Maryland Signs Shay Doron And Kalika France
11/19/2002 7:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Nov. 19, 2002
COLLEGE PARK, Md. - The University of Maryland women's basketball team released the intent of two early signees today, announcing Shay Doron and Kalika France's intent to play for the Terps next season. The pair Top 25 recruits are the first set of early signees under first-year Terrapin head coach Brenda Frese.
"We are extremely excited about Shay and Kalika's desire to join our Terrapin family next season," said Frese. "Together they will be an integral part of our efforts to bring the Maryland program back to the nation's elite level."
Doron has been a standout at Christ the King High School in New York City, averaging 17.1 points per game and tallying over six steals per contest. She was the third-ranked guard by the All Star Girls' Report and listed in the USA Today Super 25 for high school girls basketball. Doron was also a fifth team All-American on Street & Smith's.
"We are ecstatic to get a player of Shay's calibur to join our Terrapin family.... She is a versatile guard that can break down defenses in a variety of ways but still feels comfortable enough to run the point when needed. Her experience with the Israeli National Team helped her develop a leadership style that is mature beyond her years and we expect to see her make an immediate impact in our backcourt next season. Having only played in the United States for two years, we think Shay has only scratched the surface of her abilities on the basketball court. She is going to be an exciting player to watch during her career at Maryland."
The top player in Maryland out of Bishop McNamara, France averaged 12.6 points per game and 4.7 assists per game last season, she was ranked the No. 6 guard in the class of 2003 by the All-Star Girls Report. A third team All-American by Street & Smith, she was selected as one of 48 high school players to participate in the Olympic Festival Games in Colorado Springs, Colo., this past spring.
"Kalika's commitment brings us instant credibility in the state of Maryland, and helps us send a message about how serious we are about keeping the best local talent in-state," said Frese. "Like Juan Dixon did for the men's program, we have high hopes that Kalika will be one of the players that fans remember for making the commitment to stay home and helping return Maryland women's basketball back to national prominence.Kalika is a lightning-quick guard that can shoot the three or break you down off the dribble. She will bring a completely different dimension to our back court next season. Kalika's experience over the summer with USA Basketball only solidified her reputation as one of the premier guards in the country, and we are excited to have her join our program."
