Former University of Hawai‘i basketball player Amy Sanders is on the opening day roster for the WNBA’s Detroit Shock, the UH athletic department announced yesterday. Sanders is just the second Rainbow Wahine ever to make a WNBA squad and the
Former University of Hawai‘i basketball player Amy Sanders is on the opening day roster for the WNBA’s Detroit Shock, the UH athletic department announced yesterday.
Sanders is just the second Rainbow Wahine ever to make a WNBA squad and the first since Judy Mosley suited up for the Sacramento Monarchs and Los Angeles Sparks in the league’s inaugural season in 1997.
Sanders was ready to sign a one-year rookie contract Friday, the deadline for the final roster cut-down and one day before the season opened yesterday. Sanders had previously signed a training camp contract on April 27 and appeared in all three of the Shock’s preseason contest, averaging 5.0 minutes per game.
The defending champion Shock opened its season yesterday with a 75-68 win over the Sacramento Monarchs. That contest was televised nationally on ABC.
In that contest, Sanders did not get a chance to contribute to the Shock’s performance, but was on the court for 17 seconds, according to the WNBA Web site.
While at UH, Sanders was an all-WAC performer, leading the team in scoring in her junior and senior seasons. The native of Huntington Beach, Calif. finished her UH career in 2007 and played professionally in Sweden last year.
Christen Roper was the last Rainbow Wahine to try out for a WNBA team after participating in the training camp for the Monarchs in 2003. Former UH All-American Nani Cockett also was a member of the Los Angeles Sparks reserve team in 2000.
Yesterday’s game results for the WNBA can be found in the Scoreboard section on page B2.
Full game recaps can be found at www.wnba.com.
