Feb. 3, 2006

NEWARK, NJ - Jill Dickinson of Milltown has signed a national letter of intent to continue her basketball career at New Jersey Institute of Technology, NJIT head women's coach Kim Bowen Lusk announced today.

A 1,000-point scorer at Spotswood High, Dickinson was a first-team All-Greater Middlesex Conference selection as a senior. A two-time team MVP, she was also a three-time honorable-mention all-division honoree.

Dickinson, a 5-foot-8 shooting guard, played at the AAU level for Hoops America. She also played two years of varsity softball at Spotswood. The daughter of Bill and Debbie Dickinson of South Moetz Drive, she has been accepted into NJIT's School of Management. Her sister, Beth Ann, is Spotswood's all-time leading scorer and an assistant coach at Division-I Georgetown University.

"We are thrilled to add Jill to our roster," Lusk said. "She is a versatile guard who brings an energetic, aggressive style of play to our lineup, as well as another outside threat."

The Highlanders are entering their final season as members of the Division II Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference. In 2004-05, they set a school record for victories with an 18-12 record, finishing fourth in the CACC, and made the program's first appearance in the ECAC playoffs.

New Jersey Institute of Technology, the state's public research university, enrolls more than 8,200 students in bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees in 100 degree programs. NJIT is renowned for expertise in architecture, applied mathematics, wireless communications and networking, solar physics, advanced engineered particulate materials, nanotechnology, neural engineering and eLearning. The Highlanders' athletics department sponsors 15 NCAA Division-II varsity sports, eight for men and seven for women, plus Division I men's soccer. NJIT is completing an exploratory year to move its entire athletic program to the Division I level.