Isabel Abarca
Senior Sports Writer
The Wooster men’s and women’s basketball programs are about to kick off their seasons starting tomorrow for the women, and Nov. 19 for the men. Both teams have been working hard during preseason and anticipate having improved and successful seasons.
Last year, the women’s basketball team had an overall record of 9-16, including a 4-12 record in conference play. The women will use this bitter memory as motivation for this season. The Scots have a number of strengths within the team this season, including speed, bench depth, team chemistry, high energy and positivity. The team hopes these factors will help the team work toward improving from last year.
In addition to team strengths, the women are aware of what they need to work on.
“We’ll need to play as a team, work hard, and execute,” says Lauren Hancher ’16. “We have the speed and the talent this year. We just need to run the offense and get after it on defense, and we can be successful.”
Seniors Suvi Puripattarapan, Maura Hall and Karley Walker will provide leadership while a class of incoming players will add both depth and competition among the team.
“I have been pleasantly surprised with our freshman class” said Walker. “It is always nerve racking every year meeting the new players and trying to help them understand how the team operates. This year we have not only great players in the freshman class, but they are also great people.”
Aside from the many new faces on the team, the women are adjusting to a more offensive style of play. The team consists of a smaller lineup, so they will have to press and run the court more. Hopefully this change will create more opportunities for scoring and work to the advantage of their smaller and quicker players.
The men’s team is coming off a season where they had an impressive overall record of 24-6 and a 14-2 record in conference play. Regardless of their success in previous years, the men are looking to continue improving and produce an even better record this season. Athleticism, experience, speed and teamwork will all be crucial components for the team this year. However, the men are well aware that there is always room for improvement.
“We need to improve our defense and taking care of the ball,” said Doug Thorpe ’14. “They’re both coming along, but in order for us to make the next step we must stop teams and have more assists than turnovers this year.”
Although the team only has three seniors and three juniors, there is a lot of talent, experience and leadership among them. The other 14 players, including seven first years, create a young core and are big contributors to the team.
“The incoming players look good, they’re also fast learners” said DeVaughn Wingard ’16. “Expect Milt [Davis ’17] and Dan [Fanelly ’17] to have a big year.”
The men’s team looks to be more up-tempo this season. The Scots also have to adapt to a smaller team but this change is not recognized as a concern for the team.
“Teams will try to slow us down even more, and I can see them going zone against us” said Thorpe. “We’re more experienced this year and expect to play just as well.”
Overall the men’s basketball team is looking to win the conference title, conference championship and make it to the Final Four in the NCAA tournament. The women’s basketball team is focusing on having a winning record and making it to the NCAC tournament. This upcoming basketball season is sure to be full of excitement and wins for both the men and the women.