University of Southern Indiana Women’s Basketball Coach Rick Stein announced that 6-foot-1 forward Ashlynn Brown (Perrysburg, Ohio) and 6-foot-1 guard Samantha LaPlaca (Parma Heights, Ohio) have signed national letters of intent during the early signing period to compete for Head Coach Rick Stein‘s Screaming Eagles in 2017-18.

“We are excited to welcome these two outstanding you women to our USI family,” Stein said. “Ashlynn and Sam are both excellent student athletes and will help to fill some immediate needs for our team after this season.”

Brown is currently a senior at Perrysburg High School where she earned second-team All-State honors as a junior after averaging 12.2 points, 8.3 rebounds and 1.8 blocks per game in 2016-17.

A two-time All-District and All-Conference honoree on the basketball court, Brown averaged 10.2 points and 8.8 rebounds per contest during her sophomore season in 2015-16.

“”Ashlynn is an active inside player that can produce in so many ways,” Stein said. “Her scoring and rebounding stands out, but she also is a very good passer, strong defender and can stretch the defense all the way out to the three-point line.”

LaPlaca is in her senior year at Normandy High School in Parma, Ohio, where she has earned varsity letters in basketball. She averaged 14 points and 10 rebounds per game as a junior, helping NHS to a runner-up finish in the Parma sectional in 2016-17.

“Sam is a long, athletic wing who can really shoot the ball,” Stein explained. “She is a gym rat who works on her game every day. Averaging a double-double is not an easy task and it shows her abilities to really produce on both ends of the court.”

USI returns to action Thursday at 6 p.m. when it hosts Ohio Dominican University at the Physical Activities Center.