FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. – After coming off a solid fall season, one that ended with them placing third overall at the Fighting Camel Classic, the Northern Arizona University golf team got a little stronger over the weekend with the signing of two new athletes.

Incoming freshmen Emma Reyes and Loren Skibba will join the Lumberjacks next season and begin their careers at NAU in the fall 2016. Given what each golfer brings to the table, Head Coach Brad Bedortha is eager to see their contributions come to fruition starting next fall.

"I am very excited about Emma and Loren joining our program," said Bedortha. "First, they have the character traits that we are looking for. We talk about true, mental toughness—which is having a great attitude, giving your very best effort, treating people really well and having unconditional gratitude—and they have those traits. Second, having those traits has led them to becoming very good players which is exactly what we are looking for. They both have had great success and will enhance our program."

Reyes is currently a senior at Desert Ridge High School, where she has earned a pair of first-place finishes during her time as a student-athlete: one came at the East Valley Invitational and the other at the Chandler City Junior Championships. In addition to her team qualifying for the Arizona State Championships all four years she has attended Desert Ridge, Reyes is also a four year starter and letter winner and was named captain of the golf team earlier this season.

Just as impressive as her athletic achievements are Reyes' academic ones. The high school senior holds a 3.7 GPA with one semester remaining, and ranks in the top 13th percentile of her graduating class.

Skibba, a native of Wisconsin, has put together quite the high school resume as well. During her time at Middleton High School, Skibba was first team All-State 2013-2015, the Division I Wisconsin State High School Tournament individual runner-up (2015), the Division I Wisconsin State High School Tournament individual champion (2014), and carried the lowest round average in the state (74.68) en route to being named the 2015 Wisconsin All-State Girl Player of the Year.  

Skibba has also excelled in the classroom, maintaining a 3.6 GPA as a member of the National Honor Society.

Both student-athletes plan on studying business administration when they start school next fall.