Newcastle Eagles WBBL have gone Down Under to get back on top after recruiting Australian forward Georgia Ohrdorf.
And the 23-year-old can’t wait to test her top flight credentials in Sunday’s mouthwatering season-opener at cross-border rivals Caledonia Pride.
“It’s always exciting to play for a new team and discover how we can grow together as a group of players,” said the MSU Denver graduate.
“Pre-season has gone really well and off the court these are girls I want to spend my time with.
“On court we still have a lot of work to do and it feels as if the Pride game has snuck up on me to be honest.
“I’ve been in Newcastle for a couple of weeks now and the time has flown by. Suddenly we’ve got out first match. But I can’t wait.”
Ohrdorf hails from Wollongong and arrived on Tyneside via a four-year stint at MSU Denver where she graduated with a degree in Biology.
The Aussie star will study for a Masters degree in Public Health at Northumbria University after meeting with Eagles’ coach Chris Bunten earlier this year.
“I think like everyone Chris talked to, I was concerned when I heard that Northumbria had decided to pull out its national league teams,” added Ohrdorf.
“For a while it looked like I wouldn’t be realising my ambition to play WBBL basketball in Newcastle after all.
“Thankfully the Eagles stepped in to save the team and now everyone sees this as a huge opportunity to grow the women’s game here.
“I went out with the men’s team to see how their Hoops For Health programme works and the kids couldn’t wait to meet their Newcastle heroes.
“I would like to think we can make the same kind of impact within the community now that we share our name with the men’s team.”
Ohrdorf was a standout player back home – starring for the Illawarra Kittyhawks in the New South Wales Waratah League.
She led the New South Wales Under 20s to silver and bronze in the Australian Junior Championships in 2013 and 2014 respectively.
And as an MSU Denver Roadrunners favourite she was named 2015-2016 Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference women’s basketball academic player of the year.
Ohrdorf is expected to make her Eagles debut against the Pride on Sunday (1pm tip-off) with Bunten due to finalise his roster later this week.
