Fowler, a 5-foot-6 guard from Mt. Eaton, Ohio, was a four-year varsity player at Hiland High School, where she helped the team to an amazing 102-8 four-year record (.927 winning percentage), four Inter-Valley Conference titles, and three Ohio Division IV state championships. As a senior, Fowler averaged 4.9 points and 2.3 rebounds while shooting 47.6 percent from the field and 37.0 percent from three-point range. She also totaled 23 assists and 47 steals.

“Gabby will be a great addition and a very important part of our team next season,” said MVNU head coach Steve Gregory. “We wanted to add another person to bolster and strengthen our perimeter attack, and I think that is exactly what we did with the addition of Gabby.”

“Gabby comes from an outstanding background as she has been a part of three high school state championships in four years at Berlin Hiland,” Gregory added. “Three of their top five senior players are going on to play college basketball next season which speaks volumes of the quality of players that Coach (Dave) Schlabach develops within his program there. Gabby is used to success and will bring that mentality to our program. While she did not put up huge numbers in high school, she did not have to with the talent that surrounded her. She deferred quite frequently and did so knowing the bigger picture was getting to state. She is a very good perimeter shooter and shot 37 percent from three-point range as a senior.”

“Gabby also brings with her strong leadership skills,” Gregory continued. “She is a lot like having a coach on the floor. She understands the game and what needs to be done. She is not afraid to go out each night and compete knowing that it is a physical game and that she’s only 5-foot-6. She is willing to go out and defend hard, transition quickly to offense, and find creative ways to help her team score by whatever means necessary. She will rebound the ball and find the open player which are also critical aspects of the game. I think she is anxious to prove herself at the college level after a very satisfying and successful high school career. I look forward to the opportunity to help her reach her full potential as a student, player, and Christian athlete.”

In addition to playing basketball at Hiland, Fowler was inducted into National Honor Society and served on Student Council for one year.

“There are several reasons why I chose MVNU,” said Fowler of her college choice. “I really like the Christian-based atmosphere. It was very important to me to be somewhere where most of the people are looking to forward their faith. (MVNU) seems to have that.”

MVNU finished the 2007-2008 season with an 18-12 overall record. The Lady Cougars also advanced to the championship game of the National Christian College Athletic Association East Region Tournament before falling 65-62 in overtime at Roberts Wesleyan (N.Y.) College.