April 19, 2002
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – University of Notre Dame guard/forward Ericka Haney (Toledo, Ohio/Central Catholic HS) was chosen by the Detroit Shock in the third round (47th overall selection) of the 2002 Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) Draft, which was held Friday in Secaucus, N.J.
“I was so happy and really excited when I heard my name called,” Haney said. “It was even better to be picked by Detroit because it’s only 45 minutes away from my house. I’ve already had a lot of family and friends tell me they’re going to be coming up for the games.
“This is a great opportunity for me to bring my game to the next level,” she continued. “I know some of the other players up there and I think we have the chance to be a very exciting team this season.”
Haney becomes the fourth Irish player to be drafted by a WNBA team in the last two seasons, joining former teammates Ruth Riley (Miami Sol), Niele Ivey (Indiana Fever) and Kelley Siemon (Los Angeles Sparks). That quartet was the cornerstone of Notre Dame’s NCAA championship squad in 2001. In addition, former Irish guard and current Notre Dame assistant coach Coquese Washington plays for the four-time WNBA champion Houston Comets.
Haney averaged 7.6 ppg. and 4.6 rpg. in her Irish career, and ranks fifth in school history with 129 career games played. During her tenure with Notre Dame, the Irish appeared in four NCAA Tournaments, reaching the Sweet Sixteen twice and winning the program’s first-ever national championship. Notre Dame also put together the 10th-longest home court winning streak in NCAA history, winning 51 consecutive games from 1998-2002, and jumped into the top 10 in the nation in attendance, placing eighth this year with a school-record average of 7,825 fans per game.
The BIG EAST Conference was well-represented in Friday’s WNBA Draft, as six league players were selected. In addition to Haney, Connecticut standouts Sue Bird (Seattle Storm), Swin Cash (Detroit Shock), Asjha Jones (Washington Mystics) and Tamika Williams (Minnesota Lynx), along with Rutgers product Davalyn Cunningham (Orlando Miracle) were chosen to join the professional ranks.
— ND —