PROVO, Utah — BYU women’s basketball head coach Lee Cummard announced the signing of Illinois native Stella Sakalas on Thursday afternoon.
“Stella is an elite three-level scorer,” Cummard said. “She can shoot it, drive it, play effectively off the ball and score with her back to the basket. She comes from a football family, so she has an innate toughness that will be a great addition to our BYU basketball family.”
Sakalas, ranked the No. 3 senior in Illinois by Prep Girls Hoops, committed to BYU on Sept. 9 and signed on Nov. 13.
A multi-year starter at Nazareth Academy, Sakalas averaged a double-double as a junior with 18 points and 12 rebounds per game while leading the Roadrunners to a 31-3 record. She was named Southwest Regional Girls Basketball Player of the Year and added four steals, three assists and two blocks per game during the 2024–25 season. The 6-foot-2 guard/forward also earned Class 4A All-State second-team honors in 2025.
Sakalas helped Nazareth Academy to back-to-back Illinois Class 4A state championship appearances, winning the title in 2023 and finishing as runner-up in 2024.
She comes from a family of collegiate athletes. Her father, Mike, played football at Iowa State, while her mother, Cindy, swam for the Cyclones. Her brothers, Hank and Henry, also play football and helped Nazareth win the Class 5A state championship in 2024.