Naperville Central's Lakstigala picks Penn

Mia Lakstigala was all business when it came to making her college choice.

Naperville Central's 5-foot-10 girls basketball player announced Tuesday she will continue playing at the University of Pennsylvania, choosing the school because she wants to attend the highly regarded Wharton School of Business.

"I just really liked the environment there," said Lakstigala, who took her official visit late last week.

Lakstigala - a two-time Daily Herald All-Area player and the co-MVP of the DuPage Valley Conference last season - led DuPage County in scoring last season with 633 points, a 19.8 points a game average. She also led the county in assists with 5.1 a game.

The Penn women's basketball team gets one slot for the business program, and by committing early Lakstigala will get that slot.

Lakstigala said she's excited to play in the Ivy League.

"There's a lot of good teams, so it will be good competition," said Lakstigala, who has a 4.0 GPA.

Lakstigala said she expects to play both guard positions for coach Mike McLaughlin.

Lakstigala also considered Arizona, Washington, Yale, Bucknell, Saint Louis and Duquesne.

"I just thought Penn would be a better school for me," she said. "Going into the business program was really important."

And then there's the relief of getting the big decision out of the way.

"It's nice to know where I'm going," she said. "I really wasn't planning on committing until after July, but it's nice to know where I'm going. It's a weight off my shoulders."