An uphill climb for youthful women's basketball squad

The temperature is dropping, the days are getting shorter and a successful 2004 fall sports season is coming to close here at Princeton. While some are mourning the loss, the women's basketball team is gearing up to take the courts for yet another season.

Although several polls have predicted a repeat performance of last year's seventh-place finish in the Ivy League, the Tigers are hoping to improve their record and end the season in the top half of the conference.

These hopes are not entirely unfounded, as the team will return all five of its starters and add three promising freshmen to its roster. With only one senior, four juniors, four sophomores and three freshmen in the program, the squad will offer the perfect combination of experienced veterans and refreshing rookies who might have something new to add. The depth of the team holds promise for the future of the program beyond this season.

"It's a very positive thing for us to graduate only one senior [this year]," junior co-captain and guard Ali Smith said. "It leaves the rest of us to play with each other next year as well."

But in order to reinvigorate the program for future years, the team will have to focus this season on execution and a smooth transition into a novel offensive strategy.

And after several close losses last year, the Tigers will have to minimize mistakes and become more efficient in capitalizing on their opponent's errors.

"We have the athleticism and talent," Smith said. "It's just a matter of how well we execute what we are trying to do."

The return of All-Ivy junior forward Becky Brown, as well as All-Rookie sophomore forward Casey Lockwood, who is one of the three captains this season, and sophomore forward Katy Digovich should give the level of play a boost this season.

It will also be up to the three new additions to the team to raise Princeton to new heights. Guard Meagan Cowher, guard Ali Prichard and forward Ariel Rogers all come from strong basketball backgrounds, including breaking high school records and taking their high school teams to their best season finishes ever. The talented freshmen are a welcome addition to the Tiger program, but they will have to live up to the hype that has surrounded them since being recruited.

Although the team's first game of the season isn't until Nov. 19 against Monmouth, it will get its first test this weekend when it scrimmages Rider. The scrimmage should illuminate what changes have been successful and what the team will need to work on as it enters into a very tough first few weeks of the regular season.

"We've got a lot to work on, but we're really pleased with how we look now, three weeks into the season," Smith said. "We're excited to execute our changes against Rider next weekend."

The Tigers will not face an Ivy League team until January, when they take on Brown. The first game against preseason favorite Dartmouth is not until February, shortly before Princeton plays Cornell, the only team to place beneath the Tigers at the end of last year.

Get the best of the ‘Prince’ delivered straight to your inbox. Subscribe now »

Though the expectations are varied, the members of the women's basketball team are hoping to improve on last season's finish. Through the successful execution of new strategies, as well as a minimization of mistakes and the utilization of both new and old talent, Princeton could have a happy winter season.