PHILADELPHIA - Sophomore Eleah Parker has been selected as one of 36 collegiate women's basketball players from around the United States to take part in trials for the 2019 U.S. Pan American Games Women's Basketball Team, announced Thursday morning by USA Basketball. Parker is one of just six players selected for the trials from a non-Power 5 institution.

Trials to select the 12-member team will take place May 16-20 at the United States Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The team members will return to Colorado Springs for training camp July 23-Aug. 5, before competing in the women's basketball tournament at the 2019 Pan American Games from Aug. 6-10 in Lima, Peru.

"I feel honored to be invited to the Pan American trials," said Parker. "To be able to compete for the opportunity to represent the United States on a national level is an extremely humbling honor and I will do my best to represent both Penn and the Ivy League in Colorado in a couple of weeks."

Parker recently wrapped up her sophomore season for the Quakers, guiding Penn to the 2019 Ivy League regular-season championship and earning Ivy League Defensive Player of the Year honors as well as being named first-team All-Ivy. The 2018-19 Big 5 Player of the Year, Parker finished the season averaging 15.1 points, 9.0 rebounds and 3.2 blocks per game, leading the Quakers in each category. Her-blocks-per-game mark was good for third nationally, while her 99 blocks on the year tied the single-season program record and ranked second-most in Ivy League history. The Charlotte, N.C. native featured a 26-game double-digit scoring streak this year, matching or resetting her career-high three times, including a 29-point performance in the last weekend of the regular season at Yale. Parker tallied 11 double-doubles on the year and matched her new personal-best in rebounding with 17 against both Villanova and American. Parker's field-goal percentage of .495 led the Ivy League, and she also ranked fourth on the team with 31 steals this year.  

About USA Basketball
Based in Colorado Springs, Colorado, and chaired by retired Gen. Martin Dempsey, USA Basketball is a nonprofit organization and the national governing body for basketball in the United States. As the recognized governing body for basketball in the U.S. by the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) and the United States Olympic Committee (USOC), USA Basketball is responsible for the selection, training and fielding of USA national teams that compete in FIBA-sponsored five-on-five and 3x3 international competitions, as well as for some national competitions and for the development of youth basketball.

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