by Hoosier Basketball Magazine in 2004-05. Stull has career highs of 40 points, 19 rebounds and 10 assists.

Whitaker, a 5-9 guard, averaged 12 points, five rebounds and 2.8 assists her junior season at Bloomington North High School. She was a three-time First Team Conference Indiana selection and helped North to a Final Four appearance in 2003. She also was a three-time All-Area selection by the Bloomington Herald-Times and was a Third-Team All-State selection by Hoosier Basketball Magazine. Whitaker was the Conference Indiana three-point field goal percentage leader in 2004-05.

Coastal faces North Greenville in an exhibition game Saturday, Nov. 12 at 6 p.m.