With the weight of finding a college lifted off her shoulders, soon-to-be Coeur d'Alene High senior Sydney Williams can focus on another one of her basketball goals.

Winning a state 5A title.

Williams, a 6-foot-2 forward, on Friday verbally committed to play at the University of San Diego, beginning in the 2014-15 season.

"Now I don't have to worry about colleges calling me all the time," Williams said. "Now, I can concentrate on winning the state championship this season. It was a good decision, I feel like. I met one of my goals in finding a great school, with great academics and a great team."

Portland, Boise State, Wyoming, Eastern Washington and Saint Mary's were also interested in Williams - with both Portland and Saint Mary's offering scholarships.

The final two were San Diego and Portland.

"It was a really hard decision because it was the same thing (with San Diego) and Portland," Williams said. "The campus had the same atmosphere and class size and both had things I was looking for. But I know I made the right choice by picking San Diego."

"Wyoming wanted her so much that they wanted her stats to get her information into the program and a press release for when she actually decided to go there," Coeur d'Alene High coach Dale Poffenroth said. "She was the No. 1 recruit at Eastern, but San Diego just kind of popped in there. She had quite a few (schools interested in her), but it's always tough because you've got to tell someone no, but it's easy to tell someone yes."

Williams plans to study pre-health at San Diego, like Gonzaga, Portland and Saint Mary's is a member of the West Coast Conference.

"They've got a lot of options and a post-graduate nursing program that's one of the best in California," Williams said. "They told me that I'm going to have to work my butt off to play as a freshmen. I might not get to see the floor much my freshmen year, but I'm going to work my butt off to do it."

"She's up for it and ready to take on the challenge," Poffenroth said.

Williams scored 15 points and grabbed six rebounds in Coeur d'Alene's loss to Post Falls in the state 5A championship game in February. That followed up a 22-point, 10-rebound game against Capital High of Boise in the semifinals.

"Sometimes, things just fall into place for some kids," Poffenroth said. "She looked at the science program and she's pretty impressed with what they do academically. It surprised me a bit, because I wasn't sure they were still on the list."

Williams also joins former Coeur d'Alene High standout Carli Rosenthal in the WCC. Rosenthal will be a junior at Saint Mary's this year.

"It really wasn't about the conference," Williams said. "The academic portion is great and the coaches stress that, along with being focused on winning the conference championship."

"I'm excited for her for the reasons she said she wanted to go there," Poffenroth said. "It's great for her. The bad thing for me is that I only get to see her play once a year, but I also only get to see Carli once a year. It seems to be the correct place for her, and it's a college education paid for as well."