Krystle McKenzie Inks NLI, Joins 2014 Signing Class

PULLMAN, Wash. – Washington State head women’s basketball coach June Daugherty announced that Krystle McKenzie has signed a National Letter of Intent to join the program as a freshman next season.

“Krystle exemplifies what we want in our program. A student-athlete that first and foremost has great character and is a fantastic student,” Daugherty stated. “Krystle competes extremely hard and her high level of international experience on the court will be a great asset to our Cougar basketball family.”

McKenzie, a 5-7 guard out of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia, was named the Under-16 South Coast Player of the Year in 2012 and 2013, and the Most Valuable Player of the 2012 Under-17 Australian Squad. She earned Under-15 South Coast Girls Team honors in 2011 and 12 and later averaged a team-best 4.8 assists-per-game for Australia at the 2012 Under-16 FIBA Junior National Championships. McKenzie was also selected a captain of the Under-16 team in 2011 and 2012 and later played for the Under-18 Queensland South State team in 2013.

“I chose Washington State because of the unique culture it has developed not only within the basketball program, but the community,” McKenzie said. “The school and its facilities are incredible in themselves, but the welcoming Cougar Family is what really makes WSU special. Fundamentally, the coaching staff succeeds according to their philosophies and systems, but it was completely evident how much desire everyone involved has to win and they put in the hard work to do so. That is what was most important to me as a competitor. The players, coaches, and every contributor in between, is why I chose Washington State.  It is apparent and goes without even saying that I know I am guaranteed to finish my college experience a better basketball player, student, and person. Go Cougs!”

McKenzie joins an already impressive signing class that is rated one of the top recruiting classes in the country by Blue Star Basketball. Also joining the Cougars later this fall are 6-2 guard Ashley Bolston (Medford, Ore.), 6-2 forward Louise Brown (Park Orchards, Victoria, Australia), 5-9 guard Caila Hailey (Inglewood, Calif.), 6-3 forward Nike McClure (Tenino, Wash.) and 5-8 point guard Pinelopi Pavlopoulou (Athens, Greece).