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Kitjia Laksa not returning to South Florida

Caissa Casarez|
UNCASVILLE, CT - MARCH 06: South Florida Bulls Guard Kitija Laksa (33) shoots over UConn Huskies Guard Katie Lou Samuelson (33) during the game as the South Florida Bulls take on the UConn Huskies on March 06, 2018 at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut. (Photo by Williams Paul/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
UNCASVILLE, CT - MARCH 06: South Florida Bulls Guard Kitija Laksa (33) shoots over UConn Huskies Guard Katie Lou Samuelson (33) during the game as the South Florida Bulls take on the UConn Huskies on March 06, 2018 at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut. (Photo by Williams Paul/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

She had her senior year cut short last November after a season-ending knee injury.

Kitjia Laksa has decided to officially end her collegiate playing career at the University of South Florida. The wing posted her decision on Twitter Thursday; the school also confirmed the move.

“I am so grateful to have attended and competed for the University of South Florida,” Laksa’s statement reads. “Thank you to the teammates, coaches, staff, fans and so many others in and around the university that supported me, cheered on our teams and made being a Bull such a great experience over the last four years. I am thankful for all the people that care for me, have faith in me and have helped me grow. It is never easy to leave people and places you love, but, after a lot of consideration, I have decided it is time to close this chapter and pursue new challenges.”

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Laksa spent most of what would have been her senior year off the court in 2018-19 after suffering a knee injury just three games into the season. Despite that, she ended her career with 1,764 points, a mark good for sixth all-time among South Florida women’s basketball players. She also broke the program’s scoring record for juniors during her time as a Bull with 717 points in 2017-18. Laksa was named USF’s Female Student Athlete of the Year for her accolades that year, which included setting two NCAA records and gaining a WBCA All-America honorable mention nod.

“I am very proud of what Kitija accomplished during her four years at USF and how she worked and developed not only as an elite player but as a tremendous person, student and now graduate,” South Florida head coach Jose Fernandez said in a statement. “I, and I think all of Bulls Nation, thank her for the great contributions she made to our program and in representing our university. I know this was not an easy decision for her and I wish her the very best as she looks toward the next goals and challenges in her life.”

Laksa graduated from USF this Spring with a bachelor’s degree in Psychology. Fernandez previously told High Post Hoops that she had planned on applying for a medical waiver from the NCAA; the status of that waiver request, or even whether it is now moot, remains to be seen based on what Laksa does next. Laksa decided not to declare for the WNBA Draft weeks before it took place last month.

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