Nov. 15, 2001
SANTA CLARA, Calif. - Santa Clara University women's basketball head coach Chris Denker announced the signing of two high school seniors to National Letters of Intent. Tori Markey of Orinda, and Asha Wilkerson of Portland, Ore., will be part of the Bronco class of 2006.
Markey, a highly-recruited 6-3 post from Miramonte High School, is a talented basketball player who can play with her back to the basket. She also runs the floor extremely well and averaged 18 points and 12 rebounds last season while being selected to the All-State underclass team. Her father Michael is a Santa Clara graduate.
"Many recruiting services have ranked Tori as a high as the 20th best post in the country," Denker said. "She will not only bring some height to our team in blocking shots, but she's a good athlete and can really run the court well, which is going to fit our system nicely. Tori's also pretty versatile offensively and again, I think she'll be a good defender. She's going to be a really good addition to our program and we're excited about her."
Wilkerson, a 6-2 post player from Jesuit High School, is an ambidextrous shooter that has good range out to 17 feet. As a junior she led Jesuit to a 20-4 record, finishing sixth in the state tournament. She earned third team All-Metro honors after a year in which she averaged 12 points, eight rebounds, three assists, two steals and four blocked shots per game. She also set a Lake Oswego Tournament record, recording a triple-double with 24 points, 12 blocks and 10 rebounds. Her grandfather, Sam Bailey, was a civil rights leader while her mother became the first African-American female to enter undergraduate school at the University of Mississippi.
"Asha is a very skilled post player with a good frame that will stand up in the college game," Denker said. "She runs the court well and has very good hands, so offensively, her skill level is going to lend well to our team. Defensively, with her size and strength, I think she'll be able to adapt to the college game quite well. She also comes from a winning program and is a natural leader and could potentially be a team captain for us someday."
The Broncos open the regular season on Saturday, Nov. 17, against the University of the Utah at the Golden Gopher Basketball Classic, hosted by the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis. The home opener will take place Tuesday, Nov. 27, a 6 p.m. start against San Jose State.
Season and individual game tickets are on sale for the 2001-2002 women's basketball seasons through the Santa Clara Athletic Ticket Office by calling 408-554-4660 or by clicking here. Several single game, season, group, team and family plans are available. For a seating map of the newly-renovated Leavey Center, click here.