Minnesota women’s basketball head coach Lindsay Whalen announced the addition of 5-10 guard Mercedes Staples to the team’s 2018 recruiting class Wednesday.

A native of Centerville, Utah, Staples currently attends Viewmont High School and is a four-star recruit according to ESPN.com. Additionally, she’s rated by the site as the No. 64 player in the 2018 class and the No. 17 point guard.

“Mercedes is someone that has a lot of different skills and brings a lot to the team,” Whalen said. “She can pass it with the best of them, can see the floor, can shoot and can score it. She’s got great size and length so we’re really excited about her joining our Gopher family. Getting to know her and her family over the last few weeks has been really fun, and we’re just thrilled that she’s going to be a part of our program.”

Staples averaged 22.4 points, 4.3 assists, 3.8 rebounds and 2.8 steals per game this past season, helping the Vikings reach the Class 5A quarterfinals. For her efforts, she was named Class 5A First Team All-State by the Salt Lake Tribune and to the ALL-USA Utah Girls Basketball Team USA Today.

A starter on the varsity team all four years, Staples increased her scoring average from 11.8 points per game as a freshman to 16.6 as a sophomore and 18.1 as a junior. She was a three-time Class 5A All-State selection and reached the state title game as a junior with Viewpoint.

With her addition, Staples joins fellow signees Delaynie Byrne (Arvada, Colo.), Lesila Finau (Dublin, Calif.), Houlfat “Happy” Mahouchiza (Marseille, France) and Jaidah Stewart (Kirkwood, Mo.) in being eligible to compete starting in the 2018-19 season.