The Castec Rural Pioneers have announced another exciting new signing for the 2023 NBL1 South season as an impressive roster takes shape.

Former All-Australian Under 18 player Austin Shelley is the latest Pioneer to join the squad, having played for West Texas University and Knox Raiders in the NBL1 South competition in 2022 en-route to becoming a Pioneer.

Twenty-year-old Shelley is an exciting young player whose parents both played professional basketball and his sister and older brother also played college basketball in the United States of America.

In the 2021-22 season, Shelley played 28 games for West Texas with a game high of 15 points, four rebounds and four assists against Champions College.

During his 14 games with Knox in the 2022 season, he averaged 12.44 minutes court time per game, shooting at 44.73%.

Castec Rural Pioneers head coach Richard Hill said he was excited Shelley had signed with the Pioneers and believed he had the potential to become a high-level player.

“Austin is a very important part of our plans as we rebuild our team,” Hill said.

“A knock down three-point shooter and a great perimeter defender, Austin will be a key impact player for us and I expect him to become a fan favourite very quickly.”

The Castec Rural Pioneers and OneFortyOne Pioneers are scheduled to play its first game in the 2023 NBL1 South season on the road on April 1 against the Sandringham Sabres.

Their first home game is expected to be on Friday, April 14 against Casey Cavaliers.

Pioneers’ fans should add this date to their calendars now, as history will be made with the Pioneers playing at Wulanda for the first time.