EMORY, Va. – The Emory & Henry College Women's Basketball Team under second-year Head Coach Anne Crutchfield '89 is pleased to announce its recruiting class for 2015. This group of 12 boasts numerous all-state honors and state championships and includes a pair of transfers.

"We are absolutely thrilled to have an incredibly strong recruiting class that includes ten players who live within a two-hour radius of Emory & Henry," said Crutchfield. "We are absolutely committed to rebuilding our program to a championship level and accomplishing this goal by attracting the best players from our region."

Highlighting this year's freshman class is a pair of Southwest Virginia standouts in Taylor Blevins (Abingdon, Va.) and Hannah Cox (Lebanon, Va.). Both were selected as all-state players during their junior and senior seasons and will be playing in the Virginia High School Coaches Association All-Star game on Monday evening, representing the west.

Blevins, Abingdon High School's all-time leading scorer with 1,449 points, was twice named the Conference 32 Player of the Year, 3A West All-Region First Team, VHSL 3A All-State First Team and VHSCA All-State First Team. As a senior, she was the 3A West Region Player of the Year and a nominee for the Bristol Herald Courier's prestigious Gene "Pappy" Thompson Award.

Cox, a graduate of Lebanon High School, broke the single-game scoring records with 49 points this past January and finished her career with the most points in Pioneer basketball history. She holds many Tournament MVP honors and won the Virginia All-Star game and Virginia/Tennessee All-Star game three-point contests.

"Taylor and Hannah will make an immediate impact on Emory & Henry basketball and in the ODAC and we could not be happier to have them join our Wasp family," added Crutchfield. "Taylor is such a versatile player in that she has the ability to play on the wing or in the paint. She makes great decisions on the floor and has a tremendous work ethic. Hannah is the epitome of grit and determination. She certainly has the ability to score and her competitive spirit is contagious."

The New River and Roanoke Valleys have been good to the Wasps this year as well in Jada Penn (Radford, Va.) of Radford High School, Hunter Stallard (Christiansburg, Va.) of Christiansburg High School, Myesha Logan (Roanoke, Va.) and Courtney Martin (Martinsville, Va.) both of William Fleming High School. Kelly King (Bent Mountain, Va./Hidden Valley HS) will transfer to E&H after playing her freshman season at Virginia Western Community College.

Rounding out the players from the Commonwealth are Ally Pollard (Chesterfield, Va.) and Jessica Rivas (Lawrenceville, Va.). Pollard won a pair of state titles at Cosby High School while Rivas was a Virginia Independent Schools Athletic Association all-state honoree.

Also a part of Emory & Henry's recruiting class are Tessa Johnston (High Point, N.C.) and Laken Blackburn (Wilkesboro, N.C.). Johnson won three North Carolina State Championships during her time at Bishop McGuinness High School. Blackburn and the Wilkes Central High School team claimed a state title this past winter with Blackburn earning MVP honors.

"We have a strong nucleus of players returning from last year's team including (2015 ODAC Rookie of the Year) Chloe Harris (Bristol, Va.)," commented Crutchfield. "The combination of our returners and new players should give us tremendous depth and athleticism for this season and seasons to come."

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2015 Emory & Henry Women's Basketball Recruits

-photo courtesy of Keith Lucas/Sideline Media