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Burnaby's Huynh one of Douglas' prized hoop recruits

Restocking the shelf with an eye of competing again for a PacWest playoff berth, the Douglas College Royals announced its newest recruits for the women’s basketball program.
Jalynne Royals
Among the newest recruits for the Douglas College women's basketball team are, from left, Hailey Van Roekel, Burnaby's Jalynne Huynh, and Surrey's Sarah Sloan.

Restocking the shelf with an eye of competing again for a PacWest playoff berth, the Douglas College Royals announced its newest recruits for the women’s basketball program.

Among the new players are an MVP, a powerful inside-the-paint player and a local leader.

Douglas head coach Steve Beauchamp has added to his team’s lineup, that features 11 potential sophomore returnees, with the addition of six players, plus another player who will red shirt while recovering from an injury.

Leading the way are Langley’s Hailey Van Roekel and Burnaby’s Jalynne Huynh as players who will bring energy and skill to the program.

Van Roekel was a member of the Langley Christian Secondary, who finished third at last spring’s 2-A provincials. A talented distributor, Van Roekel was named the Fraser Valley tourney MVP as well as a provincial all-star.

“I chose Douglas because it's closer to home, and when I went for a visit all the girls were super nice and seemed like they knew the balance between fun and working hard,” she said in a press release.

Beauchamp believes the guard from Langley can make the transition to collegiate sports at the New West campus smoothly.

“She will make an immediate impact, bringing scoring, defensive intensity and leadership to the Royals," he stated.

A key player with the Burnaby Central Wildcats, Huynh has dominated high school level with her shooting prowess and indelible desire to push the play.

Douglas’ coach expects her to be a pacesetter when it comes to ball handling duties.

"Jalynne is a versatile guard who can hit open shots and create scoring opportunities for teammates. She has a great attitude and strong desire to be successful."

The Royals also inked Sarah Sloan, a two-way player coming from Holy Cross, Chantelle Zinger of Maple Ridge, whom Beauchamp says has huge upside, Kenya Reid from Kamloops, a forward that has strong inside-the-paint skills, and University of Northern B.C. transfer Sierra Gallego, who is an Arizona native with superior passing skills.

Haley Hanchard, who graduated from Smithers, will continue her recovery from a basketball injury as a red-shirted member of the Royals

The PacWest women's basketball season officially kicks off Nov. 1 with the Royals visiting defending national champion Vancouver Island.