Bismarck High girls basketball star Sarah Feeney has always dreamed about playing NCAA Division I basketball.

Getting a top-notch education is also part of the plan.

Feeney can have it both ways. She signed a letter of intent on Wednesday to attend the University of Denver in Colorado for the next school year. She will also be able to pursue her academic interests in biology.

"They have an awesome academic reputation,"Feeney said. "It's a great school. I went down there to visit them. I was impressed with their coaching staff, especially their head coach. He was very enthusiastic."

Other early signings include Cole Frenzel of Dickinson, who signed to play baseball at the University of Arizona in Tucson. The University of Mary signed three women's players on Wednesday.

Feeney returns as one of the top players in North Dakota. The 6-foot-2 guard averaged 14.2 points, 6.6 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 3.5 steals per game as a junior. She netted 22 3-pointers en route to Class A All-State first-team honors.

Feeney helped the Demons finish runner-up at the Class A state tournament last season.

Denver competes in the Sun Belt Conference. The Pioneers finished last season at 11-19 and were defeated in the first round of the SBC tournament.

"It's a tough conference,"Feeney said. "There are a lot of physical teams in there. It will be a challenge playing in that league."

In addition to Denver, Feeney considered four other schools Creighton, North Dakota, South Dakota and Idaho State. She wanted to sign early so she could put her entire focus on the upcoming high school season.

"I was always going to sign early," she said. "I want to focus on the year. I want to focus on helping my teammates and doing the best we can."

Frenzel had the opportunity to play both football and baseball in college. Frenzel opted to concentrate on one sport.

"It would have been nice to play both sports in that kind of atmosphere," Frenzel said. "It was easier to focus on one sport."

Frenzel will enter one of the top NCAA Division I programs in the nation. The Arizona Wildcats finished the 2008 season with a 42-19 record after advancing to the NCAA Super Regional round.

"The program they have established is one of the best in the country,"said Frenzel, who is leaning toward a major in business. "I took my official visit there Aug. 30, and I watched a football game with the baseball players and checked the campus out. The coaches are really great guys, and I really liked the atmosphere."

Frenzel helped lead the Dickinson American Legion program to a Class A state championship this past summer. He finished the season with 17 home runs and hit .410 leading up to the state tournament.

Frenzel helped Dickinson place third at the state high school tournament while hitting an impressive .523 in the No. 3 spot. He knocked three home runs, collected 28 RBIs, scored 28 runs, hit 11 doubles and had 11 stolen bases.

Frenzel, who plays shortstop, said he would likely move to third base at Arizona.

University of Mary women's basketball coach Fred Fridley signed two players from Wisconsin and one from South Dakota.

Taylor Luke, a 5-9 guard from Amery, Wis., was an all-state selection and was named the player of the year in her conference as a junior.

Luke led her conference in scoring for the second straight season, averaging 21.9 points. She also collected 3.5 steals and 2.7 assists per game.

She was recently named one of the top 50 senior players by the Wisconsin Girls Basketball Yearbook.

"Taylor is a big-time scorer," said Fridley. "She brings to the table not only great ball skills but also an unbelievable knack to get to the basket and finish in traffic, which is a tough skill to find."

Laura Peterson is a 5-10 guard from Osseo, Wis., known for her defense. She was named one of Wisconsin's top 50 seniors.

She averaged 10.7 points, 3.6 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game as a junior.

"Laura will bring flat-out defense to us next year," Fridley said. "She's a tough kid who has the ability to score but is a defensive stopper. Laura had an incredible summer and earning the Girls Basketball Recruit.com honors shows how good her game is all-around."

Tristan Rogers is a 6-1 post from Pierre, S.D., where she helped Riggs High School to the state AAfinals.

Rogers averaged 6.3 points and 2.2 rebounds a game. She shot 46 percent from the field and 80 percent from the free-throw line.

"A skilled player, Tristan has the ability to shoot jump hooks with her right and left hand," Fridley said "We like to get post players who have good hands and feet, which Tristan has. She can step outside the paint and shoot."