Carthage College women's basketball coach Tim Bernero has announced verbal commitments from six top high school players to attend Carthage in the fall. The six are guard Gabby Chapa (5-9, Barrington, Ill./Lake Zurich), forward Ashley Hermanson (6-0, Monroe, Wis.), guard Stephanie Kuzmanic (5-8, Mount Prospect, Ill./Wheeling), forward Kristi Schmidt (5-9, Bloomington, Ill./Normal Community), guard Haley Stercic (5-4, Chicago, Ill./Marist) and center Michelle Wenzel (6-0, Darien, Wis./Delavan-Darien).

Chapa was named Daily Herald honorable mention all-area her senior year and was the MVP of the Lake County all-star game. Hermanson was named both Wisconsin Basketball Coaches Association first-team and Associated Press honorable mention Division 2 all-state her senior year, as well as Wisconsin State Journal first-team All-Badger South Conference with a 10.7 points-per-game mark and 7.1 rebounds. She was also named WBCA first-team and AP honorable mention all-state her junior year, as well as first-team all-conference and Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association all-tournament on a 22-5 state-championship team.

Kuzmanic was named All-Mid-Suburban League and Daily Herald all-area as a senior with a 10.5 points-per-game mark, 5.5 rebounds and 2.3 assists and all-conference her junior year on team that finished third in the Illinois High School Association Class 4A state championship. She was also a member of Wheeling High School boxing team. Schmidt was named last year's Big 12 Conference “co-player of the year” and Bloomington Pantagraph first-team all-area with a 16.7 points-per-game average and 9.9 rebounds.

Stercic earned Illinois Basketball Coaches Association honorable mention all-state honors last season and Chicago Sun-Times honorable mention all-area accolades. She was named All-East Suburban Catholic Conference and Southtown Star all-area both her junior and senior years. Stercic set a school career scoring record and school season records for both points and three-point field goals. Wenzel was named honorable mention All-Southern Lakes Conference and honorable mention All-Walworth County her senior year.

"This is a very good incoming class,” notes coach Bernero, “and one with some very accomplished players. I really like the fact that most of them come from state-championship-caliber programs. They are used to winning and expect to win. They all have a great energy about getting their Carthage careers started, and I can't wait to add them to the team we have coming back."

Last year's Lady Reds (24-5 and ranked 11th in the final "D3hoops.com" poll), advanced to the “sweet 16” of the NCAA Division III Women's Basketball Championship before losing to defending-national-champion and No. 5 George Fox University, 55-48, in the sectional semifinals in St. Louis, Mo.