Rachel Diener Signs To Play Basketball For Billikens

Saint Louis University head women's basketball coach Jill Pizzotti today announced that 5-foot-9 guard Rachel Diener (Fond du Lac, Wis. / Fond du Lac) has signed a financial aid agreement to attend the University and play basketball for the Billikens. She will have four years of eligibility beginning with the 2002-2003 season. Diener's cousin, Drew, is a senior on the Billiken men's basketball team.

"We are extremely fortunate to get a quality player like Rachel this late in the summer," Pizzotti said. "Like all the Dieners, she can flat out shoot the ball. We needed another outside shooter, and Rachel can come in and contribute to the team."

Diener averaged 22.1 ppg as a senior for the Cardinals and led the Fox Valley Association in scoring the last two seasons. The lefthander finished as the second-leading scorer in Fond du Lac High School history with 1,411 points. Diener was a three-time All-State selection and was a member of the second team as a senior. She is considered one of the state's best outside shooters and hit 74 3-pointers last year. Diener was rated as the No. 4 guard in the state by the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel and played in the Wisconsin Basketball Coaches Association All-Star game. She led Fond du Lac to an 18-5 record this past season.

Diener's brother, Travis, plays basketball at Marquette and her cousin, Drake, plays basketball for DePaul. Her uncle, Dick Diener, is the head boy's basketball coach at Fond du Lac High School.