University of Missouri-Rolla women's basketball coach has announced the signing of Maria Bratcher, a 6-2 center-forward from St. Louis, Mo., to a national letter of intent for the 2007-08 season.
Bratcher comes to UMR from Iowa Western Community College, where she averaged 6.4 points and a team-high 7.9 rebounds per game during the 2006-07 season. She shot 52 percent from the field and had a school record 59 blocked shots during the season.
At Iowa Western, Bratcher was a two-time all-region selection.
“Maria is a very athletic player whose strengths have been rebounding and shot blocking,” said Lady Miner head coach Alan Eads. “We were looking for someone who could provide us more of a presence in the paint and Maria can be that person. She is a hard worker with a good upside and should fit in very well with this group we have here.”
As a freshman, Bratcher averaged 7.4 points, 6.4 rebounds and 1.2 steals per game. She also shot 48 percent from the floor and blocked 56 shots; in her two seasons at Iowa Western, Bratcher blocked a IWCC record 115 shots.
“She didn’t necessarily have to score at Iowa Western, but we think she can become more of a scorer around the basket for us,” Eads added.
At Jennings High School, Bratcher scored 1,185 points with 1,461 rebounds and 435 blocked shots as she earned first-team all-state honors after her senior year for a team that finished fourth in the Missouri Class 3 state tournament. She also earned third-team all-metro honors in St. Louis following her that season when she averaged a double-double (12.1 points, 10.8 rebounds per game).
Bratcher was also an honorable mention all-metro selection after the 2004-05 season.
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