Wolves women add four to roster

Looking to add size and speed, Jon Kreiner thinks he might have found a little of both in this year’s recruiting class.

The Lakehead Thunderwolves women’s basketball coach on Friday officially announced the bulk of his recruiting class, led by 5-foot-10 guard Jamie Hutcheson and 6-foot-4 post Erika French of Owen Sound. The team also inked 5-foot-8 guard Alex Riddle of St. Catharines and hometown hopeful Laura Cooper, fresh off a regional championship with the St. Ignatius Falcons.

Hutcheson appears to be the prize recruit in the current class, a highly-touted guard from Ancaster, Ont. who was sought after by NCAA schools including Rhode Island, Kent State and Duquesne.

Invited to the All-Canada top 20 prospect camp, Hutcheson led the Bishop Tonnos high school squad to the AAAA championship game, where she scored 21 points to lead all scorers, despite her team coming up short on the scoreboard.

A well-rounded student with honour roll grades, Hutcheson said she was sold on Lakehead from the start.

“I am so excited that I am going to be attending Lakehead. The atmosphere in the community and especially in the gym is so awesome to see,” she said.

“The coaching staff and the girls on the team all have a great chemistry and I think I fit in very well. Everyone is very fun, but also very hardworking and determined which is what I loved. Lakehead was just the overall perfect fit for me, and I hope to show this by excelling on the court and in the classroom in my coming years.”

Her high school coach, Mike Di Federico, has high hopes for his star.

"She is a great basketball player and an even better person," said Di Federico. "She is a dedicated hard working team player. She will be missed at Bishop Tonnos but she has epitomized the type of student athlete we are developing and she has been an integral part of the growing basketball tradition at the school."
Kreiner sees immediate dividends in her future, as he looks for someone to replace the Wolves all-time leading scorer Tasia McKenna, who departs after five years.

“Jamie can play right away at the CIS level and will provide us with scoring and toughness.  She has a great basketball IQ and has a lot of experience playing with the best and being coached by the best in this country. Jamie’s outlook on life is extremely refreshing and I am looking forward to working with her next season.”

French, heavily recruited from coast-to-coast, averaged 15 points a game for the OSCVI Falcons, grabbing 13.6 boards and 6.2 blocks a game in her final high school season.

She said a visit to Thunder Bay was enough to quell her confusion about where to play university ball.

“I know that Lakehead is the perfect fit for me not only for the basketball program but also academically. I am extremely excited to join the Thunderwolves for the 2011-2012 season and to compete with my new team mates.”

Kreiner, in a release issued by the team, called her a perfect fit for the Thunderwolves.

“She has great length and athleticism, a tremendous desire to learn and a huge upside. She understands what she needs to do to prepare herself for the rigors of CIS play and possesses the attitude to get herself to that level. Erika has already made a great impression on our team and coaching staff.”

Cooper, the lone local recruit, averaged 11 points and seven boards with the Falcons, shooting 60 per cent from the floor.

Those numbers work well, Kreiner said, and should help the team when Cooper finds her way onto the active roster.

“Laura has a great deal of potential and upside as a solid six-foot post. She will redshirt for us this year as she has a lot to work on to play at the next level.  With hard work Laura will be a solid player in the years to come.”