STORY & PHOTOS BY GLENN NELSON
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Next week is judgment week for 2007 prospects because the early signing period for basketball begins on Wednesday, Nov. 8. This of course is an artificial deadline because
there is a late signing period that lasts from April 11 to May 16, 2007. However, there is the perception, right or wrong, that any prospect worth her salt will sign next week.
The perception is pretty strong because, as of this writing, 90 of the HoopGurlz National Hot 100 already have pledged to colleges.
Amy Jaeschke |
At least four of the 10 remaining Hot 100 uncommitted prospects will not sign early - No. 30 Lykendra Johnson of River Forest, Ill.; No. 43 Danielle Adams of Lee Summit,
Mo.; No. 57 Chimere Jordan of Gray, Ga., and No. 91 Megan Jackson of Manchester, N.H. (see Rim Shots for more). A fifth, No. 29 Amy Jaeschke of Wilmette, Ill., indicated to
us during the fall evaluation period that she may not have her choice in time for the early period. That will be especially true if she is undergoing the application process for
Stanford.
The two top uncommitted prospects - No. 5 Vicki Baugh of Sacramento, Calif., and No. 13 Melissa Jones of Thornton, Colo. - are inching closer to decisions.
After three unofficial visits to Cal, Baugh is making an official visit in Berkeley, Calif., this weekend. The 6-foot-4 wing's final five also includes LSU, Oklahoma, Tennessee and
UCLA. She expects to decide by Wednesday.
Jones, who exploded onto the scene as a big, strong scoring guard last summer, has eliminated Oregon and Washington, according to sources, after making official visits to
each last month. That leaves Baylor and Colorado State. Jones also has said she will decide by the early signing period.
Paris Johnson of San Diego, Calif., the No. 42 prospect, has kind of gotten lost in the shuffle after suffering a broken left leg and missing the entire summer circuit. However,
Johnson told HoopGurlz that she will announce her commitment on Tuesday, Nov. 7. She confirmed that she will choose from among Baylor, Miami, San Diego State and Texas
Christian.
Of all the uncommitteds, of course, Baugh is the one who will have the biggest impact on the mythical, recruiting national championship. And Baylor, which has been quiet up
to now, can make a late bid by landing both Johnson and Jones.
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Rim Shots
Danielle Adams, the sweet-shooting and deft ballhandling big forward from Lee Summit, Mo., will not be signing during the early period. Scheduling conflicts have prevented
her from making her official visits. The No. 53 prospect in the HoopGurlz National Hot 100, Adams is considering Arkansas, Iowa State, Kansas, Kansas State, LSU and 
Danielle
Adams |
Missouri. "With the high-school season starting, getting the visits in will be harder," said Harrel Johnson, her Kansas City Keys club team coach. "She's just going to wait until the season is over." ... Megan Jackson, the No. 91 prospect who is from Manchester, N.H., missed the summer circuit after suffering a severe ankle injury and will focus on getting back to 100 percent, physically, and sign during the late period, according to her club coach, Kara Leary of the New England Crusaders. Jackson has Massachusetts, Pitt and St. John's on her list for now and will perform more due diigence on schools this winter. ... Crusader teammates Valerie Avebe of Tilton, N.H.; Alyssa Jann of Westford, Mass.; Jen Guerekis of New Hampton, N.H., and Kyara Weekes of Cambridge, Mass., have committed. Avebe, a 6-2 forward, has verbaled to Vermont, while Jann, a 6-1 shooter, is headed to Colgate. Weekes has committed to Fordham and Guerekis is going to St Anselms, a Division II school. ... Georgia Follmer, a three-star forward-center from Santa Margarita, Calif., has committed to Indiana. Follmer, who is 6-4, was first-team All-CIF and All-Sierra League. ... Sharp-shooter Emily Nichols, a 5-10 guard from Riverside, Calif., has committed to San Jose State. ... Shakara Jones, a 6-2 forward from St. Charles, Mo., committed to Missouri, where her father, Ron, also played. Jones, who averaged 25.2 points during her junior season, also considered Baylor, Illinois, St. Louis and Tennessee. ... Megan Shoniker, a 5-8 guard from
Rochester, N.Y., has committed to Rhode Island. Shoniker, an all-state selection by the NYSSWA who averaged 25 points for Greece Arcadia, also took official visits to
Binghamton, Bucknell and St. Bonaventure. ... Jackie Ward, a 5-8, first-team all-state guard from Pittsford, N.Y., has verbaled to Binghamton. ... DeAngela Sword, a 5-8 2008
prospect out of Montgomery, Ala., has been offered by Auburn and Louisiana Tech.
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Glenn Nelson is the publisher of HoopGurlz.com and the editor-in-chief of Scout Media (www.Scout.com), an online sports network and magazine-publishing company and subsidiary of Fox Interactive Media. Glenn also founded and coached
the Dragons and Northwest HoopGurlz select girls basketball teams. He previously was a longtime, national-award-winning basketball columnist and writer for The Seattle
Times. His work also has appeared in several national magazines and books. He is co-author of "Rising Stars: The Ten Best Players in the NBA" (Rosen Publishing, 2002). He
can be reached at hoopgurlz@comcast.net.
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