2006-07 Women's Basketball Season Preview

Lady Red Hawks deep and dangerous

- (11/1/2006)

    With a system in place and a year of recruiting at Simpson under her belt, Simpson University women's basketball Head Coach Elizabeth Manninen hopes to see a quick turnaround from a 7-24 season a year ago.  The 2006-07 Red Hawks return three starters after losing point guard Kim Aiello and Nicole Hall.  Hall is now on the bench as an assistant coach.   Leading the way is 6-foot sophomore forward Sara Fairburn.  In her freshman campaign, Fairburn was consistent and solid, averaging thirteen points and six rebounds a game.

    Also back is guard Katie Garringer, who really came into her own late last year to average seven points a game.  Defensive stopper, and lone senior on this year's team, is Cristina Catalan.  The biggest difference between this year's team and last, and perhaps their greatest strength is depth.  Coach Manninen has recruited a full roster of fourteen, compared to the roster she was handed last year of eight.  Simpson not only has a full roster, but has talent and athleticism all the way through it.

    With a new roster of players created largely through recruiting, a potential weakness comes into play.  The Lady Red Hawks are young, very young.  With just three upperclassmen, Simpson has six freshman on the roster.  In order for this season to be a success, the Lady Red Hawks will need immediate contributions from its youngsters.  Chalynn Passmore (Fr., Anderson), along with sophomore Deidra King will take over the hole left at point guard by the graduation of Aiello.

    At the shooting guard position, a post formerly held by Nicole Hall, red shirt sophomore LaToya Scott and JC transfer Kelsey Lang are very capable of hitting from beyond the arch.  The depth provided by freshman Amanda Duchien, Nikki Hopkins, and Rose Worley will take some pressure of Fairburn as the trio gets valuable minutes in the paint.

    As with any young team, much of their success early will be based on teamwork.  The quicker the team comes together and learns how to play together, the quicker the Lady Red Hawks will be a serious threat to opponents. 

POINT GUARDS
    The Red Hawks lost an experienced point guard in Kim Aiello from 2005-06, but have lots of talent to fill the hole.  Freshman Chalynn Passmore is quick and aggressive on the drive and averaged double-digit points in HS.  Sophomore Deidra King has a year of collegiate experience to go with a storied high school career.

GUARDS
    The Red Hawks are young and talented at the guard position.  Sharp-shooters LaToya Scott and Kelsey Lang will light up teams from long-distance.  Size isn’t an issue for Cristina Catalan, the lone senior on the team, and Matilde Bongato, who will pester opposing offensives with quickness and tenacious defense.  Katie Garringer, a strong finisher, joins a talented group of newcomers in Mandy Reed, Ashley Johnson-McKoen, and Carly Barnes.

FORWARDS/ POSTS
    Headlined by returner Sara Fairburn, the Red Hawks low-post game has improved in depth and talent this time around.  Nikki Hopkins has the size and moves down low to make an immediate impact.