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@SunDevilWBB Announces 2018 Signing Class

@SunDevilWBB Announces 2018 Signing Class@SunDevilWBB Announces 2018 Signing Class
TEMPE, Ariz. – Arizona State University head women's basketball coach Charli Turner Thorne today announced that student-athletes Taya Hanson, Jamie Loera and Jayde Van Hyfte have signed national letters of intent to join the Sun Devil women's basketball program.
 
"Our program feels extremely blessed Jamie, Jayde and Taya will be joining our Sun Devil family," Turner Thorne said. "All three of these players come from wonderful families who have instilled the work ethic and leadership that have helped make them three of the best players in the 2018 class."
 
Loera, a 5-9 guard, will be joining the Sun Devils from Moses Lake, Washington, where last season she averaged 17.5 points, 6.2 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 3.3 steals per game in helping lead her Moses Lake High School team to a fifth-place finish in the state tournament. Loera, who was named the Columbia Basin Big Nine co-Player of the Year in addition to earning AP Class 4A All-State honorable mention honors in 2017, was instrumental in helping the Chiefs to top-five state finishes in 2015 (fifth) and 2016 (fourth). Included among her single-game highlights was a career-high, 28-point effort in last season's district championship game. A member of the Spokane Stars club team, Loera has also garnered All-League First-Team honors twice and All-State Tournament Second-Team notice. She entered the 2017-18 academic year with a 3.9 GPA.
 
"Jamie comes from a family of athletes – her mom and both older sisters are/were Division I college basketball players," Turner Thorne said. "Jamie is a great 3-point shooter, exceptional passer and has outstanding instincts on both ends of the floor. Jamie is smart, tough and knows how to win. She truly has the drive and love of the game to be a top basketball guard in the Pac-12."
 
Added Spokane Stars head coach Ron Adams, "Jamie is one of the best all-around guards that I have ever coached – and I have been coaching for 37 years. She will be successful and will be a tremendous college player because she has no weaknesses in her game. ASU is getting a great player and even better person."
 
A 5-10 guard who is ranked No. 18 at her position by ESPN.com, Hanson will be coming to ASU from Kelowna, British Columbia, where she has been a contributor on the Canadian National Team since 2015. Hanson, who has 14 games of international experience, played on both the Cadette National Team who placed seventh at FIBA World Championships in Zaragoza, Spain in 2016 and the CWNT that won its first gold medal at the 2015 FIBA Americas. Most recently Hanson was named an alternate for the U19 Junior National Team. Earlier this year Hanson earned First-Team All-Star honors from the Ontario Scholastic Basketball Association while competing for TRC Academy. In 2016 Hanson averaged 24 points, seven rebounds, five steals and two assists per game in helping lead her Kelowna High School team to an Okanagan Valley AAA basketball championship. As a freshman in 2015 Hanson was named a first-team all-star and the top defensive  player after helping guide Kelowna to a bronze medal at provincials.
 
"Taya is an unbelievable talent who will have a tremendous impact on our program and will undoubtedly be an eventual Olympian for her country," Turner Thorne said. "Her passion, determination, and intellect combined with her skill, athleticism and size are exceptional. Taya is both a versatile scorer and playmaker and will be able to play all three guard positions for us. We love her hunger to be the best at everything she does.  She is also an excellent student and leader within her community."
 
Added Canadian Junior National Team Assistant Coach Claire Meadows, "I have had the absolute pleasure of working with Taya over the past couple of years. Taya is a gym rat and has worked tirelessly at her game. She is determined and relentless in her approach to training. She provides all the intangibles as a player - she is skilled offensively, an excellent defender, a great teammate and excels academically. ASU is getting an outstanding individual and an ambassador for the game."
 
A versatile, 6-1 post, Van Hyfte, who hails from Annawan, Illinois, becomes the most recent student-athlete to join Turner Thorne's program from the state of Illinois as she follows in the footsteps of recent standouts Sophie Brunner (Freeport, Illinois) and Katie Hempen (Highland, Illinois). Van Hyfte is coming off an outstanding junior campaign in which she was named IBCA Class 1A/2A first team all-state, Illinois AP Class 1A first team all-state, all-Lincoln Trail first team in addition to being a repeat all-Western Illinois selection as she helped Annawan capture the 1A state title. Van Hyfte, who averaged 23.5 points, 12.0 rebounds and 3.0 steals last season, posted double-doubles in 56 of her first 57 games and had accumulated nearly 1,200 career points before a knee injury prematurely ended her sophomore season. Van Hyfte, who also competes for Illinois Elite, was a unanimous AP All-State honoree in 2017 after earning second-team recognition in 2015 and 2016.
 
"Jayde may come from a small town, but she is a big-time basketball player who can do it all," Turner Thorne said. "She can play inside and out and, in addition to being a prolific scorer, she is smart and does the little things it takes to win. Her game is different than Sophie Brunner's but she is similar in that she has a knack for knowing how to take over games and hit winning shots. Jayde is an outstanding student who also has high standards with everything she does. There is great athletic tradition in the Van Hyfte family, too, as both her parents and two older sisters are/were Division I athletes."
 
Added Illinois Elite coach Tom Hohenadel, "Jayde's character is what sets her apart. In addition to being an outstanding basketball player she is mature and grounded beyond her years and is a natural leader. Her fine parents, Ted and Val, have raised her the same way I was raised: integrity matters. I am blessed to have been her coach for three years. Charli is the best. She is getting an elite player and incredible family joining her own Sun Devil family."
 
The Sun Devils, who open the 2017-18 season this Sunday (2 p.m.) at home vs. UTSA, are coming off their fourth consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance as they advanced to the second round of NCAAs where they nearly upset eventual national champion South Carolina on its home floor after taking a one-point lead into the game's final minute. Turner Thorne, who posted her 400th win as ASU's head coach in March, will return for her 21st season and will lead a squad that will look to match the school record of five consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances and five straight 20-win seasons.
 
Season tickets for the 2017-18 campaign start at just $59. Click here for more information or call 480-727-0000.