Kayla Mokwuah's '18 girls' basketball season is off to a great start – and it's only October.
Kayla, who led Wilbraham & Monson Academy to the New England Class C semifinal last season, was recognized by Northeast Girls Recruiting on its list for Massachusetts Top 2018 Recruits.
"When I first found out I was really surprised because I haven't played AAU in a few years so I wasn't expecting to get recognized," said Kayla, who averaged 25 points, 19 rebounds and five blocks last season. "I'm really honored and I have a lot of people to thank, like Coach (Durelle) Brown and my family. They've helped me along in the process."
The 6-foot-4 athletic center touched on an excellent point. The vast majority of the players on the list, and probably all of them, play AAU basketball in the spring and summer. Many of these rankings and lists stem from AAU, not high school. Kayla, though, hasn't played AAU since her sophomore year, making her appearance on the list all the more impressive.
"I accumulated a lot of offers after my sophomore year and I found a school that I loved and I committed my junior year," Kayla explained. "I dealt with a lot of recruiting my junior year and it was overwhelming. When I found a school I loved I decided to commit to them and decided not to play AAU, which is more for recruiting purposes and less for playing."
Kayla plans to eventually play for George Washington University, located in Washington D.C.
"I was really impressed with the campus, and I loved the city feel to it," Kayla said. "The coaching staff is amazing. Jen Rizzotti is a basketball legend and will go down in the history books. The coaching staff feels like family already. And, it's a great school. I can play at a Division I school and get a scholarship and go to a good school to get the degree I want. They have a lot of majors I can choose from."
Before Kayla heads to D.C., however, she has some unfinished business to tend to at WMA. The Titans, who reached the quarterfinal round in 2016 before going a step further in 2017, are looking forward to taking the program to the next level in 2017-18.
"I'm really excited to play with the new girls," Kayla said. "Everyone looks good. I think we're going to have to work on playing together since some of us haven't played together and we only have four returners. But I have really high hopes. We have our old team who built a program and took it to a really high level, and the returners and new players know the level we're trying to reach this year and everyone's goal is the same."