By Emily Unsworth
Some of you may remember the WNBA slogan “We Got Next.” These words are a perfect way to describe the Northeastern freshmen women’s basketball players. They are up and coming and have been an important ingredient to the team’s five wins in the past six games. So far the season has proven to be a whirlwind of both ups and downs, but each player maintains that as long as they are in it together, they’ll do just fine.
After this season the team will be losing two seniors, Lori Newsome and Laurie Harris, both assets to the team. But it seems as though the team will be in good hands after their departure. One thing that each freshman could agree unanimously upon was the fact that they would have to work extra hard in order to meet their coach’s expectations, and that they are. Coach Willette White admits they are fitting in just right.
“They have definitely been a really important part of our success at this time,” she said.
To prove that the freshmen players are up to the challenge of Division 1 basketball, in their last game over Albany, the two high scorers were none other than those newest to the team, Maralene Zwarich and Michelle Decerbo. Rookies or not, White admits when the girls hit the court, she does not think of their age, just as another one of her players.
“I don’t think of them as freshmen, it’s about what’s here right now,” White said. “Everyone is contributing each game. Each and every night it’s someone different, and that night it happened to be freshmen.”
Lindsay Mansi, Katarina Andersson, and Erica Sheppard round out the rest of the 2002-2003 freshmen roster.
It is a given that playing Division 1 basketball is a huge transition from high school ball. Zwarich, a guard from Kansas, agrees.
“In the beginning it was really hard. I had to learn to gel with six new players, but what got me through was the whole time we believed we could do it,” she said. “Although it is a lot harder work than high school and shares both its good and bad times, it is a lot of fun. Overall it has been a really good experience and I am sure it will keep getting even better.”
Decerbo, a forward from Naugatuck, Conn. agrees that adjusting to college basketball has definitely not been an easy thing to do.
“It has been a lot of fun so far, but definitely more intense. Playing college basketball has taken quite a few adjustments, both physically and mentally,” she said.
She also admits not knowing what to expect coming to play for a Division 1 team. What she did know, however, was that a lot more would be expected of her than what she was used to.
“This type of basketball is at an entirely new level. People are a lot stronger and much smarter,” she added.
The Huskies are currently 6-4 in the American East and 8-13 overall. The season has repeatedly proved to have both its high and low points. However, the women Huskies have no time to look back on the mistakes they have made, only time to look ahead to the future and what they are capable of accomplishing. Every player would agree they wouldn’t mind keeping the winning streak going for a little longer.
Joi Jefferson, a veteran junior on the team, admits the good and bad times do not seem as bad as others she has gone through in the past.
“This year has been a lot easier, although it has definitely been a learning experience that has pushed us to be better,” she said. “What has gotten us through it all though, is the fact that we always stay together.”
Jefferson’s feelings toward how the freshmen have adjusted are just as positive.
“They have adjusted tremendously, and have overcome all the coaches put forth to them with a great attitude,” she added.
The expectations of the freshmen seem to have been met by both their fellow players and coaches.
The key to this Husky team is not the right amount of Gatorade or even home court advantage. The key to having this team be successful is the fact they are all in it together. Decerbo says it best when she says, “We’ve gelled together so well. We just need to keep doing what we’re doing and we know we’re going to be ok.”
