Mtn. View senior headed to SDSU

Deseret News (Salt Lake City), Nov 5, 2003 by Amy Donaldson Deseret Morning News

Girls are committing right and left in Utah County lately, but it's not the usual wedding kind of promise.

Instead, for the second time in two days, a Utah County athlete has accepted a scholarship to a Division I school. Tuesday afternoon, Mountain View senior Ashley Cheesman verbally committed to San Diego State University. Her announcement came just a day after her teammate, Mallary Gillespie, committed to BYU.

As Cheesman grappled with where she should go to college, the most difficult aspect of the decision had nothing to do with the school.

Instead, the 6-foot center said it was deciding whether she wanted to play with her older sister Danielle at BYU, or play against her.

"That was a major issue," said the younger Cheesman. "I wanted to play with her so badly. But I really felt like San Diego was the place for me . . . It was hard telling her. But she's happy for me, and my parents are really excited for me."

Unlike her teammate, Gillespie, who decided this weekend to rejoin Danielle Cheesman as a Cougar, Ashley Cheesman never thought she'd leave home for college. She visited Colorado State, BYU and SDSU, and, to her surprise, found herself gravitating to the Aztec staff.

"I honestly didn't think I'd go away," she said of leaving home. She's breaking family tradition in that her father and two older sisters have played or are playing at BYU. "I know it will be difficult but I'm ready. I hope I'll be able to find my place and grow there."

Cheesman was a first-team All-State selection last year, despite missing the state championship game with an injury. She averaged double-digit rebounds for the Bruins, who haven't lost a game since 2000.

"I'll have a lot of good opportunities there," she said. "They're kind of in a rebuilding phase, but I really have a lot of faith in the coaches. I could play (Danielle) my freshman year. That'll be interesting."

And while Cheesman hasn't decided what she'd like to study in college, she is flattered by the interest shown in her during the recruiting process.

"It's a great time," she said. "It's nice to know people want you."

E-mail: adonaldson@desnews.com