OKLAHOMA CITY – Oklahoma City University added Arizona first-team all-stater Kayla MacKenzie to its women’s basketball team for 2010-11.
MacKenzie, a 5-foot-7 guard, became all-Arizona, first-team Class 4A all-state and region player of the year as a senior at Glendale Raymond S. Kellis (Ariz.) High School. She picked up all-Arizona and first-team 4A all-state honors twice and region player of the year three times.
OCU has won NAIA Division I women’s basketball championships in 1988, 1999, 2000, 2001 and 2002. The Stars are tied for the most wins (335) among NAIA women’s basketball programs and second only to Connecticut in the nation over the past decade.
The Stars went 32-4 and reached the NAIA Division I Tournament semifinals for the 10th time in program history in 2009-10. OCU also became Sooner Athletic Conference co-champions and won the SAC Tournament title.
“We are extremely excited to add Kayla to the OCU family,” OCU coach Rob Edmisson said. “Kayla is the definition of the student-athlete that we aspire to have here at OCU. Not only will she add to the rich tradition of our basketball program, but she will also be a positive addition to our student body. We believe that her basketball talents will continue to help OCU stay as one of the best programs in the country.”
In 2009-10, MacKenzie averaged 27.3 points and 5.2 rebounds while dishing out 147 assists and picking up 176 steals. She set 4A state single-game records with 54 points and 18 steals and the 4A career record with 520 free throws.
As a junior, MacKenzie racked up all-Arizona and first-team 4A all-state while also becoming region player of the year and West Valley player of the year. She scored a 4A state record 27.9 points a game and 892 total points.
MacKenzie earned region player of the year as a sophomore and first-team all-West Valley Region acclaim as a freshman.