LINK – ASHLAND UNIVERSITY WOMEN'S BASKETBALL PAGE
Ashland University's women's basketball team continues to fill out its roster – both in terms of players and coaches.
The Eagles' player list is up to 14 with the additions of sophomore forward Sara Price and freshman forward Kayla Sanders. Ashland's coaching staff also has been rounded out with the addition of graduate assistant Kylie Frizell.
Price is a transfer from NCAA Division I Ball State, where, in 2017-18, she played in 14 games, and averaged 4.5 minutes. In her prep career at Warren Howland High School, Price set the program's all-time scoring record with 1,799 career points, and averaged 21.4 points per game with a total of 270 rebounds as a senior.
"Sara Price brings a versatility in the post position that I'm very excited about," said Ashland head coach Kari Pickens. "She's a phenomenal 3-point shooter, a really good rebounder, has good size, and I think will just really help us in the post position."
Sanders comes to Ashland from Waterford, Mich., and Our Lady of the Lakes School. She was a two-time Catholic High School League selection, and earned all-state honors twice (honorable mention as a senior). As a senior, Sanders went for nine points, 8.5 rebounds and three steals per contest.
"Kayla is an awesome person," Pickens said. "She's really athletic, knows how to play with other good players, comes from a winning program.
"They (Sara and Kayla) are both just great people, and they will fit our culture really, really well."
Of having 14 players on the 2018-19 roster, after having just 10 healthy during the 2017-18 campaign, Pickens said, "There's a lot of new faces. It will be nice to have a little bit of a cushion. We took eight able-bodied players up with us to UConn last year."
Frizell was a four-year player for Wheeling Jesuit's women's basketball program, starting 58 of 121 career games played. She finished with career totals of 884 points, 471 rebounds, 143 assists, 90 steals and a free-throw percentage of 89.3. A team captain as a senior, Frizell graduated from WJU with a double degree in Spanish and Communication, and a minor in Literature, and was a four-year Dean's List student.
Prior to coming to Ashland, Frizell was a 2017-18 varsity assistant and freshman boys basketball coach at her alma mater, Smithville (Ohio) High School. She was Valedictorian of the Smithville Class of 2013.
"I'm so excited about Kylie," Pickens said. "I coached her for four years in AAU a while ago, and she brings an energy with her every day. She's an incredibly-hard worker. If you ask her to do something, she's going to go above and beyond. And she's excited to be in this role."
In 2017-18, Ashland's women's basketball team was 36-1 overall and 20-0 in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. The Eagles were the NCAA Division II runner-up, and winners of GLIAC regular-season, GLIAC Tournament and Midwest Regional tournament championships. In the last seven seasons, Ashland has two national titles, two national finalist finishes, and an overall record of 217-24 (.900).
AU
WBKB/DS