Wednesday, November 18, 2009

JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (Nov. 18, 2009) - Head ETSU women's basketball coach Karen Kemp and her staff announced Wednesday, the Lady Bucs have signed three recruits for the 2010-11 season.

This class includes two post players - Ashley Miles (Bowie, Md.) and Akaycha Robinson (Fort Meade, Fla.) - along with point guard Shawn Randall (Orlando, Fla.)

"I am very excited to have this group join our Lady Buccaneer family in 2010-11," said Associate Head Coach DeShawne Blocker. "This group has a lot of talent and will add a great mix to our team. These three recruits will also give us added depth at the post and point guard positions."

Randall, a 5-8 point guard from Orlando, chose ETSU over Western Carolina, Florida International, Marshall and UNC-Greensboro. The Central Florida product is currently ranked as the #7 prospect in the state by Florida Insider, and is ranked as one of the top 250 players by Jumpoffplus.com. Randall scored a career high 43 points her sophomore season, and is the first player in Central Florida Prep's history to commit to a D-I program. In addition, Randall was the starting point guard for her club team this past summer - where she led them to a Top 10 regional ranking. Randall also made the All-Star game at the University of Florida Camp this summer.

"Shawn is a tremendous basketball player and has great speed," added Blocker. "She adds depth with our point guard play and can score from anywhere on the court. We expect her to step in and contribute right away."

Joining Randall is her FGB Junior Elite club ball teammate (Akaycha) Robinson. Robinson, a 6-3 post from Fort Meade High School, averaged 8.2 points and 12.2 rebounds a year ago for the Miners. The Florida native also had a dominating effort in the Class 1A Region 3 semifinals last season, where Robinson scored 14 points and pulled down 14 rebounds en route to receiving Second Team All-State honors. Robinson was also highly recruited, as she turned downed offers from Georgia, Indiana, South Florida, Western Kentucky, Jacksonville, North Florida and East Carolina.

"We are very pleased to have someone like Akaycha join our program," said Blocker. "She brings great size and athleticism to the court, along with being a strong rebounder. Like Shawn and Ashley, she appears to be a very coachable player who has tremendous upside. Akaycha will do great things for our post play and adds a lot of depth to that position."  

Rounding things out is 6-1 power forward (Ashley) Miles from Bishop McNamara. Miles has consistently increased her totals in her first three years with the Mustangs, as she went from 6.3 points/8.6 rebounds per game her freshman year to posting a double-double last season - 10.3 points and 11.9 rebounds per contest. The Bowie, Md. native was named First Team All-Freshman, while also being a three-time Honorable Mention selection in the Washington Catholic Athletic Conference (WCAC). Miles selected to sign with ETSU after being recruited by Rhode Island, Liberty, Jacksonville State and Campbell.

"Ashley is a very strong and physical player, who isn't afraid to take contact below the basket," said Blocker. "She comes from a successful program that has produced several Division I players and we are excited to have her come play for us at ETSU."

The 2009-10 Lady Bucs continue their four-game road swing with a trip to Arkansas on Sunday, Nov. 22. Tip is scheduled for 4 p.m. (Eastern) inside Bud Walton Arena.

For more information on Lady Buccaneer basketball, visit www.ETSUBucs.com.