ODU Monarchs add another guard to '08-'09 roster

NORFOLK

Old Dominion has a new women's basketball player - and she's eligible to play this season.

Margaret Harvey, a 5-foot-10 guard from Winston-Salem, N.C., is on campus and taking two summer classes while playing pickup ball with her new teammates. Harvey initially signed early with Wake Forest but was released from that commitment and will not have to sit out a year.

"I wasn't happy with Wake Forest, team-wise; I wanted to be on a winning team," Harvey said. "I liked it academically here and coach (Wendy) Larry has been great."

Harvey has ties to two ODU players: She was a teammate of Alena Voronina's at Forsyth Country Day School and played AAU ball with Sierra Little.

At Forsyth Country Day, Harvey played in 165 games - the most in school history - and amassed 1,559 points. Her 209 3-pointers, including 63 her senior year, rank third all time at the school; her 533 assists rank second.

Harvey joins newcomers Pryncess Tate-Dublin, Rachel DeMita, JoNiquia Guilford, Tia Lewis and Mairi Buchan.

All are on campus except for Buchan, who is gearing up to represent Scotland in the European B championships in Skopje, Macedonia. Lewis will not be eligible until the 2009-10 season due to NCAA transfer rules.

A Pryncess, for sure

Tate-Dublin, of Oxen Hill, Md., used to get teased about having a first name fit for a queen.

"People used to ask me, 'Where's your castle?'" said the 5-11 freshman guard, who is taking summer classes at ODU.

The origin of the name, she said, stems from her grandmother.

"She had a dream that she named me Pryncess Quinsetta," Tate-Dublin said. Pryncess Quinsetta is actually Tate-Dublin's first name, though she goes by Pryncess.

Summer action

Two weeks remain in women's summer league play at Julie Conn Gymnasium in Newport News.

Point guard Jazzmin Walters, averaging 24 points, is closing in on MVP honors. Junior Jessica Canady and sophomore Jasmine Parker are also playing, in addition to DeMita and Tate-Dublin. Former Lady Monarch Shareese Grant, MVP last season, is back.

The league features 75 players from ODU, Norfolk State, Radford, Longwood, Tennessee State, Elizabeth City State and Bucknell.

Games are at noon, 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. Saturday and 2 p.m., 4 p.m. and 6 p.m. Sunday.

Championship weekend is Aug. 2-3. For information, visit www.ndbasketballservices.com.

Notable...

ODU guard Vicki Collier had surgery in mid-June to repair a torn anterior cruciate ligament in her right knee she sustained in May. Collier may be able to return by December. The sophomore has not logged any minutes for ODU. She sat out as a redshirt two years ago and last year missed the season with a knee injury....

Former Lady Monarch and Salem High graduate Kelly Bradley gave birth to a boy July 7. Connor West Bradley checked in at 9 pounds, 3 ounces and 20-1/2 inches.