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/ Women's Basketball
Whalen Inks Five in First Recruiting Class
11/14/2018 1:33:00 PM | Women's Basketball
MINNEAPOLIS – Minnesota head coach Lindsay Whalen has announced the addition of five student-athletes that have signed National Letters of Intent to join the Minnesota women's basketball program for 2019-20 season. Signing NLIs with the Golden Gophers are Grace Cumming, Jasmine Powell, Justice Ross, Sara Scalia and Klarke Sconiers.
"I'm really excited to announce our staff's first early signing class," Whalen said. "These five young women are not only great players on the court, but exemplify and embody what it means to be a Gopher. With four seniors graduating this spring, this class addresses some needs to our roster and adds some depth in both the guard and post positions. Our fans will be proud to call them Gophers."
A native of Des Moines, Iowa, Cumming currently attends Roosevelt High School. A three-star recruit according to ESPN, she is the 42nd ranked post player in the country. The 6'3 post player has been named all-conference honorable mention each of the last two seasons despite being limited to just six games as a junior and 10 games as a sophomore. As a freshman, she was named all-conference after averaging 11.2 points, 7.9 rebounds, 2.2 blocks and 1.4 assists per game.
"Grace was the first commitment of this 2019 class," Whalen said. "She is a long and skilled post player that works tirelessly at her game. Her leadership, work ethic, and drive matched with her offensive versatility will make her a force in the Big Ten."
A native of Clinton Township, Mich., Powell attends Detroit County Day School, the same high school as current Gophers sophomore Destiny Pitts. A four-star recruit according to ESPN, Powell is the 78th player overall in the class, as well as the 23rd-ranked point guard. The 5'6 guard has led her high school to back-to-back state championships and has earned all-state honors both years, including this past season as she averaged 16 points per game.
"Jasmine is a pesky and relentless on-ball defender that adds great speed and athleticism to our guard position," Whalen said. "She comes with a championship pedigree in both her high school and AAU programs and will surely bring a winners' mentality to our program."
Like Cumming, Ross also hails from Des Moines, Iowa, attending Des Moines East High School. A three-star recruit according to ESPN, the 6'0 Ross is touted as the No. 33 wing player in the country. This past season, she was named first-team all-conference and earned second-team All-CIML honors from the Des Moines Register after recording 14.3 points, 4.6 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 2.1 blocks and 1.2 steals per contest.
"Justice brings a great degree of physicality and size on both defense and offense," Whalen said. "She is a great example of our Gold Standard: a great teammate, worker and leader."
A homegrown product, Scalia attends Stillwater High School. A three-star recruit according to ESPN, she is rated as the No. 56 guard in the country. Scalia, who stands 5'10, has earned all-conference honors each of the last three seasons and was named all-state this past season after averaging 26.5 points, 5.2 rebounds, 3.3 steals and 3.1 assists per game. Scalia began her career as an eighth-grader, putting up 9.4 points per game. Her scoring average then jumped to 16.3 as a freshman and 17.4 as a sophomore.
"Sara was one of the first kids I saw play when I took the job," Whalen said. "She is a lights-out shooter, tenacious competitor and a Minnesotan with a lot of pride for this state and our university."
Sconiers is a native of the Bronx, N.Y. and attends Christ the King High School. A three-star recruit according to ESPN, the 6'2 Sconiers is also rated as the No. 18 post in the class. A second-team all-league honoree the past two seasons, she helped her team to a 29-1 record and state championship as a junior. She averaged 9.5 points, 8.5 rebounds, 5.0 blocks, 3.0 assists and 1.5 steals per game as her team finished ranked seventh in the country.
"Klarke adds length and versatility to our post position and takes pride in protecting the paint defensively," Whalen said. "She has played for some of the most successful programs in the country and brings unmatched competitiveness and toughness to our program."
"I'm really excited to announce our staff's first early signing class," Whalen said. "These five young women are not only great players on the court, but exemplify and embody what it means to be a Gopher. With four seniors graduating this spring, this class addresses some needs to our roster and adds some depth in both the guard and post positions. Our fans will be proud to call them Gophers."
A native of Des Moines, Iowa, Cumming currently attends Roosevelt High School. A three-star recruit according to ESPN, she is the 42nd ranked post player in the country. The 6'3 post player has been named all-conference honorable mention each of the last two seasons despite being limited to just six games as a junior and 10 games as a sophomore. As a freshman, she was named all-conference after averaging 11.2 points, 7.9 rebounds, 2.2 blocks and 1.4 assists per game.
"Grace was the first commitment of this 2019 class," Whalen said. "She is a long and skilled post player that works tirelessly at her game. Her leadership, work ethic, and drive matched with her offensive versatility will make her a force in the Big Ten."
🎶 She's got style, she's got Grace, she's a winner, she's a lady! Whoa whoa whoa! 🎶
— Lindsay Whalen (@Lindsay_13) November 14, 2018
Excited to announce the signing of @gracecumming_ to our 2️⃣0️⃣1️⃣9️⃣ class! 〽️#SkiUMah #TheWinningWhay pic.twitter.com/kdDvjBIuLp
A native of Clinton Township, Mich., Powell attends Detroit County Day School, the same high school as current Gophers sophomore Destiny Pitts. A four-star recruit according to ESPN, Powell is the 78th player overall in the class, as well as the 23rd-ranked point guard. The 5'6 guard has led her high school to back-to-back state championships and has earned all-state honors both years, including this past season as she averaged 16 points per game.
"Jasmine is a pesky and relentless on-ball defender that adds great speed and athleticism to our guard position," Whalen said. "She comes with a championship pedigree in both her high school and AAU programs and will surely bring a winners' mentality to our program."
Our 2nd signee... let me introduce you to Jazzy P!!
— Lindsay Whalen (@Lindsay_13) November 14, 2018
Welcome to the Gopher fam @jazzy3gang! 〽️#SkiUMah #TheWinningWhay pic.twitter.com/GGAatHQKyF
Like Cumming, Ross also hails from Des Moines, Iowa, attending Des Moines East High School. A three-star recruit according to ESPN, the 6'0 Ross is touted as the No. 33 wing player in the country. This past season, she was named first-team all-conference and earned second-team All-CIML honors from the Des Moines Register after recording 14.3 points, 4.6 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 2.1 blocks and 1.2 steals per contest.
"Justice brings a great degree of physicality and size on both defense and offense," Whalen said. "She is a great example of our Gold Standard: a great teammate, worker and leader."
We've got liberty, and now we've got Justice! 🙌🏻
— Lindsay Whalen (@Lindsay_13) November 14, 2018
Last but not least, give a big Gopher welcome to the final signee of our early signing period, @JusticeRoss_20! 〽️#SkiUMah #TheWinningWhay pic.twitter.com/WNJHshqRX8
A homegrown product, Scalia attends Stillwater High School. A three-star recruit according to ESPN, she is rated as the No. 56 guard in the country. Scalia, who stands 5'10, has earned all-conference honors each of the last three seasons and was named all-state this past season after averaging 26.5 points, 5.2 rebounds, 3.3 steals and 3.1 assists per game. Scalia began her career as an eighth-grader, putting up 9.4 points per game. Her scoring average then jumped to 16.3 as a freshman and 17.4 as a sophomore.
"Sara was one of the first kids I saw play when I took the job," Whalen said. "She is a lights-out shooter, tenacious competitor and a Minnesotan with a lot of pride for this state and our university."
Our first NLI of the 2️⃣0️⃣1️⃣9️⃣ signing class is in!
— Lindsay Whalen (@Lindsay_13) November 14, 2018
Help us welcome my fellow Minnesotan @sara_scalia14 to our Gopher Family! 〽️#SkiUMah #TheWinningWhay pic.twitter.com/Sz7FawlXRy
Sconiers is a native of the Bronx, N.Y. and attends Christ the King High School. A three-star recruit according to ESPN, the 6'2 Sconiers is also rated as the No. 18 post in the class. A second-team all-league honoree the past two seasons, she helped her team to a 29-1 record and state championship as a junior. She averaged 9.5 points, 8.5 rebounds, 5.0 blocks, 3.0 assists and 1.5 steals per game as her team finished ranked seventh in the country.
"Klarke adds length and versatility to our post position and takes pride in protecting the paint defensively," Whalen said. "She has played for some of the most successful programs in the country and brings unmatched competitiveness and toughness to our program."
Hear it for New York, New York, New York!🗽🏙
— Lindsay Whalen (@Lindsay_13) November 14, 2018
Help us welcome the newest Gopher, @easymoneyklarke, to our 2️⃣0️⃣1️⃣9️⃣ class! 〽️#SkiUMah #TheWinningWhay pic.twitter.com/cef42kRWcx
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