ROCK HILL, SC—Winthrop head women's basketball coach Marlene Stollings announced the signing of Diana Choibekova to a National Letter of Intent for the 2011-12 hoops season.
Diana is the first player signed under Stollings, who was hired to take over the Lady Eagle program on April 12.
Choibekova had an impressive two-year career for Daytona College where she earned several individual honors.
This past season Daytona College was Mid-Florida Conference Co-Champions as she averaged 10 points while shooting 31 percent from three in playing a key role on the team. In the 2010-11 she received a Mid-Florida Conference State Team nomination and was named Most Valuable Player at Daytona State. As a freshman in 2009-10, Choibekova was a Mid-Florida Conference Honorable Mention selection and earned All-Academic Team honors for Mid-Florida and FCSAA.
The 5-11 shooting guard is excited about further pursuing her collegiate career as a Lady Eagle. “I'm looking forward to playing in the Winthrop Coliseum, as well as playing some road games closer to home. I look forward to playing against the competition that this level (NCAA Division I) has to offer.”
“I am extremely excited to have Diana as my first ever signee at Winthrop,” added Stollings. “Diana brings a high level of basketball intelligence and a very good offensive skill set. Her ability to contribute from outside the arc and run the floor in transition will be immediate assets to our program. Additionally, Diana will add experience to our perimeter game. We are fortunate to have her become part of our Eagle family.”
Choibekova is out of Manhattan, NY where she attended Baruch College Campus high school. As a senior in high school she earned First Team All-City honors and also shot 86 percent from the foul line, earning the NYC PSAL A-Division highest free throw percentage award. In addition to being named her high school team's MVP as a senior, she also earned NYC Championship Tournament MVP as she helped her team to a NYC PSAL Division A City Championship.
Choibekova wants to pursue a career in business and will major in international marketing while at Winthrop. “I wanted to pursue business marketing, and international marketing seems like a good way to go. One of the reasons is I speak Russian, and that is a major that will get me to travel, and maybe bring me closer to home.”
