PORTLAND, Ore. – Portland State Head Women's Basketball Coach Sherri Murrell has announced the signing on JUCO All-American Shauneice Samms to a National Letter of Intent.

A 6-foot forward, Samms has played the past two seasons at the College of Southern Idaho, where she was a second team NJCAA All-American as a freshman. For her career at CSI, Samms averaged 14.7 points, 7.5 rebounds, 2.8 blocks and 1.1 steals per game and shot 57.1 percent from the floor. She scored in double figures in 53 of the 60 games she played in and also had 19 double-digit rebounding performances.

"I'm very excited to welcome Shauneice to our team," said Murrell. "She's an amazing defender and shot blocker because of her length, timing and quickness off the floor. She will contribute offensively with her strength under the basket along with her ability to score from the outside."

As a freshman, Samms was named the Region 18 Player of the Year after averaging 15.1 points, 8.0 rebounds, 3.1 blocks and 1.1 steals. She helped the Golden Eagles to a 26-5 record and first place in the Scenic West Athletic Conference. CSI went on to lose in the Region 18 championship game and finished 11th in the final top 25 national poll.

This past season, Samms averaged 14.2 points, 7.0 rebounds, 2.4 blocks and 1.1 steals for a CSI team that went 22-9. She earned second team All-Region 18 honors.

Samms prepped at Mt. Tahoma High School in Tacoma, Wash. As a junior she earned first team Class 4A all-state honors, and as a senior she was named league MVP. She helped the Thunderbirds to consecutive fifth-place finishes at the state tournament during her sophomore and juniors seasons. She set state tournament records for most blocks in a game with 12 and most blocks in a tournament with 28. She also set a record with 23 rebounds in one game.

With the addition of Samms, the Vikings will now have four newcomers for next season along with Courtney VanBrocklin, who redshirted this past year after transferring from Boise State. A pair of high school seniors, Allie Brock and Keaton McFadden, signed NLIs back in November, while Kate Lanz signed a financial aid agreement on Monday after transferring from Oregon State. Lanz will redshirt this season due to NCAA transfer regulations, while the other players will all be eligible in 2010-11.

Portland State returns 10 letterwinners and three starters from a team that won the Big Sky Championship and made the schools first appearance in the NCAA Division I Tournament.