Deacs Ink Deeble and Owen on National Signing Day
11/11/2021 10:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
“Our Wake Forest women’s basketball family is thrilled to announce the addition of two tremendous young women in Katie and Skye.” - Head Coach Jen Hoover
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. -- The Wake Forest women's basketball team announced the addition of two players during National Signing Day on Thursday.
In Katie Deeble and Skye Owen, the Demon Deacons continue to add top talent from around the country as well as continuing their long transition of finding high-level talent abroad.
"Our Wake Forest women's basketball family is thrilled to announce the addition of two tremendous young women in Katie and Skye to our 2022 recruiting class," head coach Jen Hoover said. "Not only are they very talented individuals on the court, but they are all also very bright and mature young women who embody the values of Wake Forest University."
With the two signees, the Deacs will look to bolster their backcourt for future seasons. Both guards have a plethora of high-level experience in their careers.
Deebles, who is coming off a silver medal at the 2021 FIBA U19 Women's World Cup for Australia, has been a key part of the Australian teams throughout her career, competing at every championship from U15 to U19.
Owen, who had her 2020-21 season cancelled due to COVID, helped lead her high school team to the 2020 CHSAA city championship while earning All-City honors for the second consecutive season.
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Katie Deeble | G | 5-8 | Brisbane, Queensland, Australia/BA Centre of Excellence
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Member of the 2021 FIBA U19 Women's World Cup team for Australia where she averaged 9.3 points per game, 4.0 rebounds per game and 2.6 assists per game, helping Australia to a silver medal
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Set to compete for the Brydens Sydney Uni Flames for the upcoming 2021-22 WNBL season while still maintaining her amateur status
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Named as a top-20 prospect by Aussie Basketball USA Pathways for the class of 2022
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Helped the U17 Australian National Team capture FIBA U17 Women's Oceania Championship in 2019
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Represented Australia at every Championship from U15 through to U19
Welcome to the Wake Forest family, Katie ✍️#NSD | #GoDeacs 🎩 pic.twitter.com/hd2Vg2lnQE
— Wake Forest Women's Basketball (@WakeWBB) November 11, 2021
From Coach Hoover
"We are very excited to have Katie join our program. She is a dynamic point guard that will bring speed and agility to the team. She has the ability to play both guard positions within our system. She's quick and has a high basketball IQ that allows her to affect the game on both sides of the ball. Katie has great play recognition, creating ample opportunities for steals, assists and fast break opportunities. She has tremendous experience and has represented Australia on the World stage throughout her youth career. Her experience playing at such a high level will help her transition to the ACC, and have her ready to compete right away. We are delighted to have one of the very best out of Australia coming to Wake Forest and continue our long tradition of having elite level international talent on our team."
From Deeble's High School Coach, Derek Rucker
"It took 2-3 minutes into our first workout in 2018 for me to realize that Katie was going to be a Division-I college basketball player. At that time, Katie was 15 and we were preparing for the Australian U16 National Championship.
"Katie is a fundamentally sound and dynamic point guard. She has the ability to impact the game offensively, defensively and has a knack for knowing when to inject her talent onto the game. Her speed on the floor is going to catch players by surprise as she does it effortlessly with the ball. At the FIBA U19 World Cup, she demonstrated what her potential is in the biggest games of the event."
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Skye Owen | G | 5-7 | Staten Island, NY | Saint Francis High
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Earned a 90 overall rating and three-star status from ESPNW
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Rated the No. 26 point guard nationally by ESPNW
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Named as a Top 50 player in the class of 2022 by BlueStar
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Chosen as an All-City Honorable Mention member as a freshman and selected Second-Team All City her sophomore year.
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Starting at point guard as a sophomore, helped lead her team to become the 2020 CHSAA city championship
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Averaged 16 points, 7 assists, 7 rebounds and 4 steals per game as a sophomore in 2020
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Member of the National Honor Society, Math National Honor Society, volunteers her time to tutor her teammates and also volunteers at a local soup kitchen
Welcome to the Wake Forest family, @HardworkPG4 ✍️#NSD | #GoDeacs 🎩 pic.twitter.com/7sMFeXC7rG
— Wake Forest Women's Basketball (@WakeWBB) November 10, 2021
From Coach Hoover
"Skye is an energetic and athletic point guard that plays with an uptempo game. She brings confidence on both sides of the court with dynamic attacks on offense and strong pressure on defense. Her ability to break down defenses off the dribble and create for herself and teammates will be another great addition to our offense. We look forward to adding depth to our perimeter and continue to play fast and aggressive. Skye has a tremendous work ethic that will help her transition to the college game as she continues to grow and develop as a player."
From Owen's High School Coach, Kerri White
"Skye is a true floor general with a great basketball IQ. She is always putting teammates in a position to score. She has a high motor and is extremely competitive on both sides of the floor. Skye's consistent jump-shot combined with her ability to break down defenders makes her a threat from anywhere on the court.
"It was exciting watching Skye develop not only as a player, but as a young lady these last four years. We will definitely miss her leadership, maturity, dedication and most of all her personality. We are looking forward to watching Skye continue to develop and grow over the next four years at Wake Forest."
