CALGARY – University of Calgary women’s basketball coach Shawnee Harle announced Monday her first recruit for the 2009-10 season, five-foot-eight guard Tamara Jarrett out of John G. Diefenbaker High School in Calgary.
“I am thrilled that Tamara has made an early decision to join the Dinos,” said Harle, whose Dinos are 6-4 on the season heading into the Christmas break. “She is a dynamic player who fits perfectly into our style of play. She’s a winner both on and off the court, and that’s the kind of player we’re always looking for.”
A two-time athlete of the year and basketball MVP at Diefenbaker, Jarrett will lead the Chiefs through the high school season one more time before suiting up with the Dinos next fall. She is a four-year veteran of the Alberta provincial team program, winning three silver medals at national championships.
She is familiar with the University of Calgary program, having played for the Dinos spring league team, and she says that influenced her decision to commit.
“Playing with the Dinos spring team was a great experience for me,” said Jarrett. “It gave me the opportunity to get comfortable with the players, coaches, and style of play.
“I’m really excited to play my first university game in front of my family and my friends, and accomplishing one of my goals in life, which is to play university basketball.”
A talented multi-sport athlete, she has also excelled on the track, earning back-to-back city 100-metre championships and a provincial title in the javelin in her Grade 11 year.
“Tamara is an exceptional athlete,” said Diefenbaker head coach Diane Hilko. “She is a quick, powerful, natural basketball player who is always trying to achieve more. She provides explosive scoring skills and is tenacious on defence.
“She is a very coachable young woman, and Tamara will be an asset to the University of Calgary program.”
Jarrett plans to enroll in the Faculty of Kinesiology in the fall of 2009 with the long-term goal of becoming a physiotherapist or a sports medicine physician.
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