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When an all-expenses-paid life in Mediterranean Europe comes calling, the MCAT can wait.

That was a no-brainer for Utah's Taryn Wicijowski, who Wednesday announced that she signed a contract with Cestistica Orvieto (or, Basketball Orvieto) in Italy's Serie A1.

Wicijowski, a native of Regina, Saskatchewan, finished sixth in school history in scoring (1,887 points) and third in rebounds (1,047), earning all-conference honors four times.

Her agent called her with Orvieto's offer just a week or two after the end of her senior season.

At that point, Wicijowski still felt she had the "tiniest of smallest shots" in the mid-April WNBA draft, she told The Tribune on Wednesday, but she knew as soon as she saw Cal's Reshanda Gray slip to the second round that it wasn't to be. Not yet.

So, Italy, situated roughly midway between Florence and Rome? Why not?

Orvieto will provide her with an apartment, a car and food while she's on the road. What she earns, she said, she can apply toward enjoying the local culture.

"It's definitely going to be a comfortable living for me while I'm out there," Wicijowski said.

She will report at the end of August. Many WNBA players play overseas during the WNBA offseason, and Wicijowski hopes to prove she can hang — two repaired ACLs notwithstanding.

A biology/psychology double major who is famously hung up on the A- she once received in American history, Wicijowski "just wanted to be a basketball player for a while" before applying for medical school.

She might play in a new country each season, she said.

One drawback: Wicijowski thinks her beloved pooch, Koda, has too much separation anxiety to handle the transatlantic trip.

He'll stay with her parents.

But: "We'll definitely FaceTime once in a while."

— Matthew Piper

mpiper@sltrib.com

Twitter: @matthew_piper