Feb. 16, 2006
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – Incoming Notre Dame freshman guard Ashley Barlow (Indianapolis, Ind./Pike HS) has been selected to participate in the 15th annual Women’s Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) High School All-America Game, to be played Saturday, April 1 at 4:30 p.m. (ET) inside Matthews Arena on the Northeastern University campus in Boston. The game will be played in the host city of this year’s NCAA Women’s Final Four and the 25th annual WBCA national convention, with the high school contest being the opener of the “Night of All-Stars” showcase that also will feature the WBCA All-Star Challenge, a game pitting 20 of the nation’s top collegiate seniors who aren’t competing in the Final Four.
Barlow is one of 20 high school players who were chosen to take part in the game, and thus receives WBCA High School All-America honors for 2005-06. She also will be the fifth Notre Dame signee to appear in the contest, all in the past eight years, and second in as many seasons, following in the footsteps of current freshman guard Lindsay Schrader (Bartlett, Ill./Bartlett HS), who scored 10 points in the 2005 game that was played in Indianapolis. Other former Irish players who participated in the game include: NCAA career three-point percentage leader Alicia Ratay (1999 – eight points), Katy Flecky (2001 – three points) and current senior forward Courtney LaVere (2002 – 15 points).
The 5-foot-9 Barlow (who was ranked 24th nationally in the preseason by Full Court Press and 10th among shooting guards by All-Star Girls Report) has turned in perhaps the finest season of her high school career in 2005-06, ranking among the top 12 Class 4A players in the state in scoring (1st – 25.2 ppg.), rebounding (12th – 9.3 rpg.), assists (5th – 4.8 apg.), steals (11th – 3.9 spg.) and three-point field goals made (4th – 50). She also boasts a .446 field goal percentage, .360 three-point percentage, and .850 free throw percentage, along with a 1.33 assist/turnover ratio while leading Pike High School to a 20-5 record and its third sectional championship in the past five years. In last week’s three-game sectional run, Barlow averaged 31.7 points, 9.3 rebounds, 6.3 assists and 4.7 steals per game with a .527 field goal percentage and .458 three-point ratio. She capped off the stretch with a flourish in the sectional title game vs. Indianapolis Northwest on Feb. 11, ringing up 34 points (12-of-16 FG, 5-9 3FG), 11 rebounds, five assists and six steals as the Red Devils posted an 80-52 victory.
Barlow and her Pike High School teammates return to action Saturday at noon (ET) when they take on Hamilton Southeastern in the Southport Regional semifinals — Franklin Central and Lawrence North meet in the other regional semifinal. The winners will match up in the Southport Regional championship game that same day at 8 p.m. (ET) for a berth in the Class 4A state semifinals (semi-states), to be held the following week.
Incoming Notre Dame forward Danielle Ben-Tsuvulun (seen on the right in a Jan. 6 game vs. Fort Wayne South) is averaging 11.0 points and 9.2 rebounds per game this season while leading Fort Wayne’s Harding High School to its second consecutive Class 2A sectional title. (photo courtesy of Janelle Sou Roberts/The Journal Gazette).
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As it turns out, all three Notre Dame signees from the state of Indiana are still playing, as their teams recently won sectional crowns. In addition to Barlow, guard Melissa Lechlitner (Mishawaka, Ind./South Bend St. Joseph’s HS) has skillfully guided her Indians, the defending Class 3A state champions and currently ranked second in the state, to a 20-2 record and their fifth consecutive sectional title, supporting her No. 27 preseason ranking (eighth among point guards) by All-Star Girls Report. Lechlitner averaged 22 points in three sectional games for St. Joseph’s, including a 23-point effort (and perfect 14-of-14 foul shooting night) in the 61-51 championship game win vs. Plymouth. For the season, the 5-foot-7 Lechlitner ranks among the top 15 in the state in scoring at 20.5 points per game, and is closing in on the school record with 1,644 career points — current Valparaiso freshman Aimee Litka owns the mark with 1,697 points. Lechlitner and the Indians next hit the hardwood against Hammond at 10 a.m. (ET) Saturday in the Twin Lakes Regional, with either Andrean or Benton Central looming in a potential regional title game at 8 p.m. (ET).
Incoming Notre Dame center Erica Williamson has been named an all-Southwestern 4A Conference selection by the Charlotte Observer and will represent North Carolina in the 2006 Carolinas Classic All-Star Game after averaging 9.9 points, 8.2 rebounds and 4.0 blocks per game this season at Charlotte’s South Mecklenburg High School. (photo courtesy of Chris Keane/Charlotte Observer).
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Meanwhile, forward Danielle Ben-Tsuvulun (Fort Wayne, Ind./Harding HS) played a key role in guiding the Hawks to a 14-7 record, a No. 17 ranking in Class 2A, and their second consecutive sectional championship. Ben-Tsuvulun posted a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds in the title game against Woodlan, pacing Harding to a 55-41 victory. This season, the 6-foot-3 post is averaging 11.0 points per game and ranks eighth in Class 2A with 9.2 rebounds per night. Harding will face Prairie Heights Saturday at 10 a.m. (ET) in the South Adams regional, while Taylor and Manchester tangle in the other regional semifinal — the winners return later that day for the final at 8 p.m. (ET).
Besides leading their respective teams to sectional championships this season, Barlow, Lechlitner and Ben-Tsuvulun also have been tapped as three of the top 100 seniors in the state of Indiana by Hoosier Basketball Magazine. From that list, a core group of 40 players (plus 10 alternates) will be invited to attend the 24th HBM Top 40 Workout on March 12 at Ben Davis High School in Indianapolis. Officials from the Indianapolis Star, the sponsoring organization for the Indiana-Kentucky All-Star Series, will be on hand at the HBM Top 40 Workout to evaluate potential selections for the 2006 Indiana All-Star Team.
Not to be overlooked, Notre Dame’s fourth signee for the fall of 2006, center Erica Williamson (Charlotte, N.C./South Mecklenburg HS) is having a solid senior season as well. Following her family’s move from Rochester, N.Y., last summer, the 6-foot-4 Williamson is in her first season at South Meck, averaging 9.9 points, 8.2 rebounds and 4.0 blocks per game for the 22-2 Sabres, who are ranked second in North Carolina’s Class 4A. Most recently, she scored six points and grabbed nine rebounds in South Meck’s 54-45 win over Independence Wednesday night in the Southwestern 4A Conference Tournament semifinals. The Sabres will face Butler for the conference title Friday at 6:30 p.m. (ET) before state tournament play begins next week.
Williamson, who was an all-state selection in New York last year and was ranked 89th nationally by All-Star Girls Report, already has picked up two honors in her first prep season in North Carolina. The Charlotte Observer named her to its Southwestern 4A All-Conference Team, and she also was tapped to play for the North Carolina squad that will compete in the Carolinas Classic All-Star Game March 18 at Winthrop Coliseum in Rock Hill, S.C.
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