APPLETON, Wis. -- Local player Carrie Van Groll leads a group of eight players who will join the Lawrence University women's basketball team this fall.
Van Groll, a 5-foot-9 guard, was a standout for Little Chute High School in three sports, basketball, volleyball and softball. Van Groll earned all-Valley 8 Conference and Post-Crescent all-area honors.
Van Groll is joined by two other guards Jenny Stoner of Regina Dominican in Wilmette, Ill., and Traci Pawlak of Fenwick in Oak Park, Ill. Four post players Whitewater's Ashlee Thatcher, Kenosha Bradford's Jessica Lux, Nicolet's Kelly Mulcahy and Wild Rose's Kari Jones, give the Vikings added size.
"Their personalities mesh perfectly with our team," Lawrence head coach Amy Proctor said of her incoming freshmen. "They add to our already good team cohesion."
The new players are marked by their leadership qualities (six of them are team captains), academic success and basketball abilities.
"It fills in some holes for us and adds to our depth," Proctor said.
"It helps secure the future of us. Our best players are going to be juniors and seniors next year so we won't be going through a rebuilding period. I'm thrilled with our returning group and this just adds to it."
Stoner is the point guard in the group and stands only 5-2. A very quick player, she earned all-Girls Chicago Athletic Conference and all-area honors. The Chicago Sun-Times named Stoner one of the area's top defensive players.
Pawlak, who finished fifth in the state's 3-point shooting contest this past season, plays the off-guard and comes from a perennial powerhouse prep program. A team captain, the 5-5 Pawlak helped her team to a second-place and third-place finishes in the state tournament the past two seasons.
Thatcher, a 5-9 forward, leads the group of post players joining the Vikings. She earned all-Southern Lakes Conference and all-Jefferson County honors and was her team's captain.
Lux, who stands 6-1, is looking to rebound from a knee injury suffered this past season. Lux, her team's captain, tore her anterior cruciate ligament midway through her senior year, but Proctor said she will be ready to go when the team opens practice this fall.
Mulcahy, a 6-0 forward, helped Nicolet to the North Shore Conference championship this past season. A three-sport athlete who also starred in volleyball and softball, Mulcahy earned all-conference accolades in basketball.
Jones, a 6-0 forward, is another team captain and earned all-Central Wisconsin Conference honors this past season for Wild Rose.
Rounding out the class is Kacey Anderson, a 5-9 guard/forward from Goodridge, Minn. She was her team's captain and earned all-North Borders Conference honors.
Lawrence finished 11-11 last season and took fifth place in the Midwest Conference. The Vikings won Midwest Conference championships under Proctor in 1990 and 1999.