St. John's University Athletics
St. John’s Women’s Basketball Inks Three Players for the 2019 Class
11/15/2018 5:55:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Unique Drake along with Emma and Sophia Nolan each sign National Letters of Intent
St. John's Head Coach Joe Tartamella announced the signing of three student-athletes to National Letters of Intent, as Unique Drake, Sophia Nolan and Emma Nolan have committed to join the Johnnies in 2019.
"I think our staff did a great job with identifying our needs in our three newest members," Coach Tartamella said. "We are excited to add these three young ladies to our team and we feel they will have an opportunity to make and immediate impact on this program."
A 5-foot-7 point guard from South Carolina, Drake is a four-star recruit who will be a key addition to the Red Storm's back court. Drake brings an uptempo energy to the game, having recorded a total of 1,381 points through three years of varsity action at Westwood High School in Blythewood, S.C.
Drake ranks 77th on the espnW Hoopgurlz top-100 and is slotted 22nd at her position. Additionally, she was the 2018 Gatorade Player of the Year runner up in the state of South Carolina as a junior. Drake's signing marks the second-straight year that St. John's has inked an espnW Hoopgurlz top-100 recruit. Drake is also the Johnnies' highest ranked signee according to ESPN since Jade Walker (61) in 2012.
Over her three years at Westwood, Drake has seen action in 77 games, averaging 17.9 points, 4.1 assists and 4.5 rebounds per contest. In addition to her offensive ability, she also possesses a strong defensive skillset, averaging 3.2 steals per outing.
As a junior Drake led Westwood to a 23-4 record and an appearance in the Class 4A playoffs after averaging 21.5 points, 4.6 rebounds and 4.6 assists per game.
For her efforts, Drake landed a spot on the 2017-18 ALL-USA South Carolina Girls Basketball Team and was named Westwood Girls Basketball Player of the Year.
Twin sisters Sophia and Emma Nolan come to Queens following an outstanding high school career at Marquette Catholic High School in Michigan City, Ind. The pair has received numerous accolades over their high school career, including Chicago Post-Tribune's Co-Player of the Year honors in 2017-18.
The Valparaiso, Ind., natives rank among the top-eight on Marquette's all-time scoring list after their junior season. Emma's 1,489 points place her second while Sophia sits fourth overall with 1,443.
In addition to their individual accomplishments, the sisters helped lift the Blazers to their first state championship in 2018, en route to being named the NWI Times Basketball Players of the Year.
As a junior, Emma finished with a school-record 594 points and was named to the IBCA Underclass Supreme 15 and a North Junior All-Star. She averaged 20.5 points, 8.1 rebounds, 2.0 steals and 1.7 blocks per contest. With just three seasons in the book at Marquette, Emma is already the program's leader in field goals, rebounds, steals and blocks; Sophia ranks second in each of those categories.
During her junior campaign, Sophia averaged 18.3 points, 7.6 rebounds, 1.6 steals and 1.0 block per contest. She was an IBCA Small School All-State pick and led the Blazers in three-pointers made with 36.
In addition to their successes on the court, both student-athletes have also excelled in the classroom as well, maintaining 4.1 GPAs in honors classes.
"I think our staff did a great job with identifying our needs in our three newest members," Coach Tartamella said. "We are excited to add these three young ladies to our team and we feel they will have an opportunity to make and immediate impact on this program."
A 5-foot-7 point guard from South Carolina, Drake is a four-star recruit who will be a key addition to the Red Storm's back court. Drake brings an uptempo energy to the game, having recorded a total of 1,381 points through three years of varsity action at Westwood High School in Blythewood, S.C.
Drake ranks 77th on the espnW Hoopgurlz top-100 and is slotted 22nd at her position. Additionally, she was the 2018 Gatorade Player of the Year runner up in the state of South Carolina as a junior. Drake's signing marks the second-straight year that St. John's has inked an espnW Hoopgurlz top-100 recruit. Drake is also the Johnnies' highest ranked signee according to ESPN since Jade Walker (61) in 2012.
Over her three years at Westwood, Drake has seen action in 77 games, averaging 17.9 points, 4.1 assists and 4.5 rebounds per contest. In addition to her offensive ability, she also possesses a strong defensive skillset, averaging 3.2 steals per outing.
As a junior Drake led Westwood to a 23-4 record and an appearance in the Class 4A playoffs after averaging 21.5 points, 4.6 rebounds and 4.6 assists per game.
For her efforts, Drake landed a spot on the 2017-18 ALL-USA South Carolina Girls Basketball Team and was named Westwood Girls Basketball Player of the Year.
Twin sisters Sophia and Emma Nolan come to Queens following an outstanding high school career at Marquette Catholic High School in Michigan City, Ind. The pair has received numerous accolades over their high school career, including Chicago Post-Tribune's Co-Player of the Year honors in 2017-18.
The Valparaiso, Ind., natives rank among the top-eight on Marquette's all-time scoring list after their junior season. Emma's 1,489 points place her second while Sophia sits fourth overall with 1,443.
In addition to their individual accomplishments, the sisters helped lift the Blazers to their first state championship in 2018, en route to being named the NWI Times Basketball Players of the Year.
As a junior, Emma finished with a school-record 594 points and was named to the IBCA Underclass Supreme 15 and a North Junior All-Star. She averaged 20.5 points, 8.1 rebounds, 2.0 steals and 1.7 blocks per contest. With just three seasons in the book at Marquette, Emma is already the program's leader in field goals, rebounds, steals and blocks; Sophia ranks second in each of those categories.
During her junior campaign, Sophia averaged 18.3 points, 7.6 rebounds, 1.6 steals and 1.0 block per contest. She was an IBCA Small School All-State pick and led the Blazers in three-pointers made with 36.
In addition to their successes on the court, both student-athletes have also excelled in the classroom as well, maintaining 4.1 GPAs in honors classes.
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