 1/27/06 --
Long Island University fourth year head coach Stephanie Gaitley
has inked five players to join the women’s basketball
program in the fall of 2006. Gaitley continues to show her
strong international recruiting skills, signing three students
from outside the United States. In addition, she has signed
two stateside student-athletes from the Mid-Atlantic region.
Tessy Hetting (Wiltz, Luxembourg) is a gold medalist from
the Olympic Games of Small Countries (2005). A member
of her country’s
national squad, she has also starred for AMICALE. Hetting
averages 14 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 1.8 steals per
game with her club
team.
Valerie Nainima (Suva, Fiji) is a former teammate of current
Blackbird and Fiji native Mikaelar Whippy. Nainima averaged
23 points, five rebounds, four steals, and three assists
in the 2005 South Pacific Mini Games, helping her team take
the
gold.
Minna Sten (Turku, Finland) attends Aurajoki High School
in Finland and plays in the Turun Riento League. The 6-2
forward
started 20-of-24 games, averaging eight points, five rebounds,
and two blocks per contest. She played in all eight Turun
games and shot 52.2 percent from the field (12-of-23) while
hauling
in 40 rebounds and netted 35 points. Sten also notched 14
blocks.
Audrey McCarty (Richmond, Va.) has led Monacan High School
to two consecutive Virginia High School League (VSHL) Tournament
appearances and the district and regional crowns. A team
captain, the 6-0 forward helped Chiefs amass a 27-2 record
last season.
McCarty has honed her skills on the Virginia Xplosion AAU
team which made national tournament showings in 2000 and
2004. McCarty
averaged 11.2 points and 9.8 rebounds for the squad. McCarty
earned Central District Honorable Mention and All-Tournament
team honors while attending Colonial Heights High School.
Heidi Mothershead (Hagerstown, Md.) averaged 12 points, five
assists, and four steals per game last season St. Johns at
Prospect Hill in Frederick, Maryland. The four-year letterwinner,
shot 43 percent from beyond the arc and starred on several
AAU teams in the Baltimore-Washington area. Mothershead is
a member of the National Honor Society and was recently named
to the Who’s Who among American High School Students.
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