Friday, Nov. 06, 2009

Blue Storm aim to get back on track

Team struggled to a 13-18 finish last season

The 2008-09 season was one Southwestern Illinois College women's basketball coach Mike Juenger would like to forget.

Ranked 15th in the NJCAA Division I preseason poll, the Blue Storm was stymied early by a brutally tough schedule and later by academic and discipline problems.

As a result, SWIC finished 13-18 and lost in the first round of the Region 24 Tournament.

"It was just a very long, difficult season for a number of reasons. But even with as many issues as we had, we were still able to finish third in the (Great Rivers Athletic Conference),'' Juenger said. "This season we're going back to having kids who want to work hard, are good shooters and play the kind of defense we did when we were ranked in the top five in the country defensively every year.''

Led by the sophomore trio of Alex Dotson, Serena Grapperhaus and Lauren Timmerman, the Blue Storm begins its 2009-10 season today when it plays Moberly (Mo.) Area Community College at the State Fair Community College Tournament in Sedalia, Mo.

The Moberly game is the start of a tough nonconference schedule, which includes State Fair, Mineral Area College and national power Jefferson College, all in the first three weeks. All of those teams are from Missouri.

"We play a very difficult early season schedule and it's starting to get to us. It's just very hard to schedule games because a lot of junior-varsity teams may not have enough players and teams like Jefferson and Mineral area want to play early in the season,'' Juenger said. "I believe playing tough teams makes us better for the tournament at the end of the year, but when you start the season 0-5 or 0-7, it's hard to not to have the girls get down on themselves.''

Grapperhaus, a 5-foot, 6-inch sophomore guard, leads a strong group of perimeter shooters, while Timmerman is a 6-0 post player with a nice touch from 10-to-12 feet.

Dotson, a 5-9 forward from St. Louis, is an athletically gifted player who has yet to reach her potential.

"One of our keys this season will be with Timmerman and Dotson in the post,'' Juenger said. "The three sophomores have been outstanding with their leadership and in trying to get the 10 freshmen we have acclimated to the college game.

"We're used to winning around here and these girls don't want be the first group to have back-to-back losing seasons.''

Another key will be the development of freshman point guard Alicia Kueker, from Perryville, Mo.

A point guard, Kueker handles the ball well, is a good passer and will be counted on to run the Blue Storm's offense.

Former Flora High player Hillary Johnson also will play some point guard.

SWIC has a number of good perimeter shooters in Grapperhaus and freshmen Haylee Althoff, from Okawville, and Brooke McNamara, from Collinsville.

"They (Althoff and McNamara) can flat out shoot the basketball. They're not great players, but they both have a chance to be Division I recruits someday, because they can flat light it up from the perimeter,'' Juenger said.

Other freshmen expected to make an impact include Troy's Trista Pierce, Belleville's Cedrica Reed and Shaniqua Smith, Goreville's Brittany Hood and Lebanon's Jessica Willmann.

Highly-touted freshman Kealee McAhan, of Kansas City, Mo., will miss the season with a knee injury.