Indiana University Athletics
Hoosiers Sign Five To National Letters Of Intent
4/19/2007 12:00:00 AM | Women's Water Polo
April 19, 2007
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Indiana head coach Barry King announced the signing of five student-athletes to National Letters of Intent on April 19. Kara Butler, Nicole Redder, Kate Dunn, Amy Moore and Lauren Wyckoff will be joining the water polo program in the fall of 2007.
"We're incredibly excited about this group," King said. "They are all very good athletically. They represent a real upgrade in speed, which was something we really need to address. Then, individually, they each fill positions that round out the team. This is almost the most complete team we've had, as far as a recruiting class goes. I think we'll find out in four years that this is the most talented and the best recruiting class that we've had."
Butler will join the Hoosiers from Poway, Calif., where she was a four-year letterwinner at Poway High School. While at Poway, Butler helped the team to two Division 1 California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) championships in her junior and senior seasons, as well as two runner-up finishes in her first two years. A team captain as a senior, Butler also earned All-CIF second team and All-League second team honors in her final two seasons. An All-Polomar League first team selection three times, she was selected to play in the Division 1 Senior All-Star game in March 2007. Butler also racked up numerous accolades from media outlets throughout her career at Poway, including being a member of the San Diego Tribune All-Academic Team as a junior and a senior, North County Times Athlete of the Week honors in January 2006 and February 2007, and being named a San Diego Union and North County Times Prep Preview Player to Watch in December 2005 and 2006. A member of the National Youth Team in 2005, Butler earned honorable mention All-American status at the Women's 20 & Under Nationals in 2006.
"Kara Butler presents a real offensive threat for us," King said. "She's very good with the ball, and can play both with her back to the goal and outside."
A native of Grandville, Mich., Redder will join the Hoosiers after seeing great success at Jenison High School in Jenison, Mich. A three-year letterwinner with one year spent as team captain, she was a member of a team that won a district championship in 2006 and finished third in the state in 2006. A two-time all-conference first team and first team all-state honoree, Redder also earned fifth team All-America honors in 2005 and fourth team status in 2006. She also earned first team all-region honors that season. In addition to her water polo success, Redder earned four letters in swimming at Jenison, setting program records in the 100-meter breaststroke during her career as well as earning four all-conference and two all-state mentions.
Dunn will come to IU after spending four years in the pool at Thomas Worthington High School in Worthington, Ohio. A member of the squad that was the state championship runner-up in 2006 after being the regional champions in 2005, Dunn earned first team all-state honors as both a junior and a senior. She also earned team Most Valuable Player honors in her final three seasons and was an honorable mention All-American as a junior. The all-time leading scorer at Thomas Worthington with 300 goals for her career, Dunn was also named to Who's Who Among High School Athletes and Who's Who Among American High School Students during her final year. A three-year letterwinner in swimming who also participated in basketball, Dunn is a National Honor Society member as well as both a silver and bronze Academic Key recipient.
"Kate Dunn and Nicole Redder are both really solid athletes," King said. "Their exposure to higher-level water polo has been somewhat limited, and I see them just having an incredibly steep improvement curve that will come. I think they will be terrific, based on their athleticism, and when they get more experience practicewise and gamewise, that they'll be really solid contributors for us."
Moore will join the Indiana program after earning four letters at Chino Hills High School in Chino Hills, Calif. An All-Sierra League first team honoree as a sophomore, junior and senior after earning second team accolades as a freshman, Dunn advanced to the CIF quarterfinals with her team as a sophomore and to the semifinals as a senior. The three-time team captain also earned All-CIF first team status as a senior and was a scholar-athlete all four seasons. The National Honor Society member also dominated in swimming at Chino Hills, earning four letters while setting program records in the 100-meter butterfly, the 100-meter breaststroke and the 200-meter medley relay as a senior.
"Amy Moore, I think, is a real `sleeper' as far as attention goes right now," King said. "I think she's going to be a dominant defender for us and will really fit well with the group offensively. Again, she's another one that has a really high ceiling; I don't think her potential has been touched yet."
A native of Los Altos, Calif., Wyckoff will join the Hoosier program after earning three letters and spending one season as a team captain at Los Altos High School. A member of the league co-champions in 2006, she was a two-time first team all-league honoree. A second team All Central Coast Section (CCS) honoree as well as the team MVP as a junior, Wyckoff earned first team All-CCS honors in her final season as well as being a Senior All-Star selection. In 2005, she was a 16 & Under All-American as a member of the Stanford Water Polo Club.
"Lauren Wyckoff is just a flat out `gamer,'" King said. "She comes from an incredibly well-coached club program. She's done nothing but get better over the last two years and will be relied upon heavily to fill a lot of different roles, both defensively and offensively."
The five will be joining an Indiana program that closed out the regular season with a record of 15-12 overall and 7-0 against conference foes. The Hoosiers will open the postseason on Saturday, April 21, as the No. 1 seed in the CWPA Western Division Championships in Ann Arbor, Mich. IU will take on No. 8 Penn State-Behrend at 10 a.m. in Michigan's Canham Natatorium.
