Kamiakin senior Courtney Nelson signed a national letter of intent to play basketball at Northwest Nazarene University next year.

Nelson, 5-foot-10 guard, helped lead the Braves to the Class 3A state tournament the last two seasons. Kamiakin was 23-0 heading into last season's state tournament, before losing twice. She averaged 15.1 points and 8.5 rebounds for the Braves, who consistently have been one of the state's best teams in recent years.

Kamiakin opens the 2012-13 season at 7:30 p.m. Friday at West Valley (Yakima).

Northwest Nazarene is an NCAA Division II school, which plays in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference. Other schools in the GNAC for women's basketball include Central Washington, Western Washington, Seattle Pacific and Saint Martin's.

"We are thrilled to get a player with Courtney's versatility, skill and athleticism," NNU head coach Kelli Lindley said in a press release. "She is a very strong athlete that can play any position from point guard to power forward. She has excellent ball handling skills, can penetrate well, and is an outstanding rebounder. She will be a perfect fit in our system."