Men's and Women's Basketball: Bonnies land prospects in early signing period
Tim Schneider, Staff Writer
Issue date: 12/5/08 Section: Sports
The men's and women's basketball teams were active during the early signing period that lasted from Nov. 12 to Nov. 19. The women's team, led by coach Jim Crowley, signed three high school seniors, while Mark Schmidt's men's team added a prep school star out of Georgia.
A native of Brooklyn, N.Y., Demetrius Conger has spent the last three seasons honing his skills at Covenant Christian Academy in Marietta, Ga. Conger is a versatile athlete capable of playing forward and guard. As a junior, Conger averaged 18 points per game while leading the team to a 20-9 record and a National Association of Christian Athletes League Championship. Conger chose St. Bonaventure over Mercer University of the Atlantic Sun Conference.
With two seniors departing and Olean native Jake Houseknecht filling a scholarship next year after sitting out this season as a redshirt walk-on, Coach Schmidt and the rest of the Bonnies staff will have just one scholarship available when the regular signing period begins April 15, 2009.
The players signed by Crowley will have big shoes to fill with the departure of five seniors on this year's team.
Chelsea Bowker, a Salem, Ohio, native averaged 24.8 points last year to go with 12 rebounds. She is Crestview High School's all-time career scoring leader and a star in the classroom with a 4.0 GPA. Bowker chose the Bonnies over a plethora of Ivy League schools, including Harvard, Yale and Columbia, as well as the U.S. Naval Academy.
Alaina Walker, a Pomona, N.Y. native, has attended Albertus Magnus High School for the last two years after transferring from North Rockland High School after her sophomore year. Walker is ranked the 62nd best female point guard in the nation according to ESPN's scouting service and the 195th best player overall according to the Blue Star College Basketball Report.
Walker verbally committed at the end of her junior season and made it official by signing her national letter of intent during the early signing period. She was a fourth team all-state selection after her junior season in which she led Albertus Magnus to a 20-0 regular season record while averaging 22.3 points per game. Walker set a career high in points in her first game of her senior season, dropping 37 points in Albertus Magnus' 63-52 victory over Ursuline.
Forward Colleen Kiss is a native of Pittsburgh, Pa., and is a senior at Oakland Catholic School. Kiss was recognized as one of the best shooters in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette's season preview and is ranked the 229th best high school player in America according to the Blue Star College Basketball Report.
Crowley and the women's team are in a different situation than the men's squad, because the women are losing five seniors. Crowley will look to fill the remaining openings when the regular signing period opens up in April.
A native of Brooklyn, N.Y., Demetrius Conger has spent the last three seasons honing his skills at Covenant Christian Academy in Marietta, Ga. Conger is a versatile athlete capable of playing forward and guard. As a junior, Conger averaged 18 points per game while leading the team to a 20-9 record and a National Association of Christian Athletes League Championship. Conger chose St. Bonaventure over Mercer University of the Atlantic Sun Conference.
With two seniors departing and Olean native Jake Houseknecht filling a scholarship next year after sitting out this season as a redshirt walk-on, Coach Schmidt and the rest of the Bonnies staff will have just one scholarship available when the regular signing period begins April 15, 2009.
The players signed by Crowley will have big shoes to fill with the departure of five seniors on this year's team.
Chelsea Bowker, a Salem, Ohio, native averaged 24.8 points last year to go with 12 rebounds. She is Crestview High School's all-time career scoring leader and a star in the classroom with a 4.0 GPA. Bowker chose the Bonnies over a plethora of Ivy League schools, including Harvard, Yale and Columbia, as well as the U.S. Naval Academy.
Alaina Walker, a Pomona, N.Y. native, has attended Albertus Magnus High School for the last two years after transferring from North Rockland High School after her sophomore year. Walker is ranked the 62nd best female point guard in the nation according to ESPN's scouting service and the 195th best player overall according to the Blue Star College Basketball Report.
Walker verbally committed at the end of her junior season and made it official by signing her national letter of intent during the early signing period. She was a fourth team all-state selection after her junior season in which she led Albertus Magnus to a 20-0 regular season record while averaging 22.3 points per game. Walker set a career high in points in her first game of her senior season, dropping 37 points in Albertus Magnus' 63-52 victory over Ursuline.
Forward Colleen Kiss is a native of Pittsburgh, Pa., and is a senior at Oakland Catholic School. Kiss was recognized as one of the best shooters in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette's season preview and is ranked the 229th best high school player in America according to the Blue Star College Basketball Report.
Crowley and the women's team are in a different situation than the men's squad, because the women are losing five seniors. Crowley will look to fill the remaining openings when the regular signing period opens up in April.
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