EDINBURGH (NCAA Women) - One young Scottish woman has her sights set on playing basketball at the 2012 London Olympics and is receiving the support she needs to get there.
basketballscotland are delighted to announce Mairi Buchan, a 6'2 tall seventeen year old player from Falkirk Fury, as the first player selected to the new 2012 Potential Programme.
Following on from the success of Scotland's Robert Archibald playing for Great Britain last summer, Buchan has taken a major step forward by announcing her intention to attend a Division 1 University in the United States.
After a recent visit to the US, Buchan chose Old Dominion University (ODU).
Buchan will have to wait until the Spring signing period in late April before she can sign her scholarship agreement, but when she does, she will become the first Scottish female player to attend a Top 25 Division 1 university in the US.
The ODU Lady Monarch's, led by Head Coach Wendy Larry, have won an astonishing sixteen conference titles in a row.
Buchan was shown around the Lady Monarch's impressive home court, one of the best college venues in America, and watched the team practice before sitting down to view the team take on number 19 ranked Michigan State. Despite the Spartans having the NCAA's tallest female player in 6'9 Alyssa De Haan, Buchan was very impressed when Coach Larry and the Lady Monarchs pulled off another victory.
Buchan spent time with the team and academic advisors, as well as the University President and Athletic Director before heading home after a whirlwind four days.
After speaking with her family, Buchan decided the Lady Monarchs and ODU is where she sees herself for the next four years.
Buchan had this to say about her choice of Old Dominion,
"It's the right fit. The basketball is such a fantastic programme to be a part of, but it is also a great school where I can continue my education. The coaching staff are first class and I really liked the girls on the team so I am very excited to pull on the Lady Monarchs uniform next season.
"Donna Finnie, 2012 Potential Programme Coordinator, commented, "Mairi is a role model for any girl out there with aspirations to play at the highest level available to them. She will play alongside some great athletes over the next four years, and this decision will assist in her goal of making the GB senior team. Coach Larry and her staff are an unbelievable group who will help Mairi develop her game to the next level. Old Dominion is a top university that give's their athletes' fantastic support."
This summer Buchan will represent Scotland in the Under 18 European B Division Championships in Macedonia and hopefully star in the GB U20 programme when they travel to Poland.
basketballscotland launched the new 2012 Potential Programme to identify and support Scottish players with the potential to represent Great Britain.
Buchan said, "I am so excited to be supported by this new programme. Making the next step is going to be tough but it has always been my dream to wear a GB uniform and I am going to do whatever it takes to do that.
Already, the support for my US college process has been great. I wouldn't have known where to start with all the forms and speaking to coaches so it's been so good having someone do all that for me and talk me through it as well as look at my needs analysis to identify my strengths and weaknesses. I feel honoured every time I pull on a Scotland uniform and the GB team would be the icing on the cake."
Ron Wuotila, Performance Manager for Great Britain, commented, "basketballscotland is clearly on the right path with their 2012 Potential Programme. This talented young woman will benefit greatly from the structure that basketballscotland has put in place. British Performance Basketball looks forward to tracking her progress in the coming years"
Buchan's club coach with Falkirk Fury, Jennifer McLaren, said "Mairi is one of the hardest workers, on and off the court, and she has the best attitude - for someone so young she is just so focused on being the best she can be."
Prior to Buchan's US visit, the Lady Monarchs had just returned from the Paradise Jam tournament in the Virgin Islands where they had played number 2 ranked Connecticut and number 4 Stanford losing closely, before beating number 22 Penn State comfortably.
The Lady Monarchs win over Michigan State took them to number 15 in the Division 1 rankings. The team then travelled to take on the Lady Vols of Tennessee and their future Woman's NBA player, Candace Parker.
The 2012 Potential Programme is currently considering several more applications and news on other programme athletes will appear soon.
Basketball Scotland
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