FALL SIGNEE RELEASE
MOREHEAD, Ky. – Morehead State’s women’s basketball program has added a pair of student-athletes during the spring signing period.
Taybreanna Couch, a transfer from Santa Fe (Fla.) College, and Aaliyah Wells, who set 17 school records at Collins (Ky.) High School, have inked National Letters of Intent to join Head Coach Tom Hodges’ Eagle squad in 2013-14.
Couch, a native of Riverdale, Ga., was named Honorable Mention Mid-Florida Conference as a freshman and sophomore at Santa Fe, which is located in Gainesville, Fla. She will have two seasons of eligibility remaining.
“When recruiting throughout the year, one of our main areas to address was adding a physical presence to our interior game and someone who specialized in rebounding,” Hodges said. “We are excited about Tay. She addresses every need we had and brings such a mature game.”
Couch averaged 5.5 points and 5.6 rebounds per outing as a freshman at SFC for Head Coach Chanda Stebbins and produced 6.0 points and 4.0 rebounds as a sophomore in one of the nation’s toughest junior college conferences.
Hodges believes Couch will make an immediate impact in the frontcourt.
“Chanda Stebbins is one of the great junior college coaches in Florida and has done an outstanding job of bringing Tay along and preparing her to make her mark on the Division I level,” he said. “Tay attacks every possession that I have seen her play with a ferocity and intensity that will benefit our program immediately.”
She prepped at Fayette County (Ga.) High School, leading the Tigers to a state title.
In just three seasons at Martha Layne Collins High School, Wells established four single-game standards, six season records and seven career records.
“We were fortunate enough to find Aaliyah midway through an outstanding senior season that she was having,” Hodges said. “She plays with a toughness and tenacity that will translate very well to the college game and to Morehead State.”
She holds single-game records for points (37), rebounds (19), field goals (17) and assists (6). Her single-season records include points (622), rebounds (331), steals (91), field goals (242), field goal percentage (.510) and free throw percentage (.688). Wells played for Head Coach Philip Condor.
A Shelbyville, Ky., native, she began her career at Shelby County High School but made the move to Collins when the county’s school system split. She concluded her Collins’ career with 1,523 points, 872 rebounds, 248 steals, 197 assists and 610 field goals. She also established Collins’ career field goal accuracy mark at 51 percent. Wells grabbed more than 1,000 rebounds in her four-year high school career.
She is a four-time all-region honoree, a three-time all-region tournament award winner and participated in this season’s East-West All-Star Game at the Sweet 16.
“The thing that really made her stand out was the ability to score the ball from all over the court,” Hodges said. “She played every position for her high school team and excelled wherever she was at and was able to put up big numbers no matter what the situation.”
The pair join fall additions Billie Hearn (Dry Ridge, Ky.), Shay Steele (Salisbury, N.C.) and Shiloh Murphy (Reynoldsburg, Ohio) on the women’s basketball roster for next season. Hodges said he expects to add additional student-athletes this spring as well.
