DeWit verbally commits to MSU
Kayla DeWit runs across the court during the Northwestern A Championship this past February. DeWit recently verbally committed to play basketball at MSU this coming academic year.
COLUMBIA FALLS - The wait has ended for Kayla DeWit.
Columbia Falls' 6-foot-2 senior post verbally committed on June 15 to play basketball for the Montana State Bobcats after her prep career.
DeWit intends to study kinesiology or exercise science and will receive a full-ride scholarship from the Bobcats.
"I'm very excited," DeWit said in a telephone interview.
"The coaches are so easy to get along with - and I loved all the girls I would be playing with. I just had the feeling this is the place for me," DeWit said.
"They're just awesome. I love it there."
And now she can relax for her senior year in Columbia Falls.
"I won't have to worry about anything, impressing other schools, stats. I'll be able to be myself," she said.
"I think it was a good decision for her," said Columbia Falls coach Dan Fairbank.
"There's not the weight of the world, proving she's good enough for college. Now she can enjoy herself and enjoy her senior year of basketball," he said.
"Paula and Kelly (Standon), I'm sure are very proud of both their girls, both playing college basketball," he added.
MSU had scouted DeWit quite a bit this past year, even attending a practice in Columbia Falls, the coach said.
"They think she's not even reached near her potential," he said.
DeWit went to the MSU basketball camp - which was scheduled for June 14-17.
DeWit was sprinting in the first drill of the camp - despite the fact that a foot she injured during the school year wasn't completely healed.
"I really wanted to prove to them I could play Division I," she said.
But the MSU coaches stopped the running, telling her they didn't want her to reinjure herself.
On June 15, DeWit and her mother, Paula Standon, sat down with the Bobcat coaching staff.
"We had a powerpoint and a meeting," DeWit said.
"The feeling after saying ‘yes' was so great. It was just meant to happen. It definitely feels great. I'm very happy with (my choice). No regrets at all. I don't think I will ever have any regrets," she said.
DeWit, a two-time all-state selection, averaged 18.78 points and 11.34 rebounds as a junior. She and older sister Kelsey helped lead the Columbia Falls Wildkats to a 7-1 Northwestern A record and the divisional title.
She has received letters from other schools - University of Montana, Gonzaga, Montana Tech, Carroll, MSU-Northern and MSU-Billings were all among her suitors.