Tuesday, November 20, 2018

Discovery Canyon's Ashten Prechtel inks deal with Stanford

Danny Summers, gazette.com, November 19, 2018

Ashten Prechtel made it official Nov. 14 when she signed her national letter of intent to play basketball for Stanford, ranked seventh in the nation.

The family-like ceremony took place in the Discovery Canyon High School auxiliary gymnasium and included family, friends, classmates and others who played a significant role in her development.

Saturday, November 17, 2018

Ashten Prechtel signs to play basketball at Stanford


krdo.com, November 14, 2018

Discovery Canyon basketball player Ashten Prechtel signs National Letter of Intent to play basketball at Stanford.

click to video

Friday, November 16, 2018

Meet Francesca Belibi, the teenage dunking phenom who’s Stanford bound

Kim Constantinesco, purpose2play.com, November 13, 2018

Francesca Belibi erupted onto the basketball scene in 2017 at 15 years old when she became the first high school girl to dunk in a game in Colorado history. It was impressive for a 6’1″ guard who had only been hooping for a year-and-a-half, but her life outside of basketball is just as profound.
Belibi, a senior at Regis Jesuit High School in Aurora, Colorado, has committed to play ball at Stanford. With a 4.0 GPA and averaging 13.7 points, 8.3 rebounds, 2.6 steals and 1.6 blocks in her junior year, she had her pick of cream-of-the-crop universities like Harvard, Princeton and Notre Dame, but she selected Stanford because of their medical school.

Wednesday, November 14, 2018

THREE TO THE FARM

gostanford.com, November 13, 2018

Stanford's Setsuko Ishiyama Director of Women's Basketball Tara VanDerveer announced the signings of three of the country's top players to National Letters of Intent on Wednesday. Fran Belibi (Aurora, Colo./Regis Jesuit), Hannah Jump (Los Altos Hills, Calif./Pinewood School) and Ashten Prechtel (Colorado Springs, Colo./Discovery Canyon) will join the Cardinal ahead of the 2019-20 campaign.

Stanford's class is again one of the nation's strongest, collectively rated No. 3 by espnW HoopGurlz.

"These three young women are some of the best players and among the brightest minds in the country and we are thrilled to be able to welcome them to Stanford," VanDerveer said. "They've worked incredibly hard to be in this position, possess the on-court skills we look for in our players and are just as impressive off the floor. They will fit in seamlessly with the culture we have here and I'm confident they will thrive on The Farm. We cannot wait to have them on campus watch them grow over their four years."

The three are strong additions to a program which has won a pair of national championships, been to 31 consecutive NCAA Tournaments, advanced to the Final Four in seven of the past 11 seasons and the Elite Eight in 11 of the past 15, won at least 20 games for 17 straight years and claimed a combined 35 Pac-12 regular season and conference championships.

Tuesday, November 13, 2018

Ashten Prechtel is Stanford bound: Discovery Canyon senior hoops star ready for final prep season


Discovery Canyon senior Ashten Prechtel is a four-year starter. She will sign her national letter of intent with Stanford on Nov. 14. 

Danny Summers, gazette.com, November 12, 2018
Ashten Prechtel scored 16 points and pulled down 17 rebounds in her first varsity basketball game as a freshman for Discovery Canyon on Dec. 1, 2015.
Those numbers, her 6-foot-5 frame and flowing red hair gained her a plethora of attention from opponents, media and college recruiters.
Four seasons later, Prechtel is preparing to lead her Thunder teammates to what hopefully will be another successful season before she takes her game in the road to Stanford.

Friday, November 09, 2018

Top-five junior Cameron Brink committed to her dream school


Jacob Rayburn, CardinalSportsReport.com

Cameron Brink fell in love with Stanford during a basketball camp she attended before seventh grade. Since then she's become the No. 2 prospect in the 2020 class and the gifted 6-4 center committed to her self-described dream school Oct. 28.
Brink was Oregon's player of the year for 2017-18, won gold with the U17 team at the FIBA World Cup in June and was an impact player on Cal Stars Nike EYBL -- probably the top travel team in the country with 2019 No. 1 player and Stanford target ... . Senior Stanford commit Hannah Jump also plays for the team.
Cal Star coach Kelly Sopak was not surprised to hear Brink committed to Stanford.
"Cam has always been fond of Stanford and all that the program has to offer," he messaged Cardinal Sports Report. "Both (head coach) Tara (VanDerveer) and (associate head coach) Kate (Paye) did a tremendous job of establishing a great rapport with her and made her feel right at home. She is a bright kid with a long career ahead of her on the hardwood, but she sees herself as much more than a basketball player. Stanford can really help her for her career and life after hoops."
Brink's experience on the visit reinforced everything she's come to like about the university and program. It was a packed schedule on each day she and she was accompanied by Jump and now fellow 2020 commit Jana Van Gytenbeek, who is a top-50 player and one of the best point guards in the country.
Stanford's coaches took advantage of it being homecoming week to have the recruits spend time with Nneka Ogwumike and Candice Wiggins. The all-time great Cardinal were back on campus for the reunion weekend. Brink trains with former Cardinal Susan King, who also trains Ogwumike and used to work with Wiggins.
"To meet some of the most amazing players ever was a dream come true," Brink said.
But it was interacting with the current team that left her in awe of the program she will join in June of 2020.
"The major thing I saw this weekend, that I knew before but it became clear to me when I was there, is that the team is a sisterhood," she said. "If there’s one word to describe the team I would say sisterhood. They’re so close. I have never seen a group of people more supportive of each other or have more fun together. They enjoy being with each other every day for six hours.
"(Junior) Anna Wilson was my host and she said the whole time she’s been on the team they haven’t had any drama. It’s an amazing group of girls. Any unofficial I took to other colleges there was no other group of girls as welcoming to me. It really shows you the character that people at Stanford have not just in athletics, but all around."
Brink went to a class with DiJonai Carrington, attended the Stanford vs. Washington State football game, ate meals with other athletes and also went to restaurants in the area to get as much of a "Stanford student" experience as possible.
Brink also is well aware of the character and qualities of the Stanford coaches. She's been around them and communicated with them for years.
"On the court they push you and they’re going to get on you if you’re not doing your job," she said. "They’re also the first ones to congratulate you and tell you that you’ve done a good job. Off the court they’re role models in your life. Through my years keeping in contact with them I feel like I’ve made a good relationship with every single one. I feel really comfortable with them."
Brink has been in the Cal Stars program since she was in the eighth grade. Sopak has watched her develop from winning one-on-one due to her height to becoming a "a dominant versatile force."
"She is college ready right now as a rim protector," he said. "Her ability to defend and protect the basket in the paint area is extremely rare. She allows us to do so much defensively on the perimeter."
Her future teammates also offered their evaluations of Brink on and off the court.
Jump: “Cameron is one of those players that I absolutely love to play with. She is a great teammate and always brings a lot of energy to practices and games. Off the court, Cameron is a really fun person to be around. We have grown close playing together this summer and I can’t wait to spend three years with her at Stanford!”
Van Gytenbeek: “On the court she’s tough, smooth, really athletic and moves really well, especially for how tall she is. She blocks everyone and has a beautiful shot. Off the court she’s a ball of energy and she’s so funny. She definitely brings out the best in me.”
Brink isn't resting now that she's made a critical decision for her future. She is using her commitment as motivation to do even better in the classroom and she knows she still has plenty of work to do improving her already impressive skill set.
"I want to focus on building my strength and developing my shot, so I can try to reach my full potential when I’m there," she said. "I have to keep pushing."

Peak Performer of the Week: Ashten Prechtel, Discovery Canyon volleyball


Chhun Sun, gazette.com, November 5, 2018

Ashten Prechtel's future is filled with possibilities.
Let's start with the big one: This past summer, she committed to Stanford to play at the highest level of women's college basketball. Her other top choices were UCLA and Texas.
But that opportunity starts in about a year.
For now, she's the star of the Discovery Canyon volleyball team. And this past weekend, the 6-foot-5 senior proved that she's tough to mess with as she led the Thunder with 32 kills and 18 blocks in two wins in the Class 4A Region 2 tournament.
Her numbers were more than enough to land this week's Gazette Preps Peak Performer honor. Last year, she earned the same accolade as a towering force for the Discovery Canyon girls' basketball team.
She could have skipped volleyball this season, but she said she had plenty of reasons to give it one last shot. That list includes her teammates, her coaches, staying active and a possible state title run.
"We all had high expectations coming in from last year," said Prechtel, whose Thunder appeared in their first state tournament in 2017. "Everyone knew we were going to be a better team. Everyone has improved a lot. And so, we came into the season expecting a lot."
So far, Discovery has lived up to the hype.
The Thunder (23-2) landed a No. 2 seed in the state tournament, a three-day event at Denver Coliseum, starting Thursday. It will be a double-elimination, Olympic-style crossover bracket, unlike last year when it operated on pool-play schedules.
This could mean they face No. 1 Lewis-Palmer (24-1), the defending state champion, in the final. The Rangers have steamrolled through their competition this season — including handing Discovery Canyon a rare defeat last month in Pikes Peak Athletics Conference action.
The Thunder believe they could win it all. And part of the reason, Prechtel said, is because of their setbacks. They used the losses as motivation. The first was the toughest, as Discovery Canyon opened the season losing to Erie in three straight sets.
It was a much-needed wake up call.
And since then, the Thunder have dominated — thanks in large part to Prechtel, whose 158 blocks is second in the state behind Ellicott's ...(159).
"We have a really good opportunity to win state this year," Prechtel said. "I want to do everything I can to make that a reality. I think our team feels the same way."
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Just the Facts
Ashten Prechtel, Discovery Canyon
Sport: Volleyball
Year: Senior
Position: Middle blocker
Favorite movie: Mulan 
Favorite athlete: LeBron James
Little known fact: She can play a few songs on the piano.
Highlights: The senior was dominant in two Class 4A Region 2 wins last week, collecting 32 kills on just one error and 18 blocks to lead the Thunder to the state tournament. Prechtel's 158 blocks is second in the state behind Ellicott's ..., who has 159.