BATON ROUGE ? After earning their second-straight NCAA Tournament berth and winning back-to-back Southeastern Conference Western Division titles, the LSU volleyball team has received three National Letters of Intent during the early signing period, it was announced by Tiger head coach Fran Flory on Wednesday.
LSU received NLI’s from Brittney Johnson of University High School in Baton Rouge, Angela Bensend of Frisco Centennial High School in Plano, Texas, and Tania Schatow from Fraser High School in Fraser, Mich.
A 6-0 setter and middle blocker, Johnson led the Lady Cubs to the Louisiana state semi-finals this season on her way to earning her second District 3, Division IV-2A Most Valuable Player honor. The lefty was also a three-time Louisiana Volleyball Coaches Association small schools division all-state selection and earned all-district and all-metro honors for four seasons. In addition, she was named the All-Metro Most Valuable Player in 2005 after recording 505 kills, 118 blocks and 40 service aces.
“Brittany is one of the most talented athletes we have signed at LSU in recent history,” said Flory. “Her abilities will fit directly into our style of play and will enhance our offensive system. She is a very balanced student-athlete who will also provide great leadership both on the court and in the classroom. We are thrilled to add a truly outstanding student-athlete from Baton Rouge to our roster.”
Johnson’s 2004 squad advanced to the state finals, the farthest University High School has ever advanced in the state tournament, as the Lady Cubs also made three state semi-finals appearances in her career. After the conclusion of this season, she participated in the LVCA All-Star match as a member of the West squad.
An outstanding basketball player, Johnson was a “Street and Smith’s” honorable mention All-American. She also earned all-state honors twice, while being selected to the all-district team four times and the all-metro team three times.
A Wendy’s High School Heisman Award state finalist, Brittney is the daughter of Stephan and Bonita Johnson. She has been outstanding in the classroom, carrying a 4.02 grade point average while earning awards in chemistry and physics and being named the sophomore Student of the Year. Johnson’s mother, Bonita, also attended LSU.
A 6-1 outside hitter, Bensend led her 2005 Bishop Lynch High School team to its first ever 2005 Texas Association of Private and Parochial Schools state title before transferring to Frisco Centennial High School this year. In addition, she earned 2004-05 TAPPS first-team all-state honors and all-district MVP honors as well as being named to the state All-Tournament team. This season at Frisco Centennial, she helped the Titans advance to the regional finals as they finished the season at 39-3.
“Angela is an outstanding, multi-faceted athlete,” said Flory. “Her versatility will allow us to continue to improve our system where she will have the opportunity to contribute in many ways. She is a dynamic and powerful athlete who will enhance the physicality of our team. Once again we are very excited to have Angela join our program.”
As a member of the Dallas Skyline Volleyball Club, Bensend helped the 16’s RoShamBo team to a third place finish at the Junior Olympics national tournament in 2005. A year earlier, she helped the 15’s Victory team to a third place finish at the Junior Olympics American Division tournament. Angela is the daughter of Elliott and Paula Bensend.
A 6-4 middle blocker from just outside of Detroit, Schatow led Fraser High School to the Michigan state tournament finals, where the Ramblers lost to East Kentwood in four games. In the championship match, Schatow recorded 10 kills and a team-best .350 hitting percentage.
“Tania is an outstanding physical talent,” said Flory. “She will not only increase our size, but she will increase our athleticism. She is a multi-sport star who has excelled in every sport. Tania is a true competitor and a true athlete. Her size and ability will fit right into our system and allow us to continue to be successful. We are truly excited she has chosen to be a Tiger.”
Named the “Best volleyball player in Michigan” by Rise Magazine during her senior year, she earned honorable mention all-state honors as a junior. In addition, she was an all-league and first-team all-county selection in 2005 as well.
An outstanding all-around athlete, she also earned honorable mention Class A all-state honors in 2005 and 2006. Schatow was also a two-time all-metro, all-county and all-league selection, earning first-team all-county honors as a senior. In 2006, she was also named a third-team All-Detroit selection.
The daughter of Bob and Dee Schatow, Tania led the Ramblers to the 2006 state championship basketball game against Detroit Martin Luther King, where she scored six points and had three blocks and three rebounds in the six-point loss. In the semi-final win over Lowell, she recorded eight points, with 11 rebounds and four blocks.