Marquette Signs Three to National Letters of Intent

MILWAUKEE — Marquette University women's basketball head coach Megan Duffy and her staff announced the Golden Eagles' 2022 signing class on Wednesday morning, as Emily La Chapell, Aizhanique Mayo and Charia Smith ink National Letters of Intent to play at MU.

"What an exciting day for Marquette basketball," Duffy said. "We are thrilled to officially welcome three terrific women to our program in Emily, Aizhanique and Charia. Each student-athlete brings all the qualities we look for to help continue our winning tradition. They are driven both on the court and in the classroom, and aspire to help make Marquette better for years to come. I would like to thank our recruiting coordinator, Justine Raterman, and assistant coaches Kelly Komara and Tasha Taylor for their hard work and dedication to bring this class to Milwaukee."

A native of Appleton, Wisconsin, La Chapell is ranked as the top senior in the state of Wisconsin and a four-star, top-100 recruit in ESPN's HoopGurlz recruiting rankings. The 5-foot-11 guard earned WBCA First Team All-State honors last season and has led the Fox Valley league in points and assists the past two seasons.

A four-year letterwinner at Appleton East High School, La Chapell was a unanimous first-team all-conference, all-defense and all-area selection as a junior in 2020-21, as she averaged 19.5 points, 6.7 boards and 5.0 assists per contest, while shooting 53.5 percent (175-of-327) from the field and 40.4 percent (38-of-94) from 3-point range.

"Emily is an incredible addition to our program," Duffy said. "She has shown the ability to impact the game in many ways with her scoring, passing and playmaking abilities. Emily fits great into our system with her strong IQ and winning mentality."

Mayo is a 5-foot-8 guard who was named the 2020-21 MaxPreps Connecticut High School Player of the Year and was a first team all-state honoree. As a junior at Notre Dame Catholic, Mayo earned first team all-conference accolades after averaging 20.4 points, 7.0 assists, 6.8 rebounds and 5.0 steals per contest, and was the South-West Conference championship game MVP. Additionally, Mayo shot 44 percent from the field and 47 percent from behind the arc.

Through three seasons at Notre Dame Catholic, Mayo has led her team to a 58-3 overall record and the Lancers have earned back-to-back conference titles the past two seasons.

"Aizhanique had a great summer out on the AAU circuit this past year, setting the stage as a big-time scorer," Duffy said. "She can play multiple positions and makes players around her better. We love her ability to stretch defenses from deep and play at a fast pace. Her commitment to improve every year has been impressive to watch."

A versatile 6-foot-1 forward from Colombus, Ohio, Smith is a three-year letterwinner at Westerville Central High School. She has earned All-OCC accolades each of her three seasons as a prep. Smith helped the Warhawks to an OCC championship in 2020-21 and a 16-6 overall record. As a junior, she averaged 12 points and seven rebounds per contest.

Smith earned third team All-Central District honors as a junior after being an honorable mention selection each of the previous two seasons. She also plays AAU ball with All-Ohio Black.

"Charia brings great versatility to the front court," Duffy said. "Her ability to score inside and out with an impressive toughness makes her a great fit for us here at Marquette. We love her touch around the rim and rebounding prowess. Her experience playing on the Nike circuit gave her the opportunity to play against the highest level of competition from around the country this past summer.

All three will join Marquette in the summer of 2022 and have four years of eligibility remaining.

Marquette Signs Three to National Letters of Intent

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