May 26, 2011

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COLLEGE PARK, Md. - Katie Rutan, a 5-foot-8 shooting guard from Xavier, is transferring to the University of Maryland head coach Brenda Frese announced Thursday. Rutan played two seasons at Xavier, where she earned a reputation as one of the better perimeter shooters in the country.

Combining her freshman and sophomore seasons, she shot nearly 40 percent from beyond the 3-point line at Xavier. She averaged nearly 8.0 points per game as a Musketeer and was an Atlantic-10 All-Rookie Team selection as a freshman.

"Katie has a chance to bring something to our team that will fill a need - a pure shooter," Frese said. "She's the kind of player who loves to be in the gym getting shots up and always thinks she's going to make her next one. I called both current Xavier coach Amy Waugh and former Xavier coach Kevin McGuff to make sure we did our background check, and they both had good things to say about Katie. She's a good student and has a big personality, so I think she's going to fit in very well."

Per NCAA rules, Rutan will practice, but not play during the 2011-12 season. She will then be a redshirt junior in the 2012-13 season.

"Sitting out a year will always try your patience, but the great part is that she'll be working with our basketball performance coach Kyle Tarp during that time. Ideally, when she gets to play for us, she'll be in the best shape of her life," Frese said.

Rutan has two seasons of NCAA Tournament experience with Xavier. In 2010-11, she was the first player off the bench as a sophomore, averaging 24.8 minutes per game over 26 contests. She nailed seven 3-pointers in the first half of Xavier's 85-76 win over Michigan. She broke the Xavier single-season freshman record for threes made in a season with 85.

Rutan, a native of Ambler, Pa., is the daughter of Frank and Kerry Rutan and has a brother named Alex. She plans on entering Maryland's highly regarded Robert H. Smith School of Business.