University of Wisconsin-Parkside women's basketball coach Jenny Kenesie has announced the signing of six highly-regarded high school seniors, who will join the Ranger program in the fall of 2009.
Kelley Hendrick (Naperville, Ill./Naperville Central HS), Karisa Laskowski (Pulaski, Wis./Pulaski HS), Cheryl Leyns (Muskego, Wis./Martin Luther HS), Carly Prokup (Spring Valley, Ill./Hall HS), Kristen Ruchti (Brodhead, Wis./Brodhead HS), and Kiah Simon (Algoma, Wis./Algoma HS) all signed National Letters of Intent to attend UW-Parkside in 2009.
“I am very excited about the commitment from all of these young ladies,” said Kenesie. “We are very lucky to have this elite group of student-athletes as a part of our program and its future. Each and every one of them is committed to being the best on the floor and in the classroom, along with having strong character and work ethics.”
Kelley Hendrick averaged 13.3 points, 5.0 assists, and 3.7 steals last season in leading Coach Andy Nussbaum's Redhawks to a 23-10 record and the school's second regional championship in three years. Last year, the 5'6” guard was named Fourth Team All-State by the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association and is a two-time unanimous All-DuPage Valley Conference selection.
“Kelly has a very tough mentality which is essential playing the point guard position,” said Kenesie. “She has great ability as a leader on the court and I have no doubt that she will develop into a great point guard at this level. She also has a lot of experience playing at an elite high school and AAU program which will prepare her for the tough GLVC.”
A year ago, Hendrick was named to the Daily Herald (Suburban Chicago) All-Area Team and the Naperville Sun Player of the Year. Fifth on the Naperville Central scoring list, Hendrick has also received academic all-conference mention each year of high school.
Karisa Laskowski enters her senior season coming off a First Team All-Conference selection in the highly competitive Fox River Classic Conference. The Second Team All-Area choice by the Green Bay Press Gazette averaged 10.4 points and 5.6 rebounds for Coach Jim Doell.
“Karisa has great athletic ability and I truly believe her best basketball is ahead of her,” said Kenesie. “She is a solid all-around player who will fit our system very well. Karisa will be a great addition to our backcourt and I look forward to her development as a collegiate player.”
The 5'10” forward is ranked 28th on Wisconsin Women's Basketball Yearbook's (WWBY) top seniors list. She is the first Pulaski girls' basketball player to sign with a school since 1998. Laskowski is a member of the National Honor Society, carries a 4.0 grade point average, and is ranked number one in her class.
Cheryl Leyns is a two-time All-Midwest Classic Conference selection for Coach Michael Hackbarth at Martin Luther High School in Greendale, Wis. A 5'11” forward, Leyns averaged 14.2 points and 12.0 rebounds as a junior, her second straight season averaging a double-double. She is currently second in school history in rebounds and seventh in scoring. The WWBY ranks her as the state's 34th best senior.
“Cheryl has really developed into a strong player in the past year,” said Kenesie. “Playing with the Wisconsin Playground AAU Program helped her develop as a player and allowed her to play at a higher level throughout the summer. She too has her best basketball in front of her with her athletic talent and her ability to rebound with the best of them.”
Leyns enjoyed a breakout summer on the AAU circuit for the Wisconsin Playground Program being named to a US Junior National All-Star Team in Ohio as well as placing third at the Nike Showcase in Chicago. She also has a perfect 4.0 GPA and is a member of the National Honor Society.
Carly Prokup helped lead Spring Valley Hall High School and Coach Pat Cinotte to a North Central Illinois Conference title and regional championship a year ago. The 5'9” guard was an Honorable Mention All-State selection by the Illinois Basketball Service and First Team All-Conference pick after averaging 11.0 points and 8.1 rebounds per game.
“Carly is a solid perimeter defender with great athleticism and strong shooting ability,” said Kenesie. “We needed to add someone to this class whose strength is shooting and I think Carly can bring that. She is a great all-around guard and I know she will be a great asset to our program.”
Prokup was named to the Bureau County Republican and News Tribune All-Area first teams after making the second team in each publication as a sophomore. She is a three-sport All-Academic Team honoree and high honor student. Prokup teamed with Hendrick in the summer for the Illinois Lady Lightning AAU program.
Kristen Ruchti is the reigning Rock Valley Conference Player of the Year after averaging 13.6 points and 8.4 rebounds as a junior for Coach Chris Medenwaldt. She is a three-time all-conference selection (twice First Team) and is ranked as the 27th best senior in the state by the WWBY.
“I am ecstatic to have someone with Kristin's ability as a part of our program,” said Kenesie. “She has great size in the post and is extremely athletic. She will add a lot to our frontcourt and I think she will work well with our current post players as well as Kiah (Simon). She had an unbelievable summer for Wisconsin Hoops Select (AAU) and we are extremely happy that she has decided to join our program.”
The 6'2” post player was named to the Beloit News, Monroe Times, and Wisconsin State Journal All-Area Teams after leading the Rock Valley Conference in scoring a year ago. Rutchi has nine varsity letters thus far, including all-state mention in softball and multiple all-conference selections in volleyball. She led the Cardinals to the WIAA State Volleyball Tournament this fall.
Kiah Simon will join Ruchti in the Ranger frontcourt after leading the Packerland Conference in both scoring and rebounding a year ago. She averaged 16.2 points, 9.1 rebounds, and 2.9 steals in helping Algoma and Coach Mark Zastrow to their second straight conference title and a regional championship. The 6'1” post player, who is ranked as the 25th best senior by the WWBY was named First Team All-Conference last season after being a second-team choice her first two years. Simon has twice been named to the Green Bay Press Gazette All-Area Second Team.
“Kiah is similar to Kristin in that she brings size and athleticism to our frontcourt,” said Kenesie. “We have been watching Kiah since the summer before her junior year and she has already developed so much in that time. She has a great work ethic and will do whatever it takes to get better. Kiah will have great success at this level and I look forward to watching her grow into a great collegiate basketball player.”
An AAU teammate of Laskowski with the Legends Basketball Program, Simon begins 2008 having scored 970 points in her varsity career. She has accumulated 11 varsity letters in her career including a medalist performance in the Triple Jump at the WIAA State Track Meet in June. Simon's signing comes over a year after her initial verbal commitment to the program in November of 2007; the earliest commitment in Parkside history.
“Kiah also had a great AAU performance this past summer and received a lot of interest from Division 1 schools,” added Kenesie. “But she stayed loyal to her commitment to Parkside and we respect her greatly for that. She is a young lady of great character and we are honored to have her as part of our program.”
“This group of young ladies will have a lot of success at UW-Parkside,” continued Kenesie. “They all maintain a strong work ethic that will help develop them into strong collegiate players. Overall, I think this may be the most complete recruiting class from top-to-bottom that we have had in my tenure at Parkside. Not only are they great basketball players, but they are great young ladies and great students. I can't express how excited I am about the future of UW-Parkside basketball.”
