Staff Report
The UNM men's and women's basketball programs and the baseball and softball programs recently announced their signings for the fall.
Men's basketball head coach Ritchie McKay signed three players for next year, as did women's head coach Don Flanagan.
First-year softball coach Kim Newbern signed three players.
Women's Basketball
The UNM women's basketball signed Julie Briody, a six-foot guard/forward from Lynnville, Ind., Katie Montgomery, a 5-foot-10-inch guard from Lincoln, Neb., and Timiyin E-Nunu, a 5-foot-11-inch forward from Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., all signed national letters of intent for the 2003-2004 season.
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In July, Briody was named an Adidas All American. The past two summers, she led her AAU team to an 85-14 record, averaging 27.4 points-per-game and 7.3 rebounds-per-game.
Montgomery, one of Nebraska's the top-five women's high school basketball players, averaged 17.5 ppg, 3.2 rpg and 4.5 assists-per-game.
A Class B all-state first team member, Montgomery helped lead St. Pius High School to a 23-2 record last year.
E-Nunu, who was recruited by St. Mary's College (Calif.), Pepperdine University and the University of California at Los Angeles, averaged about eight points, 12 rebounds and five blocked shots last season for at Etiwanda High School.
Men's Basketball
The men's basketball team signed three players to letters of intent - Justin Benson, a 6-foot-8-inch forward from Houston, Texas, Lenny Miles, a six-foot guard from Commerce City, Colo. and Ryan Wall, a six-foot guard from Coppell, Texas.
Benson, who is rated the country's 46th best player by RivalsHoops.com and the 13th best power forward by that site, averaged 31 points, 11 rebounds and three blocks as a junior at Houston's Gulf Shores Academy in Houston.
Miles, who earned preseason BlueChip All-American honors in football, averaged 17.5 points, 5.6 rebounds and 3.3 assists as a junior at Adams City High School.
Wall, a two-time district MVP and BCI All-American, plays for the top-ranked prep team in Texas Class 5A. He averaged 14 points, six assists and four steals in his junior year.
Softball
The UNM softball team signed three players for the 2003-2004 season -Ryanne Holly Hodgins, from Burbank, Calif., Irene Weik, from Oak Park, Ill., and Robyn Hutson, from Suisun, Calif.
Hodgins, a 5-foot-7-inch outfielder, hit .464 with a .567 on-base percentage as a junior at Burbank's John Burroughs High School.
Weik, a 5-foot-6-inch pitcher/utility player, went 16-2 last season and had an ERA of 0.51 for Oak Park River Forest High School in Oak Park, Ill. She also had a 17-2 record on her summer team and went to Nationals in 2000, 2001 and 2002.
Hutson, a 5-foot-7-inch catcher from Suisun, Calif., played summer ball for the Running Rebels Gold team.
Baseball head coach Rich Alday signed the largest recruiting class of the four sports, inking 13 players.
Baseball
The UNM baseball team received 14 letters for the 2003-04 season - including two signees from Albuquerque.
The Lobos signed high school players Tim Grady, Matt Foote, Chad Itokazu, Jesse Kibler Bryant Dickens, Danny Ray Herrera, Jason Russell, Daniel Stovall, Josh Cordova, Christopher Dabbs and junior college transfers Lucas Smith, Mike Smith and Karsten Gaarder.
Grady, a 6-foot-2-inch third baseman from Cibola High School, batted .460 with four home runs and 21 runs-batted-in in his junior year. The 180-pound right-hander joins brother Jeff Grady, a catcher on the UNM squad. Foote, a 6-foot-1-inch second baseman from Albuquerque Academy, posted a .549 batting average in his junior year at the Albuquerque Academy. The 160-pounder was an All-District selection in both his sophomore and junior years. Itokazu, a 5-foot-7-inch shortstop from Pearl City (Hawaii) High School hit .375 his junior year. The 135-pound Itokazu also pitched in American Legion play.
Kibler, a six-foot pitcher/third baseman from Tucson, Ariz., MountainView High School, is currently playing baseball for the Arizona Diamondbacks scout team. As a high school junior, the 170-pound Kibler pitched 29.1 innings, posting a 3.61 ERA with 34 strikeouts.
Dickens, a 6-foot-6-inch pitcher from Tucson's Sabino High School, pitched 54 innings and surrendered only seven earned runs to lead the Sabino pitching staff with a 0.90 ERA. The 190-pound right-hander also played first base and was a DH.
Herrera, a 5-foot-9-inch pitcher from Permian High School in Odessa, Texas, was first team all-district as a junior. The 155-pounder posted a 12-2 record. He also played in Farmington, N.M.'s Connie Mack World Series with the Farmington Sky Sox.
Russell, a six-foot second baseman from Midland (Texas) High School, hit .380 (38-100) as a junior, adding two home runs and 32 RBI's for the Bulldogs. The 185-pounder was named to the Texas SportsWriter's Association All-State Third Team last year.
Stovall, a first baseman/third baseman also from Midland High, was a third team selection to the Texas SportsWriter's Association All-State team. The 195-pounder hit .429 (54-126) with 10 home runs and 57 RBI as a junior and was recruited by the University of Miami, Tulane University and Texas Tech University.
Cordova, a 6-foot-1-inch catcher from El Paso's Hanks High School, hit .442 with two home runs and 29 RBI in summer competition. The 195-pounder was an All-District selection in both his sophomore and junior years.
Dabbs, a pitcher/outfielder from Spring Branch, Texas, was recruited as a defensive end by several Big 12 schools but chose football. The All-District pitcher went 10-2 with a 1.66 ERA for Smithson Valley High School.
Transfer Lucas Smith, a 5-foot-11-inch pitcher transferring from Vernon Junior College in Texas, was named to the Texas-New Mexico Junior College All Star team in September. The 180-pound left-hander is originally from Baytown, Texas.
Mike Smith, a six-foot pitcher transferring from El Paso Community College, was one of two pitchers at E.P.C.C. to have go undefeated last season (4-0). The 180-pound left-hander played for El Paso's Coronado High School.
Gaarder, a six-foot pitcher transferring from Howard (Texas) Junior College, logged six complete games and had a team-high 69 2/3 innings pitched. The 185-pounder was recently named to the Texas-New Mexico Junior College Coaches Association All-Star Team.
