MANKATO, Minn.--- Minnesota State women's hockey coach John Harrington has announced that four student-athletes have signed national letters of intent to attend Minnesota State University.

All signings are contingent upon admission to Minnesota State and compliance with NCAA rules, including certification by the NCAA Clearinghouse.

This year's early signing class is comprised of two forwards and two defensemen, all four hail from the ranks of Minnesota.

Committing to Minnesota State during the early signing period are forward Taylor Otremba (Lakeville, Minn./Lakeville South (USHS)), defensemen Lilie Ramirez (South St. Paul, Minn./South St. Paul (USHS)) and Kianna Roeske (Paynesville, Minn./River Lakes (USHS)) as well as another forward in Whitney Tuttle (Farmington, Minn./Rosemount (USHS)).

Taylor Otremba, from Lakeville, Minn., is entering her final season of playing high school hockey for the Lakeville South Cougars. In four seasons, Otremba has skated with the Cougars to a 56-36-3 record dating back to the 2017-18 high school season. During that time, Otremba has seen action in 95 games and totalled 70 goals and 58 assists for 128 points in high-school career with the Cougars. Last season as a junior, she was named the Cougars' Most Valuable Player, South Suburban All-Conference and All-State. As a sophomore, Otremba scored a career-high 54 points with 30 goals and 24 assists in 27 games and was named South Suburban All-Conference as well as the Cougars' Offensive Player of the Year. Over the last three seasons, Otremba has been a member of the Cougars who have collected three consecutive Academic State Champion honors. During her first season as an eighth grader, Otremba was a member of the Cougars and skated in 25 games as they went on to make a state tournament appearance. Aside from hockey, she has also competed in soccer before shifting to lacrosse. Taylor is the granddaughter of college hockey legend Dean Blais, who spent time playing men's hockey at Minnesota before spending several years as the head coach at North Dakota and Nebraska Omaha. Taylor is the daughter of Mike and Sarah Otremba and has one brother, Jace. Taylor is a member of National Honor Society and Faith Club and was born Dec. 23, 2003.

Coach Harrington on Otremba: "Taylor has been an offensive catalyst for Lakeville South.  What is impressive about Taylor is her ability to produce when the game is on the line.  She delivers in the clutch."

Lilie Ramirez, from South St. Paul, Minn., is entering her fourth season with the South St. Paul Packers. With the Packers, Ramirez has mustered up 92 career points with 28 goals and 64 assists in 95 games played. Last season as a junior, Ramirez was named All-State and All-Conference while scoring seven goals and assisting on 15 others for 22 points in 20 games. Her most productive season came her sophomore year in 2019-20 where she scored 35 points on 13 goals and 22 assists for an average of 1.46 points per game in 24 contests. That season, Ramirez led the Packers to a Section 4A Championship and fifth-place finish in the state tournament. She was named All-Conference, All-State and to the All-Tournament Team. As a freshman, she collected All-Conference and Rookie of the Year honors after putting up 32 points in 27 games with eight goals and 24 assists. Lilie is the daughter of Louis and Annie Ramirez, she has two siblings with a brother, Owen, and sister, Miley. Her proposed major for study at MSU is Business, she has aspirations to work in sales. Lilie is a Gold Honor Role student and member of the South St. Paul High School Student Council. She was born Aug. 3, 2004.

Coach Harrington on Ramirez: "Lilie has an offensive feel for the game from the back line that allows her to start the offense, and to stay in the offense. We feel Lilie will make a quick adjustment to the college game; her skating ability and puck skills will serve the Mavericks well."

Kianna Roeske, a native of Paynesville, Minn., is a three-sport athlete hailing from Paynesville High School where she competes in track and field as well as volleyball in addition to her time spent playing hockey during the winter. As a hockey player, Roeske has spent three seasons on the ice with the River Lakes Stars. As a junior last season, Roeske scored 13 goals and had seven assists in 25 games en route to leading the Stars to a second-place finish in the Cental Lakes conference and a section championship. Her postseason accolades following the 2019-20 season included being named All-Conference, All-Section, All-State Honorable Mention as well as St. Cloud Times Most Valuable Player. Roeske is also a two-time St. Cloud Times All-Area Team member in 2020-21 and 2019-20 as well as a three-time member of the Central Lakes All-Conference Team. Kianna is a National Honor Society student while also taking part in student council and choir at her high school. She is the daughter of Rand (who formerly ran track at St. Cloud State) and Gretchen Roeske. Kianna has two younger sisters, Kaydence and Peyton. Her proposed academic major at MSU is Exercise Science. She was born May 20, 2004.

Coach Harrington on Roeske: "Kianna is a good example of the benefits of being a multi-sport athlete. Her ability to be noticeable in the game is certainly based on her skills, but her competitiveness of playing other sports along with hockey certainly shows up in her on-ice game."

Whitney Tuttle, who calls Farmington, Minn., home, is approaching her final season with the Rosemount Irish where she's played center for the past four years dating back to the 2017-18 season. As a freshman, Tuttle was a two-sport athlete at Rosemount while also competing in soccer as a striker for the Irish. Tuttle has skated in 92 games while scoring 137 points with 80 goals and 57 assists. Tuttle has collected South Suburban All-Conference in each of her last three seasons. As a sophomore, she put up 42 points with 29 goals and 13 assists while averaging 1.75 points per game. Last season was her best statistically, Tuttle averaged 2.29 points per game over 17 games after scoring 21 goals and 18 assists for 39 points. As a result, she was named All-State Honorable Mention. As a freshman in her studies, she made the A Honor Roll and to this day remains a member of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. Whitney is the daughter of Jason and Jennifer Tuttle and she has four siblings named Isaac, Ashley, Delaney and Tobey. Her hobbies include going to and serving at her church, singing, drawing, watching movies and hanging out with her family and friends. Her proposed major is Clinical Psychology, she aspires to become an academic counselor or therapist. She was born Feb. 20, 2004.

Coach Harrington on Tuttle: "Whitney is a dynamic forward that combines speed and scoring prowess. Whitney reads the game well, and can make plays for others as well as creating her own scoring chances."

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