Endeavour Ipswich Basketball Club and IBA Copleston star Yazmin Edwards has committed to the Eastern Arizona Community College on a full athletic scholarship. The class of 2024 guard has been recruited by a number of School’s at varying levels and has chosen Eastern Arizona after a successful visit in November.
The 5’8 guard was MVP of the 2023 u18 National Cup final in a winning effort for Ipswich, as well as winning the u18 National Championship last season – she was also a key member of the 2024 National Cup Winning senior women’s team.
Eastern Arizona, play in the Arizona Community College Athletic Conference (ACCAC). Yazmin will be joining former Ipswich teammate Millie Pearson Stateside.
The lightning quick and athletic guard has exploded onto the English Basketball scene in the last year, and has established herself as one of the most exciting players in the WEABL and WNBL.
Yazmin was selected for the initial GB U20 long list in 2023, before injury meant that should could not attend camp.
Edwards becomes the latest in a rapidly growing list of names to come out of the Ipswich programme, to be recruited to play in the States.
Yazmin is halfway through her third year at Ipswich Basketball Academy (IBA) based at Copleston High School & Sixth Form, one of the leading academies as part of the England Development Programme (EDP). Yazmin has been with the Ipswich programme since the age of 11, playing at every age group in their development pathway. During her Ipswich career Edwards has helped Ipswich to an u14 Final Fours (2019), two u18 Final Fours appearances (2022 & 2023), two national cup finals (2022 & 2023) two WEABL Final Fours (2022 & 2023), the u18 playoff and cup championship double (2023) while emerging as a key starter for the Ipswich Senior Women in WNBL Division One this season. Yazmin was also a starter and key contributor in this month's WNBL National Cup win, netting 17 points and 11 rebounds.
Edwards is amongst the league leaders in multiple statistical categories in both the WEABL and WNBL.
Endeavour Ipswich Basketball Club Ipswich Head Coach Nick Drane said “Yazmin has been with this programme since she first started playing basketball, and is one of the great adverts for our pathway. She was already a standout player in our junior programme under Coach Kev Manning, before blossoming at our academy. She has come an absolute mile on and off the court and has become an amazing ambassador and role model for our club and academy.
On signing for Eastern Arizona Yazmin had this to say “ I am so excited and sincerely grateful for the opportunity to continue my basketball career in the states. I cannot wait to embark on this new chapter in my life and feel that Eastern Arizona is best fit for me”.
Yazmin will play the remainder of the season for Copleston in the WEABL and Endeavour Ipswich Basketball in WNBL Division One before embarking on the next stage of her basketball adventure.
A message from Yazmin:
I am incredibly grateful at the opportunity I have been given to continue my basketball career over in the states. I am excited to embark on this new chapter of my life and cannot wait to get started. This would not have been possible without the amazing support system I have around me. I would like to thank my parents for the immense support they have provided and the financial sacrifices they have made, allowing me to get the most out of my time here at Ipswich. They have travelled many miles to watch me play and have always been in my corner and supported any decisions I have made while also providing advice anytime it was needed. I would like to thank my Mum for being my rock through this entire journey, my Dad for always have my best interests in mind especially when it came to sports and my Grandparents for again, the money contributions and always tuning in and cheering me on while I played. A lot of this would not have been possible without my Grandma. My Grandma has been at majority of my games, funded a big part of this journey and has never stopped rooting for me. My siblings also deserve a big thanks as they are part of this massive support system and are really my biggest fans. I believe I am very lucky to be surrounded by special people like this who have never left my side. Without them I would not be in this position achieving one of my biggest goals and simply cannot thank them enough.
I would like to thank all my coaches throughout my time at Ipswich Basketball club. From playing U12s through to Senior women’s, each coach along the way helped me to progress into the player and person I am today. The programme has played a massive part in my character development on and off the court and had a positive impact on my life overall. I would like to sincerely thank everyone from Ipswich basketball club from the coaches, my teammates, staff, volunteers and the supporters. I really appreciate all the work that goes unnoticed and effort behind the scenes that provides this platform for individuals like me to get the most out of this programme. Last but not least I would like to thank my Coach, Nick Drane for all of the work he has put in and the time invested into the club and each player’s own development. Nick has played the biggest role in my journey throughout my time at Ipswich. He has been there for me on and off the court and helped me through my most difficult moments. I cannot express how thankful I am for how much support he has provided me with and how much he has helped me develop as a player and a person. He has helped me step outside my comfort zone in becoming a better leader and more vocal player on the team. I look forward to taking these skills acquired to the next step and I can’t wait to progress further. I want to also quickly thank my primary school Britannia for introducing me to the game of basketball in itself. Thankyou for never doubting me.