May 7, 2002

2002-03 Otahkian Basketball Roster
First Five Signees of Spring Signing Period
Yashika Sidbury is Sixth Recruit of Signing Period
Natasha Starkes Makes it Seven

CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. - Southeast Missouri State women's basketball coach B.J. Smith announced the signing of an eighth player to a national letter of intent during the Spring signing period. Tiffanne Ryan, a senior at Westmoore High School in Oklahoma City, Okla., will join the Otahkian basketball team for the 2002-03 season.

Ryan, a 5'8 combination guard, was a member of the Oklahoma 6A State Championship (the biggest classification in the state) basketball team last season at Westmoore that finished 26-2 under head coach Gary Harper. With the Jaguars, Ryan averaged 3.0 points, 3.0 assists and 2.0 steals per game while shooting 56.0% from the field and having a 2:1 assist-to-turnover ratio, while coming off the bench as the team's defensive stopper. Ryan was an all-conference honorable mention selection and Jim Thorpe All-Star selection besides being an outstanding student in the classroom. Her team was ranked as high as fifth in the country in the Fox Fabulous 50 poll and seventh in the USA Today Super 25 poll, where they finished the year 17th.

Prior to her senior season, Ryan played three seasons of basketball at Little Axe High School in Norman, Okla., for head coach Carl Treat. Ryan averaged over 10 points per game each season at Little Axe, including 11.7 points during her junior year when her team finished 21-4 and were conference champions. Ryan was a three-time all-conference selection at Little Axe while playing point guard.

"Tiffanne is a very talented player," said coach B.J. Smith. "And her step up from high school to college probably will not be as big as other players because she has played at such a high level in high school. She is a good player and has a chance to be an even better player down the road for us. She is a one-two guard, and for our style of play, we need six to eight of those type of players that fit into that category."

Ryan, a native of Oklahoma City, Okla., joins Sarah Costello, Louise McGoldrick, Brandi Russia, Miah Lee Shelford, Yashika Sidbury, Carina Souza and Natasha Starkes as the other signees next season for Southeast Missouri and first-year head coach B.J. Smith.

Ryan is the first high school senior to sign with Southeast this Spring, the other seven players are all junior college transfers. Coach Smith expects to sign two more players before the end of the signing period.