Women’s season opens with high hopes
JMU returns all five starters from last season’s squad
By Matthew Stoss and Jessica Merrill, senior writer and contributing writer
Posted on October 26, 2006

The JMU women’s basketball team opened its 2006-’07 season a week ago, kicking off practice for the first time with a senior-laden squad after two years of youth and one without depth.

“Our expectations are very high,” said fifth-year coach Kenny Brooks, whose Dukes finished 24-7 a year ago. “Ultimately, our goal is to advance to the NCAA tournament. [The team has] gotten better each and every day. I think they’re poised to do it.”

Last season, the Dukes fell a win short of a Colonial Athletic Association title, losing to Old Dominion University in the finals of the CAA tournament.

The loss cost Madison a shot at the NCAA tournament, but the Dukes garnered a bid to the WNIT, where they lost to UNC-Charlotte in the opening round. It was the first post-season appearance by the Dukes since 2000-’01, when they advanced to the WNIT finals.

Through most of last season, JMU rotated only seven players — a situation that looks to be much improved this season.

“In the tournament, our lack of depth sealed our fate,” senior center Meredith Alexis said. “We went out there and played really hard, but it just wasn’t meant to be. But this year with a full roster, the outcome will be different.”

The Dukes return all five starters in seniors with guards Andrea Benvenuto and Lesley Dickinson, forward Shirley McCall, junior forward Tamera Young, and Alexis.

Alexis and Young were both first-team All-CAA selections last season, while Dickinson was named to the third team. Benvenuto led the conference in assists with 5.7 per game. Alexis lead the Dukes in both scoring and rebounding, averaging a double-double per game with 16 points and 10.9 rebounds. She was also the CAA’s second-leading scorer. Young was second in both categories with 15.6 and 9.9.

Adding depth will be Jenn Brown and Jenn Harris, who both sat out last year after transferring from the University of Pittsburgh and Penn State, respectively. Both juniors, Brown is a power forward, while Harris is a point guard.

“She will be an added addition in post-play,” Brooks said of Brown. “She is very talented and will add depth on the inside.”

Said Brooks about Harris: “Her shooting ability will help open some inside plays for us.”

Adding more depth will be the return of Nina Uqdah and Nana Fobi. Both took medical redshirts last season after incurring season-ending knee injuries during the preseason. Uqdah, a sophomore, averaged 10.2 minutes a game her freshman year, while freshman Fobi has yet to play a college game.

Sophomore forward Kisha Stokes, who was the team’s fourth-leading rebounder, fills out the frontcourt.

On the schedule this year are three Atlantic Coast Conference teams in Clemson University, Wake Forest and the University of Miami, plus Auburn University from the Southeastern Conference.

“Our whole non-conference schedule is bumped up from who we played last year,” Dickinson said.

JMU faces Miami and Auburn over Winter Break in the Miami Holiday Tournament.

“It’s going to be a great tournament,” Young said. “Were going to play two really good teams before our conference play.”

JMU opens its schedule against one of those non-conference opponents Nov. 12 when it hosts East Carolina University at the Convocation Center, where the Dukes went 13-0 last year.

“I think the level of competition is higher,” said Brooks of the schedule. “I think it will definitely prepare us for anything we’ll see in the CAA.”