LORETTO, Pa. (Dec. 12, 2012) – The Saint Francis U women's basketball team added three student-athletes to its 2013 freshman class in the early signing period.
 
“We are extremely excited to announce this year's recruiting class,” head coach Joe Haigh said. “All three young ladies have shown that they are excellent students, outstanding leader's in their schools and on their basketball teams. They will be great representatives of Saint Francis, not only on the court, but also in the classroom and in the community.”
 
Allison Thompson – Joins the Red Flash women's basketball program from Morgantown High School in Morgantown, W. Va., where she played for head coach Adam Henkins. Thompson also played travel basketball with the WV Lady Blue Devils under head coach Eric Pryor. The, 6-2 center, helped the Morgantown Mohigans to a 19-6 record in 2011-12 and a trip to the State Championship Tournament in West Virginia. Thompson also made the honor roll while being an active member of the National Honor Society.
 
“Allison is a physical low post player who can score on the block and rebound the ball,” Haigh said. “She plays the game with a lot of energy and has a great attitude. She also has shown that she is a great teammate and an unselfish player.”
 
Samiah Bethel – The native of Jacksonville, Fla. comes to Loretto from Potter's House Christian Academy where she played for head coach Tony Bannister. Bethel, who played with current SFU guard Aisha Brock (Jacksonville, Fla./Potter's House Christian Academy) last season with the Lions, helped Potter's House Christian to a 24-7 record in 2011-12 and guided the Lions to being the sixth ranked team in the state of Florida according to MaxPreps.com. Potter's House Christian also ranked No. 4 in the USA Today Super 25 in 2011 and played in the Christian Schools National Championship game. The daughter of Sammy and Arlene Bethel, Samiah also ran track for the Lions and was a member of the National Honor Society.
 
“We are excited to welcome Samiah to the program,” Haigh said. “She's another combo-guard from the Potter's House program.  She is very skilled on offense, and plays extremely hard at both ends of the floor. She will make a great addition to our backcourt and we are looking forward to having her join her high school teammate Aisha Brock (Jacksonville, Fla./Potter's House Christian Academy).”
 
Sierra Clark – A native of Upper Marlboro, Md., Clark joins the Red Flash from Archbishop Spalding where she played for head coach William Rosemond. Clark, a 5-11 forward for the Cavaliers, helped Archbishop Spalding to a 21-9 record, as the Cavaliers finished the 2011-12 season ranked as the 11th-best team in state of Maryland. Archbishop Spalding ranked as on of the top teams in the nation in the Washington Post rankings in 2010-11. The daughter of Arthur and Charmayne Clark intends to major in communications at Saint Francis. Both of Clark's parents played Division I basketball, Arthur at Drexel and Charmayne at Radford.
 
“Sierra Clark is an extremely athletic and fast forward,” Haigh said. “She works extremely hard defensively, rebounds the basketball, and plays with a lot of passion for the game. She can defend both guards and posts players, and can defend in the open floor in pressure situations.  We're really excited to have Sierra join the Saint Francis family next year.”