Orangewomen Ink Three Players for 2002-03
5/14/2002 2:31:58 PM | Women's Basketball
SYRACUSE, N.Y. - Syracuse women's basketball coach Marianna Freeman announced the addition of three players for the 2002-03 season. Junior forward/center Awa Diop (Colombes, France/Western Nebraska J.C.), junior guard April Jean (Sacramento, Calif./Coffeyville C.C.) and sophomore guard Krystalyn Ellerbe (Clinton, Md./Tallahassee C.C.) have all committed to play for the Orangewomen next season.
All three players rank among the nation's junior college top 50 at their respective positions by the All-Star Girls Report, a recruiting service used by a number of Division I programs.
"I think these three players complete the best class, both athletically and academically, that we've brought in since I've been at Syracuse," Freeman said. "All three are among the best in the nation at their positions, and will bring a wealth of experience to our team."
Diop enters as the most highly touted of the trio. She is ranked as the number one junior college center in the class of 2002 and the number four junior college player regardless of position by the All-Star Girls Report. Last season, the 6-4 Diop averaged 11.2 points and 7.8 rebounds per game in helping Western Nebraska to a 29-3 record. She shot 48.5 percent from the floor (144-for-297) and recorded six double-doubles. Diop averaged nine points and six rebounds as a freshman, helping the Cougars to a 24-9 mark and the Region IX Tournament championship.
Jean, a two-year player at Coffeyville (Kans.) Community College, is the second-ranked junior college guard and the 21st-ranked player in the class of 2002 by the All-Star Girls Report. Jean scored 1,017 career points for the Red Ravens, including a school-record 49 points in a game in January 2001. For her career, she averaged 18.5 points and 7.4 rebounds per game. The 5-10 guard was a first-team All-Kansas Jayhawk Community College Conference and first-team All-Region VI pick as a freshman. She garnered second-team all-conference honors as a sophomore.
Ellerbe, a 5-5 guard who originally signed with the Orangewomen out of high school, averaged just more than 18 minutes per game last season for Tallahassee (Fla.) Community College. She scored 5.9 points and grabbed 2.0 rebounds per contest for the Lady Eagles. She scored in double figures six times, including a season-best 18 points. Following the season, she was named to the Women's Panhandle Conference All-Freshman team. Ellerbe was a four-year letterwinner at the Bullis School in Maryland. She was a two-time Street & Smith Honorable Mention All-American and a two-time team Defensive Player of the Year.
The trio brings SU's total number of newcomers for next season to seven. Freshmen Marchelle Campbell, Melissa Gathers, Tierra Jackson and Jill Norton all signed National Letters of Intent during the early signing period last November. The Orangewomen return six players, including leading scorer Julie McBride (14.9 ppg) and top reserve Shannon Perry (11.5 ppg, 6.6 rpg), from the 2001-02 squad that went 18-13 and earned an at-large berth in the NCAA Tournament.
"We may be young at certain positions next season, but I think we will make up for that with our ability and athleticism," Freeman said. "We certainly added a tremendous amount of talent to our roster, and I'm excited to see what this group, along with our returning players, can do on the floor."
