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MVNU Lands Another Mansfield Christian Basketball Player
written by Dave Parsons, Sports Information Director

MOUNT VERNON, Ohio - The Mount Vernon Nazarene University women’s basketball team has signed another important recruit for the 2006-2007 season with the addition of Katy Childress, who has decided to further her education at MVNU and continue her basketball career with the Lady Cougars.

Childress, a 5-foot-1 point guard from Lexington, Ohio, averaged 7.3 points, 2.2 steals, and 2.7 rebounds per game as a senior at Mansfield Christian High School. She helped lead Mansfield Christian to an 18-6 record and the program’s first-ever trip to the district championship game as she was selected as her team’s Most Valuable Player as well as receiving the Inspirational Award.

"I am excited that Katy has chosen to continue her education and play basketball here,” said MVNU head coach Steve Gregory. "She will add depth for us at the point guard position. She played a role on her team at Mansfield Christian and played it very well. Her team had a tremendous season last year and Katy had a lot to do with it. While her statistics were not eye-popping, what she did for her team should not be undervalued. She brought great leadership from the point guard position and was a very good floor general. She sees the floor well and is able to locate the open player. She is tenacious on defense and brings good quickness to the position. She also proved that she could keep the defense honest by knocking down plenty of three-pointers when her team needed her to.”

"You could look at Katy and see that she is small in stature as far as height goes,” Gregory added. "That is not an accurate reflection of her heart and desire to be the best that she can be. She comes from a strong Christian family, and I think that she will be an excellent fit for us both from a basketball and a school perspective. I look forward to the opportunity of coaching Katy and helping her reach her full potential as a Christian student-athlete at MVNU.”

In addition to playing basketball, Childress was a member of the state-qualifying cross country team as a freshman in 2002.

"There are several reasons why I chose MVNU,” said Childress, who joins former high school teammate Katie Rider in the Lady Cougars’ recruiting class. "It is close to home and I really like the atmosphere there. Plus, many of my friends are going to MVNU.”

MVNU, an NAIA Division II school, finished the 2005-2006 season with a 15-14 overall record. The Lady Cougars, who won the National Christian College Athletic Association national title in 2001, compete in the American Mideast Conference South Division.