Eagles add trio of players to 2020-21 roster
Mutdung Bol from Seattle, Isaiah Amato from Portland and Canadian Victor Radocaj will join the EWU Men’s Basketball program in September
CHENEY, Wash. – A trio of high school players from the Pacific Northwest will join the Eastern Washington University men’s basketball program next fall when classes resume on the EWU campus in Cheney, Wash.
They include All-State selection Mutdung Bol, a 6-foot-3 guard from Edmonds-Woodway High School in Seattle, Wash., and Isaiah Amato, a 6-5 guard from Portland, Ore., and Central Catholic HS. The third is Victor Radocaj, a 6-9 forward from Richmond, B.C. who attended the RISE Centre Academy in Brantford, Ontario. Mutdung’s name is pronounced “muh-doon bowl,” Amato’s is pronounced “ah-ma-toe” and Radocaj is pronounced “rad-doh-chuh-eye-yuh.”
Bol was picked as a Washington Interscholastic Basketball Coaches Association (WIBCA) All-State recipient for the 2019-2020 season. He was set to be part of the 3A All-State team that was to have played the 4A All-State team on March 21 at Curtis High School, but it was cancelled due to the COVID-19 outbreak.
He was a four-year varsity player for Edmonds-Woodway, and averaged 18 points per game as senior. He also averaged eight rebounds, five assists and two steals as he helped the Warriors to a 15-8 overall record and 10-4 in the 2A/3A Wesco League.
He closed his high school career by earning first team all-league honors. He was also first team all-league as a junior when he averaged 19.1 points, 7.5 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 2.8 steals and 1.3 blocked shots. He had 38 points, 14 rebounds, four assists and four steals in a 74-71 win in the 2018-19 season over Arlington, one of the top teams in Wesco 3A/2A.
Bol earned his initial first team All-Wesco League honor as a sophomore in 2017-18.
“Mutdung is an elite scorer at all three levels and has the ability to make a huge impact in our program for years to come,” said Eastern head coach Shantay Legans. “Our Eastern family is ecstatic to add another young talent that will be a major contributor for years to come.”
Academically, he is an honor roll student with a 3.4 grade point average. He has been involved with the Black Student Union at Woodway for all four years, where he volunteered his time to help Seattle with food and clothing banks. Mutdung is unsure of his major, but has interest in business and psychology.
His family is from Sudan, but he was born in Colorado and raised in North Seattle. His mother is Nyabuony Lap and his father is Gach Bol, and he has seven siblings — LJ, Bol, Nuerbol, PJ, Nyabeth, Niykenya, and Gatlang Bol.
Amato led Central Catholic to back-to-back Mt. Hood Conference championships as the team’s point guard. Over the last two seasons he has averaged 15 points and five assists, and has earned first team all-conference honors and was the Mt. Hood Conference defensive player of the year.
An exceptional student, he has volunteered on multiple occasions at the Oregon Food Bank, Saint Francis dining hall, and has helped at multiple retirement homes. He is unsure on a major at EWU, but is interested in sports management, sports medicine and psychology. His parents are Tony and Ebony Amato, and he has one sister named Hannah.
“We could not be more grateful to add another tremendous young talent to our Eastern Washington family,” said Legans. “Isaiah has a chance to be special as he demonstrates the unique ability to play point guard at a high level, but also has the versatility to guard multiple positions on the floor. He is going to be a big part of this up-and-coming young recruiting class we have brought in these past two years.”