Bucknell University Athletics
Five Recruits Welcomed to Bucknell Women's Basketball Program
6/3/2005 8:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
June 3, 2005
LEWISBURG, Pa. - Bucknell head women's basketball coach Kathy Fedorjaka announced Friday the addition of five student-athletes who will join the Bison in 2005-06. The class, the third of scholarship student-athletes at Bucknell, will help overcome the loss of four seniors to graduation.
Joining the Bison next season will be Ashley Branch, a 6-1 forward/center from Baltimore, Md. (Baltimore City College High School); Amanda Brown, a 5-6 guard from Richardson, Texas (L.V. Berkner High School); Corrine Keller, a 5-10 guard/forward from Rochester, N.Y. (Greece Athena High School); Lauren Schober, a 6-0 forward/guard from Chicago, Ill. (Regina Dominican High School); and Jacquie Seawright, a 5-11 forward from Olton, Texas, who played at South Plains College in Levelland, Texas, the last two seasons.
Branch, the tallest of the incoming recruits at 6-1, averaged 10 points and 14 rebounds per game at Baltimore City College High School. She was also a force defensively, averaging three blocks per contest, as she led her squad to the Baltimore City Championship for the second consecutive season this past winter. Her team also claimed the 2A North Regional title for the second straight year.
"Ashley brings size and a physical presence to the post," commented Fedorjaka. "A strong player who defends and rebounds, I expect Ashley to elevate her game at the college level."
One of two players from Texas, Brown averaged more than 20 points, four assists and three steals per game as a senior at L.V. Berkner High School. An All-Metro Dallas player, and the district most valuable player, Brown shot better than 80 percent from the free throw line last year. A member of the National Honor Society, she was named one of the three best guards in the metro-Dallas area.
"Amanda is a combination guard who handles and distributes the ball well, while also possessing a scorers' mentality," stated Fedorjaka. "Known for her defensive abilities, she should fit well in our pressure defense."
Keller was an All-Greater Rochester first-team selection while averaging 21 points, eight rebounds, two assists and more than two steals as a senior at Greece Athena High School. The 5-10 guard/forward also earned first-team All-Monroe County plaudits, and was the Section V Class AA Tournament Most Valuable Player. The co-player of the year in Monroe County, Keller was named fourth-team all-state and scored more than 1,000 points in her career. Keller won the sportsmanship award during both the Mercy preseason tournament and the New York State soccer semifinals.
"Corrine is a physically tough player with a blue-collar attitude," described Fedorjaka. "A very versatile player who can score in a myriad of ways, she is confident in her abilities. She can rebound well from the guard position with her size."
Schober is another player who adds size to the Bison, who had just six players at least 5-10 on their 2004-05 roster. At 6-0, Schober averaged 20 points, eight rebounds, four steals and 1.5 blocks per game at Regina Dominican High School. An all-state selection as both a junior and senior, Schober holds the Regina Dominican record for points in a game and in a career. A three-time all-conference selection, she tallied more than 1,000 career points. Off the basketball court, she was senior class president, a member of the National Honor Society, sports editor of the student newspaper, a senior peer group member, a member of the ambassador program, and the captain of the volleyball team.
"Lauren creates matchup problems for opponents because she has great outside range for an inside player," said Fedorjaka. "She runs the floor extremely well for a forward, and is a strong, tough and confident player who looks to score. She is also aggressive and vocal on the court."
A transfer from South Plains College, which placed fourth in last year's NJCAA Tournament and finished with a 31-4 record, Seawright will be a junior in 2005-06. Despite missing all but 10 games of her freshman season with an injury, Seawright averaged more than 12 points and five rebounds per game during her two seasons as a Lady Texan. Last year she was fourth on the team in scoring at 10.8 points per game, and played in all but one of the team's 35 contests. She also earned the best overall student-athlete grade-point average. While at Olton High School, which she graduated from third in her class in 2003, Seawright was nominated for McDonald's All-America honors and was the most valuable player in her district. A second-team all-state selection as a senior, she was first-team all-region the same season, and was named the Amarillo Globe News/Golden Spread 2A Player of the Year. A first-team all-district choice as a junior, and an honorable mention all-district player as a sophomore, Seawright also was a member of the cross country and track and field teams at Olton, where she was named the school's best all-around athlete as both a junior and senior.
"Jacquie comes to us with a great deal of experience at a high level," commented Fedorjaka. "She is a great competitor who knows how to win. She will be an impact player at both ends of the floor. She can create her own offense and possesses a true pull-up jumper, while being strong defensively at the same time. I expect she will rebound well at the defensive end of the floor."
With four states (Illinois, Maryland, New York, Texas) represented by this year's class, Bucknell has inked players from nine different states and Washington, D.C., the last two years. Last year's freshman class had representatives from Connecticut, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Washington, D.C.
The Bison finished the 2004-05 season with a 10-18 overall record. After going 4-10 during Patriot League play, Bucknell lost 54-52 on a heartbreaking buzzer-beater in the first round of the Patriot League Tournament to second-seeded Lehigh on the Mountain Hawks' home floor. The Bison return three of their four leading scorers, including leading scorer and All-Patriot League Second Team selection Lindsey Hollobaugh, who will be a junior next season.
