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48 °F Forecast | Road Cams Thursday, January 27, 2005 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics Tempo AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map SPECIAL SECTIONS Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Menu Guide How To Guide Wellness Connection Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Real Estate Guide Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Wedding Guide Passport to the Rogue Valley EXTRA Newspaper in Education Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People Volunteer Opportunities Moving to Southern Oregon? MARKETPLACE Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Classifieds Place an ad eSouthernOregon Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar CUSTOMER SERVICE Frequent Questions Advertising Information Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Network Affiliate Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend December 19, 2004 Bostwick commits to Portland State By DON HUNT Mail Tribune Kailey Bostwick helped to fuel a turnaround in North Medford girls basketball. Now she hopes to do the same at Portland State University. Bostwick, a 5-foot-6 senior point guard for the Black Tornado, gave a verbal commitment to PSU earlier this week. She’ll sign a letter-of-intent next March and is expected to earn a full scholarship. The Vikings limped to a 7-23 record last season and have struggled to an 0-6 start this year under first-year head coach Charity Elliott. But Bostwick, who was also being recruited by the University of Portland, Northern Arizona, San Francisco and American University in Washington, D.C., is eager to be part of another rebuilding process. North Medford, currently the sixth-ranked Class 4A girls team in the state with a 5-0 record, had suffered through three straight losing seasons before Bostwick helped right the ship during her sophomore year. Since then, the Tornado has posted a 40-16 record. Advertisement "The situations are similar," Bostwick said. "I’ll be starting from the ground up again next season, but if you can turn things around, it makes it that much more satisfying." Bostwick, who is averaging 15.3 points, five assists and three steals per game, could have inked her name on the dotted line at Portland State last month during the early signing period but was still considering other schools at that time. However, once she visited PSU last weekend, she became sold on the school, her future teammates and Elliott. "It just felt like the right place for me to be," Bostwick said. "The players seemed to really get along, and Charity Elliott was amazing. She’s a huge part of this. It just felt like we connected." Bostwick will join three other players from the SOC: former Crater High guard Whitney Black, former Ashland High center Marla Morin and current Klamath Union High standout Jenni Ritter. Black is injured, but Morin, who is at Portland State on a volleyball scholarship, just recently joined the basketball team. She logged eight minutes in a 56-42 loss to Idaho last Sunday in her college debut. Bostwick plans to room with Ritter. "I talked to her on the phone the other night and we’re both really excited to go up there," Bostwick said. "They’re struggling right now and hopefully we can help them." Bostwick believes she can step in and play next season even though Portland State has just two seniors on its roster. "I know nothing will be handed to me, but coach Elliott said she thinks I’ll have a big role," Bostwick said. Bostwick has markedly improved her shooting touch this season, thanks in large part to Anthony Levrets, an assistant coach with the Southern Oregon University men’s team who coached Boswick last summer on an all-star squad. "He fixed my whole shot," Bostwick said. "I had a problem with my off-hand getting in the way. I was basically shooting a knuckleball, but he (Levrets) fixed it. Now I’ve got a lot more rotation on my shot." Reach reporter Don Hunt at 776-4469, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2005 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions Website Feedback ADVERTISERS A D V E R T I S E R S SPECIAL SECTIONS Auto Finder Job Finder Home Finder Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Tempo Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Moving to Southern Oregon? Volunteer Opportunities Student Loan Consolidation Conference Calls - $50/Month Home Security Systems Trunks, Footlocker, Trunk, Footlockers