Lady Cats Sign Cartersville Center

6-Foot Mostella Joins Georgia Northwestern

 

Cutline: "Terika Mostella, left, talks about off-season workouts with Georgia Northwestern assistant head women's basketball coach Consuelo "Nanae" Saxton moments after her signing in the media center at Cartersville High School in Cartersville, Georgia."

 

Media release: Nearly three months since the Georgia Northwestern Lady Cats broke on to the national scene in the NJCAA Sweet 16, head coach Jim Williams has had his hands full trying to fill the vacancies left by four soon-to-be graduates including 5-foot-11 All- NJCAA Region XVII first-teamer Jessica Williams.

 

This month, 6-foot center Terika Mostella signed her papers sending her to Georgia Northwestern this fall. The Cartersville High School senior center only played one year for the Lady 'Canes. She transferred to Hurricane country after leaving Rome High School one year ago.

"She'll fit into Coach Williams' system well," said Lady Canes Head Girls Basketball Coach, Donna Enis. "She did that for us. She really found her place in the roster. She brings a lot of skill to the table, as well as a great deal of size. That's something you can't coach."

Mostella's Lady 'Canes made it to the GHSA semi-finals one year ago. This season, the 'Canes center helped lead the Cartersville program into post-season play another time. However, a first-round loss in 2012 would end Mostella's prep career on the hardwood. Mostella's past several years were challenging ones forcing some serious decisions. "I decided to come to Cartersville after really feeling like I was in a situation at my last school which may have kept me from graduating."

Former University of Alabama forward Consuelo "Nanae" Saxton is now an assistant head coach for Georgia Northwestern and feels Mostella brings plenty to the 2012-13 season. "She's goal-oriented, has a decent skill set, and most importantly, she really wants it," said Saxton. "Losing Jessica (Williams), Kayci (McGee), and Kelsie (Philpot) put us in a spot where we needed more size. Terika brings that and more." Saxton first approached Mostella about considering Georgia Northwestern after she coached her on a North Georgia A.A.U. squad this year.

The GHSA Region 7-AAA standout will be one of several new Lady Cats helping fill key voids in a Georgia Northwestern line-up from 2011-12 which took them all the way to a NJCAA region title and a trip to the Sweet 16 round of the NJCAA post-season tournament.  Among the standout signees are Armuchee's Sierra Smith and Creekview's Alyssa Nichelson. Nichelson helped lead her Lady Grizzlies (26-4) to the GHSA Round of 16 this spring before falling to Southwest DeKalb on February 28.

Georgia Northwestern saw its season end this past March. The Lady Cats fell on the road to the nation's sixth-ranked team in Montgomery-Rockville (MD). A win would have landed Georgia Northwestern in its first-ever NJCAA Elite Eight appearance in school history.

For more information on Bobcats and Lady Cats Athletics at Georgia Northwestern Technical College, contact the Office of Sports Information at 706.764.3813 or e-mail to dfoley@gntc.edu.

Georgia Northwestern Technical College serves Catoosa, Chattooga, Dade, Floyd, Gordon, Murray, Polk, Walker, and Whitfield counties in Georgia with campuses located in Floyd, Gordon, Polk, Walker, and Whitfield counties. Approximately 26,000 people benefit from GNTC's credit and noncredit programs, making it the largest college in

Northwest Georgia and the fourth largest technical college in Georgia.