Feb. 6, 2008

BEAUMONT - Whitney Coffey of Princeton High School has signed a letter of intent with Lamar University to continue her education and play women's basketball for the Lady Cardinals, announced head coach Larry Tidwell Wednesday afternoon.

Coffey, a 6-1 guard/forward, comes to Lamar from PHS where she has had a strong senior season for the Panthers and legendary coach Dexter Ivy. She has led her team in scoring and rebounding with 13.9 points and 7.5 rebounds per game, while also averaging 2.2 blocks per game. The Panthers are currently 23-4 and ranked 8th in the state of Texas in class 3A.

Her play during the early part of the season for Princeton earned accolades, as she was named Tournament MVP of the 5A Garland tournament and all-tournament at the prestigious West Coast Jamboree tournament in San Francisco, California. Last year she was named all-district and TABC all-region.

In addition to playing at Princeton, she has been a member of the Texas Fire AAU team where she played for high profile coach Marty Murphy. She averaged 15.8 points, nine rebounds, 3.8 assists and three blocks per game and was honored as a BCI All American

"Whitney is mobile, agile and versatile," Tidwell said. "She can run the floor in transition, shoot the three-pointer and goes hard to the boards. She also knows the game and will be a great teammate."