A slasher, a passer, and a scorer are just three words that describe Notre Dame Green Pond Sophomore Antonia Bates. Her coach Josh Kopp called her “the best passer he has ever had in 16 years at Notre Dame.” And while he will be able to see her excel on the court for another two years, Bates making some big News on Friday, announcing her early intentions to attend Rutgers University and become a Scarlet Knight.
Bates was born in New Jersey and has already received dozens of Division One offers including Penn State, Virginia Tech, and Maryland. Her heart has always been with Rutgers and she is excited about her decision and looks forward to playing for legendary Head Coach C. Vivian Stringer, who has more than 1000 career wins with 525 of those coming for the Scarlet Knights over her last 25 seasons. “When you know a place is for you, it doesn’t matter if you make a decision in two years or four years. I just know that Rutgers was a place I wanted to play for and further my academic and athletic career, and when you know you know and you don’t necessarily need to wait four years for that,” Bates said.
Last season, Bates averaged more than 10 points a game to go along with 5 rebounds and 4 assists, helping the Crusaders finish 25-3 and winning the Colonial League Championship along with reaching the District XI title game. In her first two varsity seasons with Notre Dame, Bates already scored 511 points in 54 games played while also adding 60 3-pointers.
Coach Kopp is excited to be able to coach Bates for two more years and knows that with the decision behind her, Bates will take her game to the next level and help the Crusaders to more success moving forward.
