georgia tech roster

Transcription

1 georgia tech roster 6 Alphabetical Roster No. Name Pos. Ht. Cl. Hometown High School 11 Giuliett Ancora G 5-11 So. Melbourne, Australia St. Columba's College 15 G 5-9 Sr. Dunwoody, Ga. Marist 3 G 5-9 Jr. Lawrenceville, Ga. Central Gwinnett 5 G 5-9 So. Charlotte, N.C. Providence Day School 45 Daphne Mitchell F 6-3 So. Atlanta, Ga. Woodward Academy 21 Janie Mitchell F 6-0 So. Jackson, Miss. Callaway 43 G 5-11 So. Uppsala, Sweden Fryshusets Kunskaps Centrum 42 G 5-11 Fr. Long Beach, Calif. Long Beach Polytechnic 44 G/F 6-0 Sr. Raleigh, N.C. Southeast Raleigh 24 Meagan Samis F 6-1 So-R Oklahoma City, Okla. Casady/UNC Wilmington 13 Lauren Sauer F/C 6-4 Sr.-R Huntsville, Ala. Grissom 35 F/C 6-3 Sr. Douglasville, Ga. Douglas County 12 F 6-0 Fr. Miami, Fla. Monsignor Edward Pace 1 Jacqua Williams G 5-6 Fr. Seattle, Wash. Rainier Beach 32 F 6-1 Sr. Riverdale, Ga. Riverdale 25 F 6-1 Jr. Deerfield Beach, Fla. Deerfield Beach Numerical Roster No. Name Pos. Ht. Cl. Hometown High School 1 Jacqua Williams G 5-6 Fr. Seattle, Wash. Rainier Beach 3 G 5-9 Jr. Lawrenceville, Ga. Central Gwinnett 5 G 5-9 So. Charlotte, N.C. Providence Day School 11 Giuliett Ancora G 5-11 So. Melbourne, Australia St. Columba's College 12 F 6-0 Fr. Miami, Fla. Monsignor Edward Pace 13 Lauren Sauer F/C 6-4 Sr.-R Huntsville, Ala. Grissom 15 G 5-9 Sr. Dunwoody, Ga. Marist 21 Janie Mitchell F 6-0 So. Jackson, Miss. Callaway 24 Meagan Samis F 6-1 So-R Oklahoma City, Okla. Casady/UNC Wilmington 25 F 6-1 Jr. Deerfield Beach, Fla. Deerfield Beach 32 F 6-1 Sr. Riverdale, Ga. Riverdale 35 F/C 6-3 Sr. Douglasville, Ga. Douglas County 42 G 5-11 Fr. Long Beach, Calif. Long Beach Polytechnic 43 G 5-11 So. Uppsala, Sweden Fryshusets Kunskaps Centrum 44 G/F 6-0 Sr. Raleigh, N.C. Southeast Raleigh 45 Daphne Mitchell F 6-3 So. Atlanta, Ga. Woodward Academy Head Coach: MaChelle Joseph (Purdue, 1993) Assistant Coaches: Mack McCarthy (Virginia Tech, 1974), Sytia Messer (Arkansas, 2000), Art Prevost (Lamar, 1990) Director of Women s Basketball Operations: LaChina Robinson (Wake Forest, 2002) Washington Jacqua Williams (Seattle) California (Long Beach ) Oklahoma Meagan Samis (Oklahoma City) Australia Giuliett Ancora (Melbourne) By Geography Mississippi Janie Mitchell (Jackson) Alabama Lauren Sauer (Huntsville) North Carolina (Charlotte) (Raleigh) Georgia (Dunwoody) (Lawrenceville) Daphne Mitchell (Atlanta) (Douglasville) (Riverdale) Florida (Miami) (Deerfield Beach) Sweden (Uppsala) By Height TEAM BREAKDOWN 6-4 Lauren Sauer 6-3 Daphne Mitchell 6-1 Meagan Samis 6-0 Janie Mitchell 5-11 Giuliett Ancora Jacqua Williams By Class Seniors Lauren Sauer Juniors Sophomores Giuliett Ancora Daphne Mitchell Janie Mitchell Meagan Samis Freshmen Jacqua Williams By Position Guards Giuliett Ancora Jacqua Williams Guards / Forwards Forwards Daphne Mitchell Janie Mitchell Meagan Samis Forward / Center Center Lauren Sauer

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3 8 With the return of 12 letterwinners from the team and the addition of four talented newcomers, the Georgia Tech women s basketball team and coaches are looking forward to an exciting season on the court. Head coach MaChelle Joseph enters her third season at the helm of the program and has assembled a coaching staff with a mixture of playing and coaching experience that rivals many of the top programs in the nation. A key for me was hiring people that understand what it takes to win at this level and are successful at doing so, and also having those same people be able to balance me out in terms of intensity level, said Joseph. Joseph promoted assistant coach Sytia Messer to the role of recruiting coordinator during the summer and then added former Purdue and Ohio State assistant Seth Kushkin and Sadiaa Jones, previously at South Florida, to her staff. Last summer, I really felt that we needed someone in our program that had played and was very successful at a high level, said Joseph. I wanted to hire someone that could be a role model for our players because she was successful at a high level, but also someone that could relate to my intensity level. I needed a winner on my staff, someone that had won at a high level, and someone that also understood what it took to get to that level, and I found a great coach in Sytia Messer. Messer was a former standout at the University of Arkansas, guiding her team to a Final Four and a WNIT Championship. She provides the playing experience that Joseph wanted to go along with her own experience as an All-American that guided her own team to a pair of Sweet-16 appearances. With that role in place, she then began looking for someone that had coached and been successful at a high level, and was thrilled when Seth Kushkin came aboard. Kushkin was a member of both the 1999 National Champion Purdue and 2001 WNIT Champion Ohio State staffs, but Joseph feels his demeanor both on the court and off is just as important to the team as his experience. While Sytia matches my intensity level, I really felt that we needed someone in a key leadership role that could balance that, and Seth is a great person for that role. He is so even-keeled and relates so well to both the staff and the student-athletes, and we really needed that type of dynamic brought to our program. Joining Kushkin as a staff newcomer is Sadiaa Jones, who previously worked at both South Florida and Illinois- Chicago, and she brings the same kind of attitude as Kushkin s to the staff. Sadiaa is very similar to Seth in that she, too, is a calming factor. She s even-keeled, and she has experienced success at a higher level. She s a professional, and has shown to be a great asset with recruiting, and I think that she is a great compliment to our staff. Combined, the young Georgia Tech coaching staff has more than 25 years of experience in the college ranks, and Joseph is looking forward to working with such a diverse group of people. This group gives me energy, said Joseph. They have made my job so much easier, and I m realizing that it doesn t have to be that hard. It is such a great feeling to come to work everyday knowing that these people will fight for and with you. They just compliment me so well. Joseph and her staff have much to look forward this season, as all five starters and 12 letterwinners returned to campus in the fall. Ten different returnees earned starts during the season, including senior (Riverdale, Ga.) and sophomore (Uppsala, Sweden), who both started every game for the Yellow Jackets. Sophomore point guard (Charlotte, N.C.) also returns after earning starts in 26 of 27 games last year, as does junior standout (Lawrenceville, Ga.,) who started the last 20 contests of the season. The Forwards Williams will guide a talented group of forwards for the Jackets after leading Georgia Tech with 6.8 rebounds per game, finishing ninth with 6.9 rebounds per ACC game. The 6-1 Georgia native shot 41 percent from the floor in and averaged 4.9 points per game. Jessi has been our mainstay in the paint our last three years, said Joseph. She has played every role that we have asked her to play, always drawing the tough assignment of defending our opponent s best post player, and she is so valuable because she can defend both on the perimeter and inside. She is the best rebounder on our team, and she has provided great leadership and consistency for us over the course of the last three years. Also returning for her senior season is Douglasville, Ga. native, who missed the conference portion of the season after again leading the team in blocks, with 2.5 per game, in the first half of the season. Terry leads all returnees with 45 starts in her career, including 15 during the season and 11 in the first 12 games last year. She is averaging 5.5 points and 4.9 rebounds per game in her career and currently stands third in the Tech record books with 140 career blocks. I think that Kasha has the ability to be one of the top-five players in the ACC this year, said Joseph. She was playing great to begin her junior season, and she has done nothing but improve since then. I think the thing that she has improved the most upon is the mental aspect of the game, so we are expecting great things of this year. Janie Mitchell (Jackson, Miss.) started the majority of the remainder of the Yellow Jackets games in absence of, and came on strong late in conference play. The 6-0 sophomore averaged just over four points per game through the first 21 games of the season before averaging more than 11 points per contest, including a season-high 21-point performance against Miami in the ACC Tournament, over the last six games. With the increase in playing time to end the season, as well as the work that she has put in during the summer, the coaching staff is looking for Mitchell to be a key player for the Yellow Jackets this season. Janie is one of the most improved players from last year, said Joseph. Her confidence has grown, so I look for her to make significant contributions offensively and defensively. She has learned how to allow the game to come to her, and I have seen her game blossom because of that. I am just excited about the impact that she is going to have in the Atlantic Coast Conference this year. Spelling Janie Mitchell in absence of Terry was junior, who had returned from a knee injury the previous season play in the first 20 games of the campaign. The Fort Lauderdale, Fla. native made eight starts during the year, including seven against conference opponents, before suffering another season-ending knee injury to the other leg in January. This past summer, while also rehabbing her knee, Wilson spent time in the gym working on getting stronger for the upcoming season. When we lost Trina to her second ACL injury last season,

4 it was devastating. Not only to her, but also to the coaching staff. She s a player that doesn t get a lot of attention for the things that she does, but she does so many intangible things well. She s the most unselfish player that I have ever coached: she rebounds, she sets screens, she gets the ball to the right person, she can handle the ball and she can play five positions. She s the only player on our team that can play and defend at all five positions, so she was somewhat of a mainstay on the court. When we lost her, we lost more than points and rebounds, but someone that also showed tremendous leadership in a silent sort of way. But when she is healthy, I don t think that there is anyone that can hold Trina back from what she wants to do, and I look for her to again make key contributions this season. Entering her first full season as a Yellow Jacket basketball player is former Georgia Tech volleyball standout Lauren Sauer (Huntsville, Ala.). The 6-4 Sauer joined the team in January of last season and played in nine games, earning one start, and averaged just over 10 minutes per game. I think it was just amazing that Lauren came in with three practices under her belt to play against a top-five team in North Carolina like she did last year, Joseph said. She is such a positive and uplifting person to have around, and with her strong work ethic, really improved both her basketball skills and conditioning over the summer. She will be a significant contributor to our post play this year. Six-three sophomore Daphne Mitchell will begin her second year on the Flats pushing for more playing time after averaging just over 10 minutes per game a season ago. An Atlanta native, Mitchell played in 23 games during her rookie campaign, averaging 1.8 points and 1.8 rebounds per game. The coaching staff is looking for more from her this season after she attended the prestigious Pete Newell Post Camp during the summer. Daphne has the potential to become one of the best post players ever to play at Georgia Tech, said Joseph. She has a great touch around the basket, and we ve challenged her to be more aggressive in her rebounding and overall approach to the game. She has matured a lot in the offseason and will add depth to our strong inside game. Senior (Raleigh, N.C.) returns for her final season on the Flats as the strongest player on the team, and she has taken on the team captain and leader role with a determination that the coaches are pleased to see in her final season.. I think with the lack of seniors from last year, we didn t have as great of a leadership within the team that we could have, but the thing that Chey has brought to the team is her maturity. She is probably the most mature person that we have on the team and she has taken on that role and responsibility within the team very seriously. She has become more of an extension of the coaching staff within this year s team, so regardless of the amount of minutes that she plays, she will make a significant difference in the success of our season. The Yellow Jackets also have a pair of strong newcomers to their inside game with the addition of Meagan Samis (Oklahoma City, Okla.), a transfer from UNC Wilmington, and Miami native, the sister of former Old Dominion standout Corrina Turner. Samis transferred to Georgia Tech following a stellar campaign in which she garnered second-team all-colonial Athletic Association and CAA Rookie of the Year honors in addition to being named to the CAA All-Rookie team, and is talented both inside and outside of the paint. We are thrilled to have Meagan as a part of our program, said Joseph. She is a proven player in Division I athletics and was a top-five scorer in the CAA. I really think that she is the missing piece to our puzzle because she can shoot well and can play both inside and outside. She has great on-court vision, better than most post players, and as good as a guards. Rounding out the Georgia Tech post players is Turner, a great athlete from a very successful prep program who can challenge for playing time early in the season. Tabitha has been a pleasant surprise for us this fall, said Joseph. She has proven to be a winner both on and off the court and the toughness that she has displayed is a valuable asset to our program. The Guards With a year under her belt as one of the top scorers on the team, Nnamaka enters her sophomore season as one of just two returnees to start every game last year. Nnamaka was second on the team in scoring, with 12.7 points per game in , while also pulling down 4.6 rebounds per contest. The international standout begins her second year on the Flats with challenges of improving upon her stellar first year. In my opinion, Chioma is one of the top guards in the Atlantic Coast Conference. She was somewhat inconsistent throughout last season, and she knows that she has to be more consistent to reach an elite status, but she s probably the best shooter that I have ever coached and has the best work ethic of any player that I have ever been around. I am looking for a big season from Chioma this year. Joining Nnamaka in the backcourt is the Georgia Tech scoring leader Higgs, who earned honorable mention all-conference honors. The junior came back after scoring just 3.8 points per game during her rookie season to average more than 13 points per game last season, and she has been challenged to make those types of strides again entering her third year as a Yellow Jacket. Stephanie was the most improved player from a year ago, said Joseph. There were some games that she wasn t as consistent, and that is something that we asked her to work on this past summer. We also challenged her to make the same types of improvements that she did from her freshman year to her sophomore year, saying that if she did, she could become a complete player. That is something that she has taken very seriously. Her confidence has blossomed as a result, and she knows that she is a key contributor to our success and wants to be a key competitor in this conference., one of Tech s top guards over the last three years, returns for her senior campaign with the challenge of focusing solely on being a shooting guard. After a strong freshman campaign and great flashes during her sophomore year, the Dunwoody, Georgia, native struggled last season but is returning to a revamped offense that may suit her style of play more. With our moving to a motion offense, I think that the system will suit Megan a little better, said Joseph. I really think that she ll flourish in that system and with the confidence of her shot coming back over the summer, we are looking for a big senior year from her. The thing I respect about her the most is her work ethic and the intensity level that she brings every day. She has an 9

5 inner desire to get better and improve at everything that she does, be it basketball or academics. Shooting guard begins her first season on the Flats after a successful prep career in which she was a two-sport star in both basketball and track and field. A published poet, Phillips can play anywhere from shooting guard to the small forward position and could earn playing time this season with hard work. April is a very skilled player and a great scorer with her back to the basket, Joseph said. We ve challenged her to get in the best physical condition as possible, and know that she will rise to that challenge. Returning for her second year at the point guard position is Ingram, who started all but one game at the point position a season ago. After scoring 27 total points in her first two games, Ingram struggled at times throughout the season, and the coaches have challenged her to improve upon her consistency this year. Jill did a great job for us as a freshman leading a young team, said Joseph. The experience that she gained leading the team from the point guard position as a freshman was invaluable. She led us to some key victories last year, and showed some flashes of greatness. Seattle Times Female Athlete of the Year Jacqua Williams, a 5-6 native of Seattle, Wash., brings a different style of play to the point guard position. She ranks as one of the top-20 athletes in the nation after earning a pair of state championships in track during her prep career. I think that Jacqua is possibly the best athlete that we have on the team, said Joseph. She is one of the best on-ball defenders that I have ever seen, and will bring a different type of game to the court. We are very excited to have someone of this caliber backing up Jill at the point guard position. Rounding out the team is Melbourne, Australia, native Giuliett Ancora. Ancora returns as a capable backup at the point position whose key contributions have come on the Georgia Tech scout team. Giuliett is the most consistent player that we have on the team, said Joseph. She is a great leader, both on and off the court. She really helps our guards in practice with the intensity she brings to the game, especially on the defensive end of the court. She is a great student, and a very coachable person. The Schedule With match-ups against perennial a Top-25 team in the University of Georgia and a return trip from Tulsa in the first two months of the season, Georgia Tech s schedule looks to be one of the toughest the Yellow Jackets have had in recent years. The Yellow Jackets begin the season at UAB, a team in which Tech hosted last season that returns its entire team. It s always a challenge to play a team that returns everyone, said Joseph. But I also think that it will help us gauge where we are. Following that game we host three games at Alexander Memorial Coliseum, and that will help us work on some of the other challenges that we have. After a trip to crosstown rival Georgia State at the end of November, the Yellow Jackets will make their first appearance in Athens since 1989 to play Georgia. Georgia State is always a tough game for us, so I think that will be a another challenge, and then the opportunity to play a top-20 team like Georgia is great for our program. Georgia Tech will face another Southeastern Conference opponent in Kentucky in the Russell Athletic Shootout, which will be contested in January at the Gwinnett Arena. "We are also looking forward to playing Kentucky, because anytime that you play against an SEC team, you know that you are playing against one of the top teams in the nation. They are a program that is very similar to ours, and we re looking forward to that game. Anytime that teams from the ACC and SEC meet, you are always going to see a quality matchup and a great game, so we are very excited about that." With the expansion of the ACC over the summer, teams will play 14 league games while facing three teams twice. The Yellow Jackets will visit and play host to Clemson, Miami, and North Carolina this season while also hosting Duke, Wake Forest and Virginia Tech in single games. Georgia Tech till travel to Boston College, Virginia and NC State along with the home-and-home games against the Tigers, Tigers, Hurricanes and Tar Heels before closing out the season at the ACC Tournament, to be held again at the Greensboro Coliseum in North Carolina. Regardless of the additional competition in the league, one of the best schedules in the last few years, the holes to fill in the lineup, one thing remains the same: the constant goal for the Georgia Tech women's basketball program-making the NCAA Tournament. With an experienced team and strong coaching staff, the team may have the pieces in place to accomplish just that. Georgia Tech Women s Basketball Schedule NOVEMBER 11 Fri. PREMIER PLAYERS (Exhibition)... 7 p.m. 18 Fri. at UAB... 7 p.m. 20 Sun. ARKANSAS-PINE BLUFF... 2 p.m. 23 Wed. COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON... 7 p.m. 27 Sun. APPALACHIAN STATE... 2 p.m. 30 Wed. at Georgia State... 6 p.m. DECEMBER 4 Sun. at Georgia... 2 p.m. 9 Fri. SAN DIEGO... 7 p.m. 18 Sun. TULSA... 4 p.m. 20 Tues. LONGWOOD... TBA 22 Thur. TROY p.m Fri.-Sat. Georgia Tech/Atlanta Marriott NW Holiday Invitational... All Day 30 Fri. Georgia Tech vs. Alabama State... 1 p.m. 30 Fri. Brown vs. UMass... 3 p.m. 31 Sat. Consolation... 11:30 a.m. 31 Sat. Championship... 1:30 p.m. JANUARY 5 Thur. MIAMI*... 7 p.m. 8 Sun. at Clemson*... 3 p.m. 11 Wed. DUKE*... 7 p.m. 13 Sun. Russell Athletic Shootout, Gwinnett Arena, Duluth, Ga.... All Day 15 Sun. Georgia Tech vs. Kentucky (RSN)... 12:30 p.m. 13 Sun. Georgia vs. Miami (RSN)... 3 p.m. 18 Wed. at North Carolina*... 7 p.m. 22 Sun. WAKE FOREST* (RSN)... 1 p.m. 26 Thur. at Maryland*... 7 p.m. 29 Sun. CLEMSON*... 2 p.m. FEBRUARY 2 Thur. FLORIDA STATE*... 7 p.m. 5 Sun. NORTH CAROLINA*... 2 p.m. 9 Thur. at Boston College*... 7 p.m. 12 Sun. at NC State*... 2 p.m. 19 Sun. VIRGINIA TECH*... 2 p.m. 23 Thur. at Virginia*... 7 p.m. 26 Sun. at Miami* (RSN)... 1 p.m. MARCH 2-5 Thurs-Sun at ACC Tournament, Greensboro Coliseum, Greensboro, NC. TBA * - Atlantic Coast Conference Game RSN - Regional Sports Network (FSN South, Comcast Sports Net, Sunshine Network) All Times are Eastern and Subject to Change 10