Black Hills State women's basketball, Head Coach Mark Nore, and Associate Head Coach Hope Bonlander welcomed seven student-athlete commits to BHSU on Wednesday's signing day.

"We are extremely excited to welcome this year's recruiting class," said Nore. "Our coaching staff has done an amazing job bringing in some talented and amazing young women that will complement our team in so many ways."

The women's basketball signing class of 2024 includes seven true freshmen heading to BHSU next fall.

"They all bring something different to the table, [but] the two things they all have in common are their work ethic and the quality of people they are," Nore added. "They are everything we look for in the type of young ladies we recruit for our system. We want to welcome them to our team, to our university, and the community of Spearfish."

Emily Cooper
Heading to Spearfish from Eau Claire, Wisconsin, point guard Emily Cooper played high school basketball at McDonell Central Catholic High School as well as the AAU Team Wisconsin club.

Cooper, currently in her senior season, holds 886 career points and has averaged 11.53 per game through the first three years of her career at McDonell Central. The incoming freshman also claims 4.03 rebounds per game, 4.37 assists, and 4.0 steals per tilt as well.

In the previous 2022-23 campaign, Cooper was a First Team All-Conference player and was named Conference Player of the Year as she averaged 15.7 points per game in that season. She piled on the accolades as she was also a First Team All-State, All-County and All-Area First Team, and MVP Award player in her junior season as she helped lead her team to a State Championship.

During her sophomore season, she was a Second Team All-Conference player and received an All-State honorable mention nod through her campaign. Cooper was a First Team All-County and was also named to the Third Team All-Area team. She broke school records for most three-pointers made in a season (81) and most steals in a season (126) in her second year as she once again led her team to post-season success as they won a sectional championship and a regional championship that season.

In her first year on the team, Cooper made an immediate impression as she tallied 125 points in her freshman season, averaging 7.8 points per contest, with her performance buying her a spot on the All-County Second Team that season, helping the team get to a sectional and regional championship win in her first season.

Currently sitting at a 3.6 GPA, Cooper plans to major in exercise science with hopes of becoming a physical therapist.

Cami Curtis
Curtis, a 5-foot-10-inch forward, hails from just across the Wyoming-South Dakota border in Gillette, Wyoming, where she played basketball for Campbell County High School.

Heading into her senior season as a team captain, Curtis currently averages 52.1 percent from the floor and 68.2 percent from the charity stripe. She averaged 10.3 points per contest through her career at Campbell County High.

Last season, Curtis donned First Team All-Conference and Second Team All-State honors for the first time in her career and intends to do so in the upcoming campaign. The National Honors Society student will be a great asset for the classroom at BHSU as the incoming freshman holds a 4.0 GPA and ranks 14th in her class.

When asked what she liked about BHSU, Curtis said she loved how close the community is to the school, the beauty of Spearfish, and the atmosphere provided by the women's basketball team and coaches.

Curtis intends to major in biology when she arrives on campus in 2024 and hopes to become a nurse after college.

Addicyn Kessinger  
Joining the women's basketball squad from Akron, Colorado, Addicyn Kessinger is a 6-foot-1 forward who will be playing in her final season for the Akron High School basketball team, where she served as a team captain throughout her entire career. Kessinger also played for the Colorado Soar Basketball club.

Through three years of high school basketball, Kessinger has logged 1083 points (18.7 PPG), 672 rebounds (11.6 RPG), 120 assists (2.1 APG), 112 steals (1.9 SPG), and 178 blocks (3.1 BPG) through 58 games played at Akron High. Kessinger is a current three-time All-Conference player and has received an All-State First Team and All-State Honorable Mention nod through her time at Akron High. She also holds the school record for most points in a game with 38 points.

Last season, Kessinger was an integral part of the offense at Akron as the incoming freshman averaged double-double figures with 20.4 points and 11.5 rebounds per game. Kessinger was also named a Mile High Prep Report District Two Player of the Year and Junior of the Year last season as she helped lead her team to a regional qualifier. She was also named the NJC Holiday Tournament's Most Outstanding Player that year.

Her sophomore campaign was highlighted by an appearance at the regional qualifier game, which paired with a 20.1 PPG and 11.5 RPG season to guider her to an All-State Honorable Mention and All-Conference nod that year.

Kessinger was also named to All-Conference her freshman year as she posted 13.6 PPG and 11.9 RPG.

She lettered all three years she has played and has been named the Mile High Prep Report Player of the Week 10 times in her three-year career with one more season to play at Akron High.

Sitting second in her graduating class with a 4.062 GPA, Kessinger plans to major in exercise science and wishes to become a physical therapist.

Tess Rule
Rule is a 5-foot-7 guard from Buffalo High School in Wyoming where she was named All-Conference and All-State in 2023, and All-Conference in 2022 as well.

Her junior year, she helped the team to state after winning regionals. She will be a team captain this year as a senior after totaling 227 points, 145 rebounds, 75 steals and 74 assists in her junior campaign.

Rule intends to major in exercise science to pursue a career in athletic training or physical therapy.

Bradie Schlabs
Schlabs comes to BHSU from East High School in Cheyenne, Wyoming as a 5-foot-6 guard. During her time there, she has helped her team to back-to-back 4A State Championships in 2021 and 2022, and they placed third in the 2023 State Tournament.

She has been named First Team All-Conference and First Team All-State in 2021, 2022, and 2023, and in 2022-2023 was a team captain and was a Gatorade Player of the Year Nominee. In 2022 she was the State Defensive Player of the Year, and in 2023 was the 4A East Conference Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year.

Schlabs intends to major in Education or Media to pursue a career in teaching or broadcast journalism.

Sawyer Stoebner
Stoebner will be an incoming freshman from Mitchell High School in South Dakota, as a 5-foot-10 guard. The 2021-22 team captain helped her team to two State Tournaments in 2020-21 and 2022-23, and most recently as a junior, averaged 14.6 points, 11.3 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 3.3 shots per game.

Last year she was named First Team All-State and All-Conference, made the All-Tournament Team and was the 20th annual Elite Eight Athlete of the Year. In 2021-22 she was Second Team All-State and All-Conference, and was named the Mitchell Republic Most Valuable Athlete.

Stoebner will major in Sociology and Law with the pursuit of a career in social work.

Maureen Ulrich
Ulrich is a 5-foot-8 guard out of Xavier College Prep in Scottsdale, Arizona. She is a two-time captain on the team, and is coming off a year where she was named 6A Premier Defensive Player of the Year, and All-State Second Team.

As a junior, Ulrich averaged 10 points, 8.5 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 2.9 steals per game. Before that, she was named 6A Premier Defensive Player of the Year as a sophomore, and as a freshman was named honorable mention.

Ulrich plans to major in Business with the intent of being a business owner.