The University of Mississippi Athletics
Lady Rebels Announce The Transfer Of Carla Bartee
6/24/2004 | Women's Basketball
June 24, 2004
OXFORD, Miss. - Ole Miss women's basketball Head Coach Carol Ross announced Thursday that Carla Bartee has decided to transfer to Ole Miss from Western Kentucky University.
Due to NCAA Division I transfer rules, the 6-0 forward will be ineligible for competition during the 2004-05 season, but will be allowed to practice with the team. She will be eligible for participation in 2005-06, and will have three years of eligibility remaining.
"Our rising program just got better with the addition of Carla Bartee," said Ross. "We are excited to have Carla back in the state of Mississippi wearing the Ole Miss uniform."
As a freshman at WKU, Bartee played in all 34 games, starting 27 and averaged 11.8 points and 8.8 rebounds per game. She scored a career-high 21 points on two occasions and posted a career-high 17 boards against Arkansas-Little Rock. Bartee notched nine double-doubles on the season, including a 21 point-12 rebound effort against Ole Miss.
Bartee earned All-Tournament Team honors at the 2004 Sun Belt Conference Championship. She helped lead the Lady Toppers to the title game by tallying 15.0 points and 7.0 rebounds in the tournament.
Bartee finished the 2003-04 season ranked 20th in the Sun Belt Conference in scoring and fourth in rebounding, while helping guide WKU to a 20-14 overall record and a 10-4 mark in conference play. The Lady Toppers advanced to postseason play, falling in the Third Round of the Women's NIT to UNLV, 78-75.
A native of Waynesboro, Miss., Bartee is a 2003 graduate of Wayne County High School where she averaged 24.4 points, 12.3 rebounds and 2.0 blocks during her senior season, leading Wayne County to a 26-5 overall mark and a runner-up finish in Class 5A.
"Carla is one of the better athletes I have ever coached," said Wayne County head coach Gina Skelton. "She is a tremendous rebounder and just has a real love for the game." Bartee was named First Team All-State in 2003 and was three-time Dandy Dozen pick by The Clarion Ledger. She was an honorable mention All-South pick by The Orlando Sentinel in 2003.
She averaged 16.3 points and 11.6 rebounds as a junior at Wayne County, earning Second Team All-State honors and Honorable Mention All-America honors from Street & Smith.
Bartee, the fifth signee of Ole Miss' 2004-05 signing class, will rejoin her Wayne County teammate Tassie Worsham at Ole Miss.
"It will be exciting to see Carla and Tassie playing together again," said Skelton. "They were a great 1-2 punch at Wayne County and I think they can have the same chemistry at Ole Miss."
Worsham, also a Waynesboro, Miss., native, is one of four other signees slated to arrive in Oxford in the fall, joining Dee Forrest (Louisville, Miss.), LaTanya Jones (Mableton, Ga.) and Lindsay Roy (Marks, Miss.).
2004-05 Ole Miss Women's Basketball Signees
Carla Bartee, 6-0, F, Waynesboro Miss./Wayne County HS/Western Kentucky
Dee Forrest, 6-1, F, Louisville, Miss./Louisville HS
LaTanya Jones, 5-10, G, Mableton, Ga./ Pebblebrook HS/Pensacola (Fla.) Junior College
Lindsay Roy, 5-9, G, Marks, Miss./Delta Academy
Tassie Worsham, 5-9, G, Waynesboro, Miss./Wayne County HS
