Prep standout with Tinian roots to play Division I basketball

Samoana Ingram, whose mother is the former Jovita Hofschneider of Tinian, will play for the Mercer University women’s basketball team in the 2009-2010 season.

Mercer sees action in the Atlantic Sun Conference of the National Colleges Athletics Association and Ingram thus becomes one of the first—if not the first—woman basketball player from the CNMI to play Division I hoops.

The 5’10” Ingram’s father is Damon Ingram.

According to Mercer University’s website (www.mercerbears.com), Ingram will join the Bears as a freshman and will have four years of NCAA eligibility for the Orange and Black.

This early, Bears head coach Janel Jones is already excited with the addition of Ingram to Mercer’s lineup.

“Samoana is one of the toughest players we saw on the recruiting circuit. She can bang with the tallest of posts and is a rebounding machine. She has a knack for being around the ball on both ends of the floor,” said Jones.

Ingram heads to Mercer after a well-traveled high school career that saw her earn four letters with three schools in three different states. Ingram averaged a double-double for North Stafford High School in northern Virginia last season, contributing 18.1 points and 12.6 rebounds per game.

In addition to the First Team All Commonwealth District honors, the university’s website noted that Ingram was also named the Free Lance Star All-Area Athlete in her senior campaign. She earned first team all-area and all-district honors and an all-region honorable mention nod in 2007-08 after leading North Stafford to the district championship. She also took the court for the Fairfax Stars Elite AAU team.

Prior to heading to Virginia, Ingram landed a spot on the all-region first team and All-Southern second team while playing for Buena Vista High School in Sierra Vista, Ariz. in her sophomore season.

As a freshman, Ingram helped Dimond High School in Anchorage, Alaska to a 23-5 record and a state championship in her freshman season, scoring 15 vital points in the title game. She was named to the all-tournament team for the Alaska State Tournament, and earned all-state honorable mention honors in her first and only season with the Lynx.

“Even though she played post in high school, we see her developing her guard skills to play power forward,” Jones added. “Samoana will bring a tremendous energy both on and off the court. We look for Samoana to make an immediate impact as a freshman.”