Oct. 12, 2007
DAYTON, Ohio - It's that time of year again -The University of Dayton women's basketball team will hit the brand-new Blackburn Court at UD Arena for its first practice on Saturday at 3 p.m. ET.
The Flyers return 12 players, including all but one starter from last year's 12-19 squad that advanced to the Second Day of the A-10 Tournament for the second year in a row.
With a lot of new faces on the team, and the leadership of six seniors, it seems to be the perfect recipe for success.
Among the returning seniors are Nikki Oakland and Brittany Holterman, the number two and three leading scorers (averaging 11.5 and 8.9 points per game respectively) from last season. Oakland was also one of the top shot blockers in the A-10 with 49 last season while Holterman was among the leaders in offensive rebounds as 89 of her 184 boards came off the offensive glass (.483).
This year's freshmen should prove to be key factors in the improvement of UD's women's program. Kristin Daugherty, of Fresno, OH, led her high school team to back-to-back State Championships, finishing as River View's all-time leading scorer with over 1,800 career points (averaging 20 points per game). Ebony Gainey was a two-time All-Ohio Selection, averaging 11.6 points and 10.5 rebounds per game as a senior at Meadowdale High School in Dayton, among numerous other achievements.
In addition to these two newcomers, Head Coach Jim Jabir and Assistant Susan Blauser have welcomed assistants Kyle Rechlicz and Lesley Dickinson to the coaching staff.
The energy and enthusiasm brought to the program by these new faces, along with the wide range of experience on the court, should give Dayton the chance to compete with the elite in an Atlantic 10 Conference that has sent five teams to the post season in each of the past two years.
The 2007-2008 season kicks off on Saturday, Oct. 27th at the UD Arena with the Flyer's annual Red and Blue scrimmage at 10 a.m. ET. Flyer Fans can also mark their calendars for the Nov. 3rd exhibition game vs. Ohio Legends, to be held at the UD Arena. Tip off is at 2 p.m. ET.
Dayton will open its regular season with the Women's Sports Foundation Tournment in Albuquerque, New Mexico. UD will face Northwestern, host New Mexico and Western Michigan in the three-day tournament on Nov. 9-11.
