OLD WESTBURY, N.Y. (May 18, 2011) – NYIT head women’s basketball coach Anthony Crocitto announced Wednesday the signing of six scholastic student-athletes to National Letters of Intent to play women’s basketball at NYIT. The group will begin classes at New York Institute of Technology in the fall of 2011.

 

“I love this recruiting class,” said Crocitto. “This may be the best class I have been a part of in my 16-year career. Each student-athlete brings exactly what we are looking for, C.A.B. – Character, Academics, and Basketball.”

Meet The Bears
Name	Yr.	Pos.	Ht.	Hometown (Previous School)
Amber Davis	Fr.	G/F	5'9	Mastic, N.Y. (Center Moriches)
Chloe Johnson	Jr.	C	6'3	Oyster Bay, N.Y. (Queens College)
Mayana LeGrande	Fr.	C	6'3	Staten Island, N.Y. (Staten Island Academy)
Sabrinna Moore	Fr.	G	5'7	Flushing, N.Y. (Queensborough C.C.)
Nikki Jo Rotolo	Jr.	G/C	5'9	Rome, N.Y. (Longwood/St. John's)
Monique Walker	Fr.	G	5'7	Mastic, N.Y. (William Floyd)

 

Amber Davis

Guard/Forward • Mastic, N.Y. (Center Moriches HS)
Crocitto on Davis: “Amber is a great kid from a super family. She will come in and help us at multiple positions. Her overall ability is exciting to coach, while her passion is what will make her a terrific player to be around.”

 

A five-year starter and the team’s leading scorer each year, Davis finished her career with 1,510 points and 1,062 rebounds. As a senior she averaged 15.2 points, 9.8 rebounds and 2.2 steals per game while leading the Red Devils to their second consecutive Suffolk Class B championship. For her efforts, Davis was voted Miss Suffolk, an award presented by the Suffolk County Women’s Basketball Coaches Association to the top female public school basketball player. She was also named Newsday’s 2011 Long Island Player of the Year and first team All-Long Island. Davis is a four-time all-league and two-time all-county selection.

 

Chloe Johnson
Center • Oyster Bay, N.Y. (Queens (N.Y.)/North Shore HS)
Crocitto on Johnson: “I am thrilled Chloe has chosen to join us here at NYIT. She averaged a big double-double against us last season and is a match-up problem for all opponents. She could be perhaps the best inside-out post player in the Northeast come season’s end. We’re extremely excited to see her in a Bears uniform.”

 

Johnson was a two-year player for East Coast Conference rival Queens College. As a sophomore in 2010-2011, she averaged 8.5 points and 3.2 rebounds per game. At North Shore High School, Johnson was a 1,000 point scorer and earned all-county honors, while being named Player of the Year for Class ABC, Conference 3. Johnson also played at St. Mary’s High School where she was named to the scholar-athlete team as a sophomore and junior.

 

Mayana LeGrande
Center • Staten Island, N.Y. (Staten Island Academy)
Crocitto on LeGrande: “Mayana gives us what we have lacked at NYIT over the past couple of seasons. She is an exceptional rebounder with fantastic hands. She is just as adept at the pick-n-roll as she is making the inside-out pass to a guard. Mayana will capture NYIT with her smile and charisma, while going hard on early play while on the court.”

 

Le Grande was a four-year varsity starter at Staten Island Academy. As a senior she earned New York Post All-Star first team honors, while helping her team to the New York State Championships. For her career, she tallied 1,450 points and averaged 17.0-20.0 points per game.

 

Sabrinna Moore
Guard • Flushing, N.Y. (Queensborough C.C./Jamaica HS)
Crocitto on Moore: “Sabrinna is a very fast guard who will be expected to do a lot of things for us. She is an exceptional athlete who will defend, handle the ball and score for us here at NYIT. Sabrinna will also be expected to bring us leadership and maturity as we will be a very young team once again.”

 

A 2008 graduate of Queensborough C.C., Moore played two seasons earning first team All-CUNY and CUNY All-Tournament team honors as a freshman, while being named the School’s Outstanding Female Athlete Award. As a sophomore, Moore was named a CUNY All-Star, to the all-region second team and the team’s MVP.

 

Nikki Jo Rotolo
Guard/Forward • Rome, N.Y. (Longwood/St. John’s/Rome Free Academy)
Crocitto on Rotolo: “Nikki Jo will immediately impact our guard position. She can handle, shoot, post up and rebound. She is a joy to coach and loves the game. We expect big things out of JoJo.”

 

Rotolo joins Bears after stints at Longwood College and St. John’s (N.Y.). While with the Red Storm, Rotolo appeared in all 28 games averaging 3.5 points and 2.3 rebounds per game, while dishing out 33 assists and grabbing 18 steals. At Rome Free Academy, Rotolo averaged 24.8 points, 4.8 rebounds, 5.4 assists and 4.6 steals per game, while leading the team to its first Section III title in school history. She was a three-time Tri-Valley All-Star and all-state selection. Rotolo was also named Mohawk Valley, OHSL Colonial League and Rome Sports Hall of Fame Player of the Year.

 

Monique Walker
Guard • Mastic, N.Y. (William Floyd HS)
Crocitto on Walker: “Monique will battle for playing time at the point and scoring guard for us. She had an amazing high school career and is a super athlete who can drive it to the basketball while knocking down the long three as well.”

 

A New York State Sportswriters Association all-state selection, Walker compiled a career 1,135 points at William Floyd High School, averaging 17.8 points and 8.9 rebounds per game as a senior. She was a four-time league and two time all-county honoree. As a senior she was named MVP of League I and was an all-county academic recipient. Walker also competed in volleyball, soccer and lacrosse for William Floyd.

 

 

About NYIT

New York Institute of Technology (NYIT) offers undergraduate, graduate, and professional degrees in more than 90 fields of study, including architecture and design; arts and sciences; education; engineering and computing sciences; health professions; management; and osteopathic medicine. A non-profit independent, private institution of higher education, NYIT has more than 15,000 students attending campuses on Long Island and Manhattan, online, and at its global campuses. NYIT sponsors 11 NCAA Division II programs and one Division I team.

 

Led by President Edward Guiliano, NYIT is guided by its mission to provide career-oriented professional education, offer access to opportunity to all qualified students, and support applications-oriented research that benefits the larger world. To date, 85,000 graduates have received degrees from NYIT. For more information, visit nyit.edu.

 

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