Shantelle Valentine (’14) Signs With Marquette

Shantelle Valentine (6’2”, F, St Roch, 2014) of Brampton, ON has officially signed her National Letter of Intent to play for the Marquette Golden Eagles in the Fall of 2014.

After making the decision to attend the Big East Conference School, the athletic Forward appeared confident she had made the right decision for herself.

“I’m happy with the commitment that I made over the whole recruiting process. It was a hard decision,” said an at-ease Valentine. “But when I first made my decision, I wanted to find the place that I felt that I could fit in and that I felt comfortable with. I think that Marquette had that.”

Valentine’s basketball resume this past year alone indicates that she is hitting her stride at the right time. She was also instrumental in her Brampton Warriors rep team’s undefeated season run in the JUEL league earlier this Spring. She capped off a great summer with a nod as an All-Star as the USJN Nationals in Washington, DC at the end of the July travel period. And most recently, she had recently represented Canada on the international stage, playing on the 3×3 team that Bronze Medalled at the FIBA Americas and also participated in the World Championships in Jakarta, Indonesia back in September.

Feeling that she has a good chance at making an early impact to the Golden Eagles, Valentine will be bringing a lot of tools with her to get the job done. When describing her athleticism, one has to notice how quickly her 6’2” body gets up and down the floor. She has a very good vertical that launches quickly and when combined with her reach can become a shot blocking machine.

“They are definitely a running team,” she said when analyzing how she’ll be able to fit in with them. “They’re a fast paced team, and that’s what I like. I like to run the floor and I rebound and I finish around the basket and I think that I can help them out with that.”

The future Sociology Major who will also be considering Minoring in Business, Sports Law or Sports Management, felt the comfortable on campus when she went to visit on her official visit there towards the end of August. While there she felt that the clincher was the environment with the Golden Eagles and having the chance to compete for minutes right out of the gate.

“Definitely the team atmosphere. With Marquette I know that I can try to make an impact right away. Just because of some of the players that they were loosing. And, I felt that I could come in and help the program.”

Valentine wanted to send thanks to many that had helped her on her journey to this point.
“First, I want to thank God because of the blessings, and I want to thank my all my Coaches: My Brampton [Warriors] rep Coaches, my A-Game Coaches, my high school Coaches, and some people from Canada Basketball like Agnes [Borges] and anyone else along the way. And my parents OF COURSE!!”