WOLFPACK WBB CONTINUES ITS DEVELOPMENT (LOOK BACK AT 2009-10) February 22, 2010
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(A.Snucins photo)
The road to respectability is a long one, especially in University women’s basketball. So, although the Thompson Rivers University WolfPack picked up seven wins in 2009-10, that is still a big accomplishment.
“We made some big strides this year and closed a lot of gaps on teams,” said WolfPack head coach Scott Reeves, who finished up his fourth season with the program. “ We broke a number of school records including attendance, which was nice to see. It’ didn’t equate into enough conference wins but we did have seven against CIS opponents. We’ll be adding some pieces over the summer and playoffs is certainly on our mind and will be a focus this year.”
The WolfPack got off to a great start to the season, winning two of three at a pre-season tourney in New Brunswick before opening up with back to back wins over the University of the Fraser Valley on the opening weekend of the Canada West season. The team did suffer some ups and downs during the course of the campaign, usually occurring in the fourth quarter. ‘ Off the court, this is the tightest group we have ever had,” stated Reeves “ Young players got time to develop and now we need to commit to our off season workout program in order to improve for next season.”
The team’s backcourt improved dramatically thanks to the arrival of Jen Ju (2nd year, Vancouver, BC) from U.S. Junior College. But, one of the brightest signs for the future came with the maturing of 3rd year guard Kaitlyn Widsten (Tswwassen, BC). Widsten was the leading scorer for the ‘Pack in seven of their last 10 league games. “Statistically, we were much better in a number of categories,” the coach explains. “ Jen was a terrific addition for our offense. She can relieve pressure and is learning our half court offense. Diane’s (Schuetze, 2nd year, post, Vernon, BC) foot work is much improved and I am looking for big improvements in her game over the summer. Kaitlyn was outstanding in the second half and should be a staple for us next season.”
The Canada West is arguably the toughest league in the country. The WolfPack have been garnering more respect among the other teams and are looking for a break out campaign in 2010-11. Reeves has sent the message to his returnees that more will be expected and demanded come next year. “ We need to commit to the entire student athlete experience,’ he says . “ We will have triple the amount of Academic All-Canadians this year so that shows their maturity in the classroom. This off season will show their commitment to the basketball aspect of this experience. Players are made in the off season.”
As Reeves gets set to recruit for the coming season, he has two things on his wish list: “rounding out our guard play and improving upon our toughness inside.”
TRU WOLFPACK ATHLETICS: PROUD HOSTS OF THE 2010 CIS MENS NATIONAL VOLLEYBALL CHAMPIONSHIPS-MARCH 12-14 TH TOURNAMENT CAPITAL CENTER, KAMLOOPS BC.
WEBSITE: http://english.cis-sic.ca/championships/mvball/index http://francais.cis-sic.ca/championships/mvball/index
WBB CLOSES OUT SEASON WITH DEFEAT TO SFU February 6, 2010
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Kailey Colonna (A. Snucins photo)
Although the Clan move to a nation best 16 and 0, head coach Bruce Langford wasn’t happy with his team’s performance. “ I thought we struggled a bit,” he said. “ We experimented a bit with our defence in the first half. In the third quarter, we went back to what we knew .”
The first half saw the WolfPack down 23-16. SFU led 41 to 30 at half time. The third quarter saw SFU go on a 12-0 run to go from a 48-35 lead to a 60-35 advantage.
WolfPack head coach Scott Reeves believe his teams downfall on this night was their achillies heel throughout the season: turnovers. They gave up 30 in comparison to SFU’s 18.
“ And finishing too,” he said. “ They finish their inside stuff—their layups and transition. They attack the basket and make it or at least get a free throw. We have a tendency not to finish.”
Reeves plans to upgrade his teams off-season development program to focus in on those short comings.
The WolfPack did go 12 for 25 on field goals in the first half (48.0%) while SFU was 15 of 33 (45.5 %).
SFU had three players in double digits: Robyn Buna (4th year, forward, Kelowna, BC) had 16 points to lead her team. That was one point beter than Katie Miyazaki (3rd year, guard, Richmond, BC) and two better than Kate Hole (4th year, post, St. Albert. Ab).
The games high scorer was Kaitlyn Widsten of TRU. The third year guard from Tswwassen, BC had 22 points. She got praise from both coaches.
“I thought that Widsten was very outstanding for them,” said Bruce Langford “ She hit some tough shots.”
“ She was outstanding,” Reeves stated. “She shot the ball well. They gave her looks but she knocked them down. As a third year kid, she has been in our system a while. With the potential she has, she should be making those shots. I am very proud of Kaitlyn.”
Widsten was the TRU Bookstore “Leader of the Pack” player of the game for her efforts. Kali Ellis (4th year, guard, Campbell River, BC) was next for the WolfPack with 8 points.
SFU outrebounded TRU 35-31 in the contest.
DOUBLE DRIBBLES: Reeves has sent a message to his young team: it’s time to improve on their skills going into 2010-11. “ We have focused more on fitness in the past. I’m going to have to balance that a bit more. The young period is over. They know what we want from them and what is expected. They have to bring it next year.
TRU WOLFPACK ATHLETICS: PROUD HOSTS OF THE 2010 CIS MENS NATIONAL VOLLEYBALL CHAMPIONSHIPS-MARCH 12-14 TH TOURNAMENT CAPITAL CENTER, KAMLOOPS BC
WBB GIVE SFU A SCARE BUT FALL SHORT IN FIRST OF WEEKEND SERIES February 5, 2010
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Lindsay Dekoff (A. Snucins photo)
The Thompson Rivers University WolfPack gave the Simon Fraser Clan a run for it’s money in the first quarter of their Canada West women’s basketball game at the Tournament Capital Center on Friday night (Feb 5 th). But, like 14 opponents before them, the WolfPack didn’t have enough to follow through as the Clan captured their 15 th straight win of the season and extended their overall winning streak to 53 games. The score at the TCC was 88-49 in favour of SFU. The Clan are now 15 and 0 on the season. TRU dips to 3 and 14.
The WolfPack’s defensive strategy in the first quarter seemed to have the Clan on their heels. The teams were tied at 17 until Carly Graham (3rd year, guard, Surrey, BC) put in a three pointer at the buzzer to give the Clan a three point lead. They then went on a 22-4 run to take a 45-28 lead at the half.
“Our team battled hard,” said WolfPack head coach Scott Reeves. “If they didn’t h it that three pointer at the buzzer, it would have seen the number one team in the country tied with a team that is not number one. It was a great effort in that quarter. We played our defensive scheme the way we wanted to. But, they are a huge team and they created some match up problems for us. I knew rebounding would be a problem for us. “ The Clan outrebounded TRU 44-29 in the contest.
From the first quarter on, although the WolfPack players tried valiantly to get back into the game, they were overmatched by the more experienced Clan.
“When they get that amount of chances to score from the floor (47 per cent) they are going to make it.” Reeves stated.
The Clan had three players in double figures. Laurelle Weigl (4th year, post, Stony Plain, Alta)had 20 points. Kate Hole (4th year, post, St. Albert, Alta) chipped in with 11 points and Nayo Raincock-Ekuwe (1st year, post, Vernon, BC) chipped in with 10.
SFU coach Bruce Langford acknowledged that his team did put on a basketball clinic at times during the contest. “We are pretty deep,” he said. “ If someone has an off night, somebody else steps up. We certainly had a lot of success this year…averaging 89 points per game and giving up the low 50’s. This game was typical of many nights.”
The WolfPack were led by Kaitlyn Widsten (3rd year, guard, Tswwassen, BC) and Kayla Forsyth (3rd year, forward, Vernon, BC) with eight points a piece. Forsyth was named the TRU Bookstore “Leader of the Pack” player of the game.
Reeves was pleased with the character his team showed until the end. “ They did put in a good effort. I have never challenged the work ethic of this team. We are young and we still make mistakes. We have to grow out of those mistakes and take care of the basketball. We had stretches of three or four minutes where we wouldn’t have a shot. We turned it over. But, we’ll get over that.”
The same two teams will close out the Canada West regular season Saturday (Feb 6) at the Tournament Capital Center. Tip off is 6 pm.
DOUBLE DRIBBLES: The game saw the return of WolfPack guard Beth McNeill (2nd year, North Vancouver, BC). “ It was nice to see her feeling OK,” Reeves stated . “Finally her back is feeling better. She had only five practices up to the second weekend of the second half of the season. I knew we had to get a lot of people in because of the match up problems. I thought she did well.”
McNeill wound up with three points and two rebounds in 14 minutes of court time.
TRU WOLFPACK ATHLETICS: PROUD HOSTS OF THE 2010 CIS MENS NATIONAL VOLLEYBALL CHAMPIONSHIPS-MARCH 12-14 TH TOURNAMENT CAPITAL CENTER, KAMLOOPS BC
WOLFPACK WBB CLOSING OUT REGULAR SEASON AGAINST TOP TEAM IN CIS February 4, 2010
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(A. Snucins photo)
What a way to end the season. The Thompson Rivers University WolfPack will close out the 2009-10 Canada West women’s basketball season by hosting the Simon Fraser University Clan. Not only, is it the final home and regular season games for the WolfPack, but it is also likely the last time basketball fans of Kamloops will see the Clan. SFU is poised to enter the NCAA next season.
“It is always a privilege to have the number one team in the country come into your gym,” says WolfPack head coach Scott Reeves, who is coming to the conclusion of his fourth year at the helm of the TRU program. “ It shows the level of commitment to play at this level.”
Reeves believes SFU will be at the top of their game as are carrying a 14-0 record into the weekend. They have also won 52 straight contests heading into Friday’s (Feb 5) 6 pm tilt with the 3 and 13 ‘Pack.
The WolfPack are hoping to gauge how far they’ve improved as they face arguably the best women’s basketball program in Canada over the past five years. The top ranked team in the CIS features the top three point shooter in the Canada West (Robyn Buna of Kelowna, BC: 35 averaging 2.69 per game), The best field goal shooter (Nayo Raincock-Ekunwe of Vernon, BC: good 55 of 74 for a .743 per centage), and the player holding the best Assist-Turnover Ratio (Kristina Collins, Port Coquitlam, BC: 13 games, 45 assists, 3.5 average, 27 turnovers for an average of 2.1 and a ratio of 1.67).
Buna (4th year forward, is ninth in the Canada West in scoring (averaging 14.7 points per game). Another player on SFU to watch is 3rd year guard Katie Mizyazaki (3rd year forward, Richmond, BC). She is fourth in assists (48 for an average of 4.00) and second in assist-turnover ratio (1.66.)
“We need to close out on their shooters and rebound,” said Reeves in plotting his game plan against the Clan “ they shoot a very high percentage and love to run the ball.”
One of the hottest players for the WolfPack of late has been 3rd year guard Kaitlyn Widsten (Tswwassen, BC). She has been the teams leading scorer in five of the ‘Pack’s games since the year 2010 began.
The WolfPack sit fourth in the Canada West in defensive rebounds (425 in 16 games for an average of 26.6), sixth in blocked shots (44 in 16 games averaging 2.8 per game), sixth in offensive rebounds (averaging 39.7 per game) and sixth in three pointers made (90 in 16 games for a 5.6 per game average).
Game time Friday is 6 pm at the Tournament Capital Center. The two teams will meet again Saturday (Feb 6) at 5 pm.
FREE THROWS: The game Friday will see elementary school players from Lloyd George Elementary in Kamloops playing. Friday is also International Student Recognition Night.
TRU WOLFPACK ATHLETICS: PROUD HOSTS OF THE 2010 CIS MENS NATIONAL VOLLEYBALL CHAMPIONSHIPS-MARCH 12-14 TH TOURNAENT CAPITAL CENTER, KAMLOOPS BC
WOLFPACK WOMEN’S BASKETBALL HELPING YOUTH February 3, 2010
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Kaitlyn Widsten teaching dribbling
Giving back to the sport. That is what members of the Thompson Rivers University WolfPack women’s basketball have been doing for the past month. Four members of the team: Jessica Mulock (red shirt, forward, North Vancouver, BC), Kaitlyn Widsten (3rd year, guard, Tswwassen, BC), Beth McNeill (2nd year, guard, North Vancouver, BC) and Diane Schuetze (2nd year, post, Vernon, BC) have taken time out to conduct noon hour clinics at Rayleigh Elementary School.
The girls are just the latest from the WolfPack Athletics program to spend time teaching at the school. Bill Koch is the principal at Rayleigh Elementary and has had members of the WolfPack program at the rural school for the last five years. Earlier this season, he hired volleyball players Lindsey Niminkin (5th year, setter, South Slocan, BC) and Brittany Bureau (1st year, middle, Calgary, Alta) to run a month long session.
“It was a combination of factors that got us interested in having the WolfPack athletes come to the school,” he said. “At first, it was the desire to give athletics a high profile in our school and the fact we had few coaches. The other, was to provide role models of high performing athletes in our city and how they are able to combine academic excellence along with sports. I also would rather deal with kids in positive ways rather than following up noon hour behaviours from kids that had ‘nothing to do’. I think through this partnership, we have achieved these goals.”
Koch specifically asked the WolfPack to send female athletes: with the hope that young girls in his school would take up sports. And how has he seen the sessions go as an educator? “ Our students have been allowed to take part in fun exercise and it’s helped them be better focused for afternoon classes. They’ve had a lot of fun with the ‘mini camps’.”
“It’s definitely been interesting and not entirely what I thought it would be,” said Mulock about working with the grade 4-7 students.
“Its such a short time, it’s difficult to get to know them or teach them anything too in depth,” added Widsten. “But they are a very energetic group of kids.”
“I don’t know if they retained much after the fact but they did attempt everything we gave them.” said Schuetze.
Over the last month, the WolfPack players have been working on fundamentals with the students. As the youngsters grow in their skill level, the players have learned something about what it is like to be a teacher or a coach. “ You really have to watch what you say and give clear instructions,” Mulock explains. “ Just because you said hold the basketball doesn’t mean that it will still apply a few minutes later.”
The experience did prompt them to remember back to when they were that age “ I remember being a little more focused though,” Mulock laughed “ During these rare kind of coaching sessions, I really wanted to learn.”
Looking back at the last month, The TRU Players are hoping they have left an impression on the students at Rayleigh. The students have certainly left the WolfPack players with moments they won’t soon forget. “Sometimes, I think they should have invested in a rugby team,” laughed Shuetze. “That’s because they loved to tackle each other”.
The program started at Rayleigh Elementary is starting to grow in School District # 73 (Kamloops-Thompson). Westmount Elementary has hired two members of the WolfPack soccer program to conduct clinics at their school in April.
TRU WOLFPACK ATHLETICS: PROUD HOSTS OF THE 2010 CIS MENS NATIONAL VOLLEYBALL CHAMPIONSHIPS-MARCH 12-14 TH TOURNAENT CAPITAL CENTER, KAMLOOPS BC
Kaitlyn Widsten and Jessica Mulock demonstrate how to dribble
Jessica Mulock with students at Rayleigh Elementary