Contact: Renee Adam
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CLEVELAND, Ohio - The Cleveland State women's basketball program has added five players to the lineup for the 2013-14 season, as Olivia Voskuhl (Notre Dame Academy/Kentucky), Chrishna Butler (Gahanna Lincoln/Columbus, Ohio), Khayla Livingston (Archbishop Edward McCarthy/Florida), Brooke Thompson-Smith (Twinsburg/Twinsburg, Ohio) and Alliyah Anderson (Dillard/Florida) have signed National Letters of Intent to attend Cleveland State beginning next fall.
Voskuhl, a 5-foot-10 forward, will join the Vikings after leading Notre Dame Academy to back-to-back District Championships. Voskuhl has led her team in scoring and rebounding the past two seasons, while averaging 13.1 points per game and 6.4 rebounds per game as a junior. She has earned multiple honors throughout her high school career, including 2012 KHSAA District 35 Girls Basketball MVP, All-Star Division I NKY Girls Basketball Coaches Association Team accolades (2010-11, 2011-12) and a pair of Regional All-Tournament nominations (2011, 2012).
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"Olivia was our first commitment and we are very excited to add her to our program. She represents a lot of things that we don't have - she is a big physical guard with a sweet shooting touch. She will add size and skill to our perimeter position," Peterson Abiad said.
Livingston is a 5-foot-6 guard, who enters her senior season at Archbishop Edward McCarthy High School owning a 51-8 record during her career. As a junior, she led her team to an undefeated 24-0 regular season, a district & conference title and a spot in the Florida State Regional semifinals. The squad finished the year with a 27-1 record, and was ranked No. 1 by the FHSAA for the majority of the season. Livingston averaged 14.6 points per game, 6.6 rebounds per game, 6.5 assists per game and 3.7 steals per game, while posting eight double-doubles and earning recognition as a Sun Sentinel FAB 5 Prospect.
"Khayla is a dynamic point guard with tremendous scoring ability. She is crafty and smart and will be able to play both the point guard and off guard position. Her work ethic and passion for basketball is one of the best I have seen. We are fortunate to add a player of her caliber to our program," Peterson Abiad said.
Thompson-Smith, a 5-foot-8 guard, will join the Vikings after playing at Twinsburg High School, one of the top programs in the country. Thompson-Smith averaged 6.4 points per game as a junior, leading Twinsburg to their second straight state title. An athletic off-guard, Thompson-Smith has been one of Twinsburg's best pressure defenders and a top scorer in the uptempo offense.
"Brooke is a perimeter player who is quick and aggressive, and her athleticism will help us both at the offensive and defensive end of the court. She is a confident, young player and she comes from a winning program. Brooke has continued to improve throughout her high school career and I am excited to see the levels she can reach in college athletics," Peterson Abiad said.
Anderson, a 6-foot-1 post, joins the Cleveland State program after leading Dillard High School to a No. 4 ranking in the state of Florida with a 25-4 record last season. As a junior, she averaged 8.3 points per game and 7.0 rebounds per game, serving as one of Dillard's top physical defenders.
"The addition of Alliyah fills a significant void for us in the paint. Her size and physical play should transition nicely to the collegiate game. She is both skilled and athletic and has excellent foot speed for her position. Alliyah may be the key to this recruiting class because she will bring us a dimension that we have not had in recent years," Peterson Abiad said.
Butler is a 5-foot-8 guard that will come to Cleveland State after a high school career at Gahanna Lincoln, the same high school as current Viking Haley Schmitt. Last year as a junior, Butler averaged 9.0 points per game, 2.3 rebounds per game, 2.0 steals per game and 2.0 assists per game. She will become a four-year letterwinner at Gahanna Lincoln and has earned Honorable Mention All-Conference and All-District honors as a freshman, sophomore and junior.
"Chrishna rounds out our recruiting class, she is a versatile guard with good quickness and athleticism. Chrishna is a great kid, as we were searching for the final player for our 2013 recruiting class we felt that she was exactly the player and person that we wanted," Peterson Abiad said.