University of Massachusets Athletics
Women's Basketball Opens Season At Sacred Heart
November 20, 2003 | Women's Basketball
Nov. 20, 2003
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Game Day...
The University of Massachusetts women's basketball team hits the hardwood for the first time this year tonight against Sacred Heart. There are a lot of new faces on the Minutewomen this year after the graduation of seven seniors and 85 percent of the scoring from a year ago. Massachusetts leads the all-time series with the Pioneers, 1-0, after defeating them, 74-48, at the Mullins Center on Nov. 22, 2002, in both squads' season openers. UMass is 16-19 overall in its season-openers, including a 7-8 mark on the road. The Minutewomen have lost six straight games when they open the season on the road.
Scouting The Pioneers ...
Tonight is also the season-opener for Sacred Heart. The Pioneers return two starters and seven letterwinners from last year's team which went 18-10 overall and finished in a third-place tie at 12-6 in the Northeast Conference.
Sophomore guard Nicolle Rubino is SHU's top returner. The 2002-03 NEC Rookie of the Year averaged 12.3 points and 3.5 rebounds per game last year. Senior guard Ashley Kohl (6.7 ppg, 2.5 apg) and senior forward Kate Maher (5.6 ppg, 5.3 rpg) are the lone starters back for the 2003-04 campaign. Sacred Heart welcomes six newcomers to this year's roster.
The Series ...
Massachusetts holds a 1-0 lead in the teams' brief series. Last year, the Minutewomen were victorious, 74-48, Nov. 23, 2002, at the Mullins Center. It was the first time these two New England schools have met.
Trying To Change It On The Road ...
The 2003-04 team will be attempting to do something that a UMass team has not done in 12 years; win a season-opener on the road. The Minutewomen have dropped six straight games when opening the season on the road. Their last win was a 44-40 win over St. Francis (Pa.) in the first round of the Red Flash Classic on Nov. 23, 1991. Overall, the Minutewomen are 16-19 in season openers, 7-8 on the road.
Last Game Against the Pioneers ...
Katie Nelson poured in a team-high 15 points as UMass (1-0) downed Sacred Heart (0-1), 74-48, Nov. 23, 2002, at the William Mullins Center. The 26-point victory was the largest in a UMass season opener since it beat Harvard 86-49 on Nov. 29, 1978. The win was the first for Head Coach Marnie Dacko, who made her regular season debut on the Minutewoman bench. Seven of the nine head coaches in the program's history have now won their first game.
Nelson's 15 points tied Sacred Hearts' Nicolle Rubino for the game-high. Nelson also dished out a career-high seven assists, while shooting 4-of-5 (.800) from behind the arc. Jennifer Butler added 13 points and 13 rebounds for her 42nd career double-double. Nekole Smith added 14 points, while Ebony Pegues scored 13. Butler also led the team with four steals. Siiri Liivandi added six points and pulled down eight boards.
The Minutewomen came out on fire in the first half led by Butler and Nelson's nine points apiece. Massachusetts entered the halftime break leading by 16 points, 40-24. The crisp shooting did not stop in the second half as the Minutewomen jumped out on a 17-3 run over the first 5:41 and never looked back en route to the non-conference win. For the game, Massachusetts shot .463 (31-67) from the field, while holding the Pioneers to a mere .333 (16-48) percent. The Minutewomen went over the 70-point plateau just three times last season, winning on each of those occasions. The 74 points were the most that the Minutewomen have scored in a season opener since they downed St. John's, 83-66 on Nov. 14, 1998. In addition to Rubino's 15 points, Brooke Kelly scored 14 points and pulled down a team-high six rebounds for Sacred Heart.
Nelson Out ...
Massachusetts will be without the services of junior point guard Katie Nelson. Nelson left the Jan. 26, 2002 game against Dayton with a knee injury and with the exception of a brief three-minute stint at George Washington on Feb. 13, 2003, did play again last season. She had off-season surgery and is not yet at 100 percent.
Let's Meet The Newcomers ... Most Minutewoman fans will need a program for the first few games as this year's roster features seven new faces.
Edris Bailey, is a 6-2 forward who last played at Frank Phillips (Texas) Junior College. She is one of three JUCO transfers on this year's roster. At Frank Phillips, Bailey led the team with 11.3 points per game and was third in rebounding at 5.2 boards per game. Two years ago, she averaged 16.7 points and 7.0 rebounds at Southern University in Shreveport, Louisiana.
Brooke Campbell, a 6-0 forward, is the other new JUCO transfer as she spent the last two seasons at Midland (Texas) Junior College. Campbell averaged 7.9 points, 4.5 rebounds and 2.2 assists in two years with the Lady Chaparrals.
Patrycja Gulak is a 6-4 center who transferred from St. John's University. Gulak is not eligible to play this season but can practice with her new teammates. The two-time All-Big East Academic team member averaged 8.3 points and 4.8 rebounds per game with the Red Storm the past two years.
Joyce Massey is a 5-11 guard out of Martin Luther King High School in Detroit, Mich. Last year as a senior captain, Massey led her team to a city championship, district title, regional crown and a trip to the state finals while averaging 12 points, eight rebounds, six assists and two steals per game.
After sitting out last year, Ashley Sharpton is eligible this year. The 5-10 guard who transferred from the University of North Carolina-Asheville, was a Big South All-Rookie team member two years ago. She averaged 6.9 points per game in just over 25 minutes as a freshman.
The final newcomer is Tamara Tatham. She is a 6-1 forward from Chinguacousy High School in Brampton, Ontario. Last year as a senior, she averaged 23 points and 10 rebounds a game.
Team Concept Recap ... In its only exhibition of the year, UMass lost to Team Concept, 73-58, at the Mullins Center. Despite the loss, head coach Marnie Dacko was pleased with the play, especially that of the newcomers. Junior Brooke Campbell scored a game-high 16 points and led a trio of Minutewoman double-figure scorers in the team's first time out this season.
In addition to her 16 points on 6-of-10 shooting from the field and 4-for-5 at the free throw line, Campbell also added three rebounds, an assist and a steal. Senior Glamora Maeweather added 11 points, 10 rebounds, three assists, a steal and a blocked shot, while freshman Joyce Massey chipped in 11 points, three rebounds and a steal. Freshman Tamara Tatham had eight points on 4-of-6 shooting from the field. Senior Cleo Foster dished out five assists and also added four steals, while junior Monique Govan had six rebounds and four assists.
The Minutewomen shot .577 (15-26) in the first half and led 35-33 at the break, but Team Concept went 17-for-32 (.531) in the second half to earn the win. They outscored the Minutewomen, 19-3 over a 9:24 span of the second half. Massachusetts committed 23 turnovers in the game and shot .333 (8-24) in the second half. The Minutewomen were 8-for-12 (.667) from the free throw line.
It's An International Thing ...
This year's UMass roster certainly has an International feel to it. There are five players who hail from overseas. Cleo Foster and Tamara Tatham are both from Ontario, Canada. Judit Zsedenyi is a native of Hungary, while junior redshirt Patrycja Gulak is from Poland. Edris Bailey is from Trinidad & Tobago.
Making Her Mark ...
Prior to injuring her knee Jan. 26, 2003 at Dayton, junior point guard Katie Nelson had started in each of her 48 career games since arriving in Amherst. The Ellicott City, Md., native averaged 37.1 minutes last year and was the only member of either team to play in all 50 minutes of the Minutewomen's, 78-70, double-overtime loss to Florida in the State Farm Classic Dec. 28. Nelson, whose father William is the head men's basketball coach at Johns Hopkins (Md.) University, has already cracked the top five in three-point field goals made and attempted. Nelson currently ranks third all-time in school history with 296 attempts, while her 91 trifectas are good for fourth. Nelson also ranks 10th with a .307 percentage from behind the arc.
Early Additions ...
The loss of seven seniors and just two in the freshman class has left UMass head coach Marnie Dacko and her staff several scholarships to offer this recruiting season. The Minutewomen were able to ink five during the early signing period, Nov. 12-19. Here is a quick look at each of them.
Kate Mills is a 6-2 forward out of the Ursuline Academy in Wilmington, Del. Last season, she averaged 18 points, eight rebounds, two steals and three blocks per game en route to All-State honors. For her career, Mills has recorded 1,122 points, 733 rebounds and 272 blocks. As a freshman, she was an honorable mention All-State pick, while earning third-team All-State accolades as a sophomore. Mills is a member of the National Honor Society and has also been a part of two volleyball state championship teams.
Pam Rosanio is a 5-10 guard out of Archbishop Wood High School in Southampton, Pa. Last season, she averaged 15.5 points, four rebounds, four assists and three steals en route to All-Philadelphia Catholic League North first-team honors. She also helped the Vikings advance to the Catholic League semifinals. Rosanio currently has 851 career points and is on pace to score over 1,000 points. The school record is 1,296 points.
Kaylie Schiavetta is a 5-7 guard from Northport High School in Northport, N.Y. Last season, she averaged 17.8 points per game en route to Class A third-team All-State accolades. In 2001-02, she averaged 14.2 points per game and was a member of the Suffolk County All-Star team while her squad won the league championship. As a freshman in 2000-01, Schiavetta was named to the All-County team.
Whitney McDonald is a 6-2 forward from Ossining High School in Ossining, N.Y. Last season, she averaged 14.5 points and 10 rebounds per game and was an All-League, All-Section and All-State selection. She is a two-time member of the Gold Empire State team.
Alisha Tatham, a 5-11 guard out of Chingaucousy Secondary School in Brampton, Ontario, averaged 25 points, nine rebounds and four steals this past season which just wrapped up. She is also the sister of current UMass freshman Tamara Tatham (Brampton, Ontario). Last season, she led her high school to its first-ever OFSAA Tournament. Tatham was also a member of the Ontario Juvenile Provincial team which captured the gold medal in the Provincial Games held in Manitoba in August of 2003.
Marnie's Army Leader ...
With an 8-1 start last year, Massachusetts Head Coach Marnie Dacko enjoyed the best start of any UMass coach in their first season at the helm, not to mention the second-best start of any UMass team in the program's history as the 1968-69 team, which started 9-0, did not have a coach. When the Minutewomen downed Sacred Heart, 74-48 on Nov. 22 2002, Dacko became the seventh head coach out of nine in the program's history to win their first game on the UMass bench. The 1978 Southern Connecticut State University graduate is currently 14-14 (.500) at UMass and 94-118 (.443) overall in eight seasons as a head coach.
On The Other Side ...
Sacred Heart head coach Ed Swanson has compiled a 191-168 (.532) in 13 seasons on the Pioneer bench. Since becoming a Division I program in 1999-2000, Sacred Heart has not had anything less than a .500 season under Swanson.
From Here ...
The Minutewomen return home to the Mullins Center to host Holy Cross on Sunday, November 23. Tip-off is slated for 4:00 p.m. Including Sunday's tilt with the Crusaders, the Minutewomen play just three non-conference home games. Also on the schedule are Vermont (Dec. 3 at the Cage) and UNC-Greensboro (Dec. 30 at the Mullins Center).
Rage In The Cage II ...
On December 3, the Minutewomen will host Vermont at the Curry Hicks Cage. In Rage In The Cage I on December 11, 2002, UMass upset Villanova, 55-50. The Wildcats advanced to the Elite Eight last year and defeated eventual national champion, Connecticut in the Big East Championship game and ended the Huskies' 70-game winning streak.